Suspect in homeless shelter fatal shooting arrested

BERKELEY — A man suspected to have pulled the trigger in a shooting that killed another man at a homeless shelter has been arrested, police said Tuesday.

Officers spotted the man – who authorities identified Tuesday as 62-year-old Mark Christopher Dowling — in a parked car in the area of Fourth and Camelia streets about 10:30 a.m. Monday, according to a statement from Berkeley police. They arrested him without incident.

Police said he had no known address.

The Alameda County District Attorney’s Office on Tuesday filed formal murder charges against Dowling, authorities said.

The shooting Sunday evening killed a 37-year-old man; authorities had not released his identity as of Tuesday afternoon. Police said it happened just before 5:30 p.m. inside the Ursula Sherman Village in the 700 block of Harrison Street. Paramedics tried to render aid, but the person was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police said officers at that scene determined that Dowling was the main suspect and obtained a warrant for his arrest. Authorities said they found several guns and ammunition when they searched the vehicle.

The nonprofit Building Opportunities for Self-Sufficiency, also known as BOSS, operates the homeless shelter where the homicide took place. CEO Donald Frazier declined to comment Tuesday.

The homicide investigation is the fourth this year by Berkeley police. They investigated two homicides in 2023.