Oakland Man Charged with Murder of Girlfriend and Cocaine Dealer in 2023 Spree

A preliminary hearing has revealed the tragic details of a 2023 crime spree that left two people dead, including a woman who had posted bail for her boyfriend just weeks before her murder. Amadi Monroe, 35, faces charges of murder and gun possession for the deaths of his girlfriend, Brenda Diaz, and cocaine dealer Jerald Larnell Clark II.

According to court records, Diaz disappeared on August 8, 2023, after allegedly being shot by Monroe inside her Lexus SUV in a Target parking lot in Marin County. Monroe then drove her body to Oakland, where he later shot and killed Clark in front of his home.

Diaz’s body was discovered three days later, on August 11, 2023, inside her Lexus parked on the 900 block of 22nd Avenue near the Embarcadero waterfront in Oakland.

The case began to unravel when Diaz’s sister, who had been desperately seeking information about her sibling, received a series of erratic text messages from Monroe. In one message, he wrote, “She’s at the pier n Oakland,” leading police to Diaz’s body.

Monroe also confessed in texts, saying, “I shot bullet hit Brenda. I’ll turn myself in.

I was lost, scared in panic.”

Monroe’s behavior had become increasingly paranoid following the death of his older brother, Alvin Monroe Jr., on September 5, 2022. The loss, compounded by a storage unit fire that destroyed Alvin’s belongings, led Monroe to believe he was being targeted in a plot.

His mother testified that he became obsessed with the idea that someone was trying to kill him, a delusion that persisted even during police interrogations after the homicides.

On July 20, 2023, just 19 days before the killings, Diaz had posted $20,000 to bail Monroe out of jail in a nonfatal shooting case. Despite warnings from family and friends, including Clark’s widow who cautioned him to stay away from Monroe, the violence escalated.

Clark’s widow testified that he reluctantly left their home on August 8, 2023, after telling her, “I love you,” moments before being shot from Diaz’s Lexus.

Monroe’s mother testified that she could have prevented the tragedy, stating, “I’ve always taught my son do not hurt anybody… I would have stopped it.” On the morning of August 11, 2023, as police discovered Diaz’s body, Monroe was at his mother’s house eating a home-cooked meal of chicken. Police stormed the residence and arrested him.

He has been in custody since then, with his next court date set for June 12, 2026, and the trial yet to be scheduled.