Second DA report leaked, posted on social media showing texts by Antioch Police officers about two suspects in murder case
Focuses on Officer Eric Rombough, involves seven others including sergeant, detective, plus, U.S. Postal Inspector
“Nice babe, another one for the mantle.” – from an unidentified person in response to Rombough bragging about beating and shooting one of the suspects with a non-lethal weapon
WARNING: Contains offensive language
By Allen D. Payton
Another report by Larry J. Wallace, Senior Inspector with the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office was leaked and posted on social media on Saturday, April 15, 2023 about the two suspects and the eight Antioch Police Officers involved in a murder case, plus, a U.S. Postal Inspector, and their racist and other offensive texts. Some of the texts were included in the previously released 21-page report dated March 27, 2023.
The 14-page report, dated March 28, 2023, focuses on the “text messages derived from the personal cellular telephone belonging to Antioch Police Department (APD) Officer Eric Rombough” and include “conversations between APD Officer Rombough and the following APD Officers regarding an investigation into Teryon Deshon Pugh and Trent Allen in March of 2021: APD Sergeant (Sgt) Josh Evans, Detective Robert Gerber, Johnathan Adams, Scott Duggar, Timothy Manly Willams, Tom Smith, and Brock Marcote.” The report also shows offensive texts between Rombough and U.S. Postal Inspector Francisco Garcia. Many of the texts reveal mistreatment of the two suspects.
Examples of Text Messages
On March 20, 2021, the report shows text message exchange between Rombough and Gerber:
At 9:16 p.m., APD Officer Rombough responded, “Bro I can’t wait to forty all of them (“forty” or “40” are references to the deployment of the 40mm less-lethal launcher)”
At 9:16 p.m., APD Detective Gerber text, “Hell yeah.”
The report shows more racist texts sent on March 25, 2021:
At 7:36 p.m., APD Officer Rombough texted, “Well we knew they wouldn’t be by the pool.”
At 7:39 p.m., APD Officer Rombough text, “Look at all the Infiniti’s.”
At 7:40 p.m., APD Officer Rombough text, “And cuz they’re dark black.” APD Officer Adams responded with “(laughing emoji).”
At 7:41 p.m., APD Officer Rombough text, “Gotta get them to smile.”
At 8:02 p.m., APD Officer Rombough continued, “Definitely can’t see them.”
The report reads: On 3/30/202 at 8:22 p.m., APD Officer Rombough text APD Detective Gerber, “This looks like dudes car from his ig.” – a reference to Instagram.
At 8:23 p.m., APD Officer Rombough text, “And he’s chilling at ruth Chris steakhouse”. I hate all of them.”
At 8:24 p.m., APD Detective Gerber text, “Turds… all turds”, a comment that APD Officer Rombough “liked”.
The texts on the final day of the report’s time period included exchanges with an unidentified person who praised Rombough for mistreating suspects and claim by Marcotte that a nurse laughed about a suspect being in pain:
On 03/31/2021, at 8:29 a[sic].m., APD Officer Rombough text “Yeah 40 deployment” and “F-g–t got his ass whooped.”
At 9:09 a.m., (An unidentified person) text, “Nice babe, another one for the mantle.”
At 9:10 a.m., APD Officer Rombough texted, “Murder suspect. In custody and that a–hole made me run.” (An unidentified person) text, “Good thing you fast honey.”
At 9:12 a.m., APD Officer Rombough text, “We managed to setup a perimeter and he ‘got his ass whooped in the back yard and I field goal kicked his head. (An unidentified person) responded, “I thought that was a no no.”
At 9:13 a.m., APD Officer Rombough text, “No we can do that just no chokes” and “I tried to knock him unconscious. And he got muzzle thumped 6 times before he gave us his hands.”
At 9:12 a.m., APD Officer Marcotte responded, “The nurse saw me smiling when he was ‘making noises in pain and she started laughing (laughing emoji).”
At 9:13 a.m., APD Officer Rombough text, “Lmao.”
At 9:15 a.m., APD Officer Rombough added, “What a b–ch.”
At 9:24 a.m., (An unidentified person) texted, “Glad you’re havin fun babe.”
At 9:25 a.m., APD Officer Rombough text, “It was nice after a very boring swat op.”
During this same time, APD Officer Rombough also group text his co-workers, APD Officers Brock Marcos, Timothy Manly Williams, (An unidentified person) and Scott Duggar, (An unidentified person)
At 8:45 a.m., APD Officer Rombough texted the group, “Lol I 40d him right next to his throat.”
At 8:46 a.m., APD Officer Marcotte responded, “Oh f–k” and “Cuz he ducked so fast.”
Later that day the report reads, At 4:43 p.m., APD Officer Rombough replied, “Yup and another f–g-ot in the butt” and “2 for the day.”
At 4:49 p.m. (An unidentified person) responded, “Nice babe.”
Only One Reference to Officers Being Corrected by Department Leader
During an exchange with Rombough on March 31, 2021 the report reads, At 3:11 p.m., APD Officer Adams texted, and “…I forgot that Koch wanted us to stop sending dumb sh-t. Oops.” He was referring to Sgt. Matthew Koch. This is the only text in the report that references any department leader correcting the officers for their offensive texts.
Text Exchange Between Rombough & Postal Inspector Garcia
The text message exchange with Postal Inspector Garcia in the report reads: On 03/31/2021, a 3:10 p.m. APD Officer Rombough text United States Postal Inspector Francisco Garcia, “I 40d and field goal kicked one that fled from us on foot today.”
At 3:11 p.m., United States Postal Inspector Garcia responded, “(laughing emoji)”.
At 3:12 p.m., APD Officer Rombough text, “Bro but my foot f—ing hurts.”
At 5:13 p.m., United States Postal Inspector Garcia asked, “Did you find any guns on any of them?”
At 5:21 p.m., APD Officer Rombough replied, “Sorry we were taking down a second ‘murder suspect and he got 40d too.”
At 5:58 p.m., United States Postal Inspector Garcia texted, “(laughing emoji)….That 40 flag is coming along!! Murica!!”
Questions for DA’s Office
Questions were sent to DA’s Office PIO Ted Asregadoo Saturday afternoon asking to whom the report was sent, why it was prepared separately from the 21-page report, why it wasn’t sent to the media and was it intended to be shared with the media. He was also asked how the East Bay Times obtained it earlier this week, was it leaked by someone in the DA’s Office and if so, who. Finally, Asregadoo was asked if there is an investigation in the DA’s Office to determine who leaked the 21-page report and this other, 14-page report.
4/17/23 UPDATE: Asregadoo responded Monday morning, “Our inspectors have investigated the matter and determined someone outside of our organization disclosed the reports to the public and press.”
He was then asked again, to whom were the redacted reports sent from the DA’s Office and who in the DA’s Office sent them out. Asregadoo later sent out a press release about the matter with a further redacted copy of the 14-page report.
the attachments to this post:
Officer Eric Rombough 2-14-17 APD
Soccer-referee-GIF-CCDA
Cover-pg-2nd-DA-Report-032823
