A 48-year-old Northeast Baltimore man was ordered held without bond Thursday after being charged with first-degree murder in the death of a 53-year-old man.
The victim was found dead Saturday of injuries he suffered after the two men got into a fight, according to court records.
Detective Gordon Carew wrote in charging documents that Vincent "Vinny" Cala repeatedly hit Frank Swiston in the head with his hands, causing internal bleeding.
Swiston bled internally over several hours and was found dead on a sofa in his home in the 2800 block of Erdman Ave.
Cala and Swiston shared an address, though their relationship, if any, was not clear. A motive was not provided.
Carew wrote that other occupants of the home were interviewed by police and that witnesses provided statements detailing the attack.
Cala was convicted of drug possession in March and was sentenced to five days in jail, and received a suspended one-year term for drug possession in May 2008. Swiston had not been arrested recently, records show.
Only two of the city's 74 homicide victims this year were killed by blunt force, with more than 80 percent of the victims killed in shootings.
As of Thursday, homicides were up 23 percent over the comparable period in 2008.
