Police: Northern California man bludgeons dad to death with sledgehammer

A Santa Rosa man was arrested on a charge of suspicion of strangling and bludgeoning his 64-year-old father to death with a sledgehammer, police said.

Angelo Michael Lancaster, who also goes by Kartar Khalsa, was taken into custody for burglary and murdering his father, Simran Khalsa, according to Santa Rosa police.

“He was apparently angry with his father over an earlier dispute,” said Sgt. David Linscomb.

Lancaster, 33, of Santa Rosa lived in an apartment attached to the main home in the 600 block of Wright Street in Santa Rosa, where police found Khalsa, he said.

While carrying a sledgehammer, he shattered the main home’s glass front door, entered the home and got into an argument with his father, according to the sergeant.

Lancaster then approached his father and strangled and bludgeoned him with the sledgehammer, Linscomb said.

A relative called police to notify them of the attack.

Soon after, police found Lancaster hiding in the backyard.

For breaking news in Los Angeles and throughout California, follow @VeronicaRochaLA. She can be reached at veronica.rocha@latimes.com.