Man Dies After Being Beaten in His Home

A power plant engineer bludgeoned in his San Clemente apartment died Tuesday night as authorities searched for a woman seen leaving the apartment after a loud confrontation Monday and a man later seen entering.

Charles Ray George, 54, was found unconscious on his living room floor at about 9:30 p.m. Monday, Sheriff’s spokesman Jim Amormino said. Neighbors reported seeing a woman leave the victim’s apartment on South El Camino Real at about 9 p.m., Amormino said.

About 20 minutes later, neighbors saw a man carrying a black flashlight climb the stairs to the victim’s upstairs apartment. The man smashed the victim’s window several times with the flashlight, leaving baseball-size holes in the glass, according to police.

The man then entered the victim’s apartment and apparently struck him on the head several times, Amormino said.

The motive for the beating was unclear.

Authorities are investigating the possibility that the woman was an adult entertainer hired by the victim and that the man with the flashlight was working with her.

The pair reportedly left the complex together in a brown compact car, Amormino said.