‘A cold, calculated intent’: Haunting video proves local artist was tortured to death in Oakland, DA says

OAKLAND — A surveillance camera positioned outside apartment number four at 185 15th Street captured Zoe Reidy-Watts’ last known act — a final attempt to escape a violent death.

The haunting footage, described in court filings, depicts the seriously injured 25-year-old artist lying near the front door, “barely moving” but still alive. A few moments later, a naked man, identified as 29-year-old Victor “Frito” Frieson III, emerges from the unit and drags her back inside. It was about 12:30 a.m. on March 1, 2024.

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Six hours later, police were called to the apartment for a report of a suspicious death; the officer who responded placed Frieson in handcuffs almost immediately, and prosecutors charged him with murder after a cursory view of the evidence. The footage, obtained b