Suspect arrested in brutal San Francisco attack caught on video

San Francisco police said 25-year-old Oakland resident Melton Earl Kelly was arrested Sunday in connection with an assault near Union Square. San Francisco police said 25-year-old Oakland resident Melton Earl Kelly was arrested Sunday in connection with an assault near Union Square. Photo: San Francisco Police Department Photo: San Francisco Police Department Image 1 of / 33 Caption Close Suspect arrested in brutal San Francisco attack caught on video 1 / 33 Back to Gallery

The manhunt for a suspect wanted in a brazen beating near Union Square ended Sunday with his arrest just blocks away from where the crime occurred, according to San Francisco police.

Police identified 25-year-old Oakland resident Melton Earl Kelly as the suspect captured on video punching and stomping on a victim Friday near a crowded intersection at Cyril Magnin and Eddy streets. Police arrested Kelly at 7:19 a.m. Sunday on the 300 block of Ellis Street.

Later Sunday, Kelly was to be booked into the San Francisco County Jail on 11 felony charges, including attempted murder, robbery and mayhem, police said in a statement.

In the graphic video, which a witness posted on YouTube and Twitter, an assailant in a black hoodie and black pants is seen attacking a second man in a gray-and-white hoodie. At one point during the attack, a man is heard repeatedly yelling, “I can’t breathe.”

Onlookers in the footage urged the attacker to stop, one saying “you’re about to kill him,” and at one point a third man attempts to intervene.

The assailant is later seen taking items from the victim’s pockets before walking away. Bystanders are seen helping the victim at the end of the video and asking that someone call 911.

Jenny Shao, who uploaded the video, wrote in a caption for the video that a security guard at the nearby Carl’s Jr. told her the two “were arguing over the rights to a Bluetooth speaker they stole from someone or somewhere.”

“It quickly escalated into a brawl,” she added.

The area next to BART’s Powell Street Station is a popular shopping destination that draws throngs of tourists daily.

San Francisco investigators identified Kelly as the suspect Saturday evening and released a mug shot of him.

Megan Cassidy is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: megan.cassidy@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @meganrcassidy