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Neighbors Shocked After San Mateo Woman Confesses She Killed Friend With Baseball Bat

SAN MATEO (KPIX 5) -- Neighbors in a San Mateo neighborhood are expressing shock after learning a woman allegedly beat her 66-year-old friend to death with a baseball bat Saturday night, at their apartment building.

Police said 40-year-old Brenda Martinez came to the police station Saturday night and confessed.

"The suspect actually told us that she hit the victim with a bat," said detective Sgt. Glen Teixeira.

"She was cooperative, she was talkative. There were times when she was overcome with emotion."

Officers said the victim was pronounced dead at the scene with "obvious head trauma."

Martinez told police the two were just talking about life.

"She didn't like the discussion. She didn't like where it was going and she didn't want to talk about it, and got mad and grabbed the bat and hit the victim in the head," said Teixeira.

Neighbor David Peters has lived in a unit between the two women for several years. He said he had no idea Martinez confessed to the beating death of the woman he knew as Ellie.

"It wouldn't surprise me that she could," said Peters. "She was a big lady, relatively young. Ellie was older, about 60 years old, and had quite a few physical limitations."

He said he did not hear the two women arguing.

Manu Finaul lived across the street. He said he often saw the women together.

"They were friends. They've been there ever since we can remember," he said

Police arrested Martinez and said she is the only suspect. They took into evidence the bat they believe was the weapon.

So far, investigators have not released the full name of the victim.

© Copyright 2015 by CBS San Francisco and Bay City News Service. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed

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