A woman was killed in a brutal attack on the campus of El Camino College near Torrance, California, over the weekend, leaving her loved ones heartbroken.

The woman, who was in her 60s, was walking her dog on the morning of Christmas Eve around 7 a.m. when the attack occurred, campus police said.

She was picking up recyclables when a man with a sledgehammer hit her, police said. He ran away before the police got there.

Someone saw the woman lying next to the gym building. The police found her bleeding from her head and not awake.

Her dog stayed with her. She was taken to a nearby hospital by paramedics, but she passed away on Christmas Day from her wounds.

Campus police watched the security video and recognized the suspect as Jeffery Davis, 40, a man they had seen in the area before.

Sgt. Francisco Esqueda of El Camino College Police said, “We had an idea of who the person on the security video was. We think he is a homeless person we have seen before. We found him at the nearby county park where he sometimes stays.”

The woman had been walking her dog in the neighborhood for years, residents said.

A neighbor of the victim said she heard about the attack from the victim’s family when she tried to give her a gift.

The attack has made some people in the area nervous.

A local resident said, “It’s frightening that many people come to this area where families live. You may think they are just homeless people, but you don’t know their mental or psychological state, so it’s very scary.”

The police arrested Davis and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is still investigating the case. He is in jail without bail.

The L.A. County Department of Medical Examiner will find out the official cause of death for the victim.

People who know anything about this incident can contact the LASD’s Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. They can also send tips anonymously to “Crime Stoppers” at 800-222-8477 or on the website lacrimestoppers.org.