Chilling message Netflix football coach sent college bosses HOURS before he was shot dead on campus
College football ‘icon’ John Beam complained about campus safety at Laney College just a day before he was shot dead.
Cedric Irving Jr, 27, has been charged with the murder of Beam, Laney’s athletic director who starred in Netflix series ‘Last Chance U’ and spent four and a half decades as a college football coach.
Beam was shot last Thursday – in what police called a ‘targeted incident’ – and it has now emerged the 66-year-old admitted to feeling less safe on campus only hours earlier.
He raised particular concerns with security at the field house, where he was killed. That is according to The Citizen, who reported that Beam spoke at a ‘Taco ‘Bout Safety’ event on Wednesday.
The 66-year-old highlighted a nearby fire and a break-in at the field house and said he felt more vulnerable since armed deputies had stopped protecting the school.
A contract between Laney College and the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office was terminated in 2020 and, according to The Citizen, the local college district recently installed unarmed security officers to guard the school.
John Beam complained about campus safety at Laney College a day before he was shot dead
Cedric Irving Jr., the man charged with murdering Beam, appeared in court Tuesday
Beam (pictured with wife Cindi) died at the age of 66 on Friday after being shot on campus
He was shot in the campus field house last Thursday in what police called a ‘targeted incident’
Beam reportedly said that security staff showed him footage of the break-in. But they did not intervene or catch any of those involved, with Beam questioning whether they were stretched too thin across an area made up of four community colleges.
‘Six guards, four campuses, 24 hours… how does that work?’ Beam said, per The Citizen. Hours later, he was rushed to the hospital but died the following day from his injuries.
NBA legends Steph Curry and Steve Kerr were among those to pay tribute to the 66-year-old, who was reportedly heard saying ‘no, no, no’ before being killed.
Golden State star Curry branded Beam an ‘icon’ while his coach, Kerr, hailed Beam as a ‘revered figure in Oakland’ [who] ‘did so much for so many people.’
It’s claimed active shooter training took place on campus two days before Bean was shot. Police arrested Irving Jr. at a commuter rail station just after 3am Friday.
He was carrying the firearm used to shoot Beam and admitted to carrying out the shooting, according to the probable cause document.
Irving Jr made his first court appearance earlier this week. The former Laney student has been charged with murder and several enhancements in Beam’s death and could face 50 years to life in prison. He will continue to be held without bail.
Oakland Assistant Chief James Beere claimed Irving Jr. was known to loiter around Laney’s campus. He added that Irving Jr. was on campus for a ‘specific reason’ but did not elaborate further.
The 27-year-old was refused bail and wore a so-called ‘modesty garment’ which is to prevent people from harming themselves. He did not enter a plea and his arraignment was set for December 16.
Prosecutors have not provided a motive for the shooting of Beam, who forged deep relationships with his players and built a reputation for helping them transfer to top schools.
Beam pictured with his two daughters Sonjha and Monica. He also had two granddaughters
Irving Jr., 27, is the man accused of killing beloved football coach John Beam in Oakland
Netflix followed the Laney Eagles in the 2020 season of ‘Last Chance U,’ the docuseries show focused on athletes at junior colleges striving to turn their lives around.
Beam first arrived at Laney College in 2004 as a running backs coach. He became head coach in 2012 and went on to win two league titles. According to his biography on the college’s website, at least 20 of his players went on to the NFL.
Irving Jr has no criminal record, the district attorney has said. He played football at Skyline High School, where Beam once worked, but not at the same time the coach was employed there. He played tight end for the school’s varsity team in 2016 and 2017.
According to his brother Samuael, Irving later went to Laney College and knew Beam. Samuael said he might have practiced with the school football team.
But it’s said the suspect had cut ties with his family before the shooting. And so many details of his life remain unclear.
According to his brother, Irving had worked as a security guard and at Domino’s Pizza. He had reportedly been living alone in Oakland.
‘Hearing about my brother’s arrest shocked me a lot,’ Samuael told NBC Bay Area. ‘It made me tear up.
‘I couldn’t believe he would have done such a thing like this. I wish he would have just came to his family for help or advice or just anything because we’re family.’
