Arrest Made In Murder Of Kensington Man
KENSINGTON (CBS SF) -- An Albany woman was arrested early Tuesday morning in connection to the death of a man found in his Kensington home late Monday morning, Kensington police said.
James Edward Durkin Jr. was found dead inside his home in the 600 block of Coventry Road after police were sent to his home for a welfare check at 11:47 a.m., police said.
Durkin had been stabbed and still had a knife sticking out of him when he was found. He was pronounced dead shortly after police arrived, at 11:55 a.m.
Police later identified Diane Wyn Sydenham, 56, as a suspect and arrested her at a home in the 700 block of Kains Avenue in Albany Tuesday morning at 12:56 a.m., police said.
She is being held on $1 million bail at the Martinez Detention Facility on suspicion of murder, police said.
Durkin and Sydenham knew each other prior to Durkin's death, according to police, but investigators are still trying to determine the extent of their relationship.
A neighbor who lives about six houses down from Durkin's said he saw several police cars parked on the block around 11 a.m. Monday.
"The neighbors are shocked," Bob Bekes, 69, said.
Bekes, who has lived on Coventry Road for 26 years, said he didn't personally know Durkin but he often saw an older man driving from the home in the morning.
"I don't know what to make of it," he said. "Usually nothing goes on here."
Bekes is a Santa Clara University professor who lives on the street with his wife. He said he didn't know someone had been killed up the block until early Tuesday morning when a neighbor called with the news.
"I'm going to lock the doors tonight," Bekes said.
Kensington is a small Contra Costa County community nestled near the Berkeley Hills at the Alameda County border with about 5,000 residents.
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