Man dies after being hit in head with skateboard during fight in Santa Ana Starbucks

SANTA ANA, Calif. (KABC) -- A man was killed after being hit in the head with a skateboard in an act of self-defense during a fight in a Santa Ana Starbucks.

Around 12:30 p.m. Tuesday, a fight broke out between two men in the 3300 block of South Bristol Street. Authorities received calls regarding an assault with a deadly weapon inside the Starbucks.

After authorities arrived, a man in his 50s was transported to Orange County Global Medical Center where he succumbed to his injuries.

The other person involved, a man in his 20s, remained at the scene. He was taken to the Santa Ana Police Department for questioning.

It was unclear what led to the fight, but witness Carmen Gomez, who worked nearby said the man in his 50s was yelling and screaming at her.

"He was like, 'You're going to pay. You're going to pay. Everybody's going to pay.' That's when I walked away and I thought this guy is talking a little gibberish," she said.

Witnesses also said the man appeared to be acting erratically outside of the coffee shop, even banging on one of the shop's front windows.

The witness added that the man walked into the store, approached the younger man who was with his girlfriend seated at a table and began acting aggressively toward him, which may have led to the confrontation.

"Who started the fight, why it happened - those are all things that are going to have to come up, but we have to go through the process of interviewing all the witnesses," SAPD Cpl. Anthony Bertagna said.

Gomez said she tried to comfort the skateboarder after the victim was transported to the hospital. She said she assured the young man that he had done nothing wrong and that the victim seemed to be looking for a fight.

The victim's name has not been released. Authorities said the man in his 20s was cooperating with the investigation.