Elijah Lowery arrested and the gun confiscated from him by police on Thursday, Oct. 20, 2022. Photos: APD

Sheriff’s helicopter assists

By Antioch Police Department PIO Darryl Saffold

Yesterday afternoon, at 2:55 PM officers were sent to Antioch High School on report of a man, Elijah Messiah Lowery, age 18, seen near the campus with a handgun tucked into his waistband. (See related article)

Thanks to an alert citizen, APD officers (with the assistance from the Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office Air Unit) located the described individual shortly after he left the area. A loaded firearm was recovered after an unsuccessful attempt at hiding it.

An adult male was arrested for possession a loaded firearm in a school zone and sent to the County Jail.

We are grateful for our partnership with the Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office and for the exceptional service they provide communities like ours with their Air Unit.

Special thanks to those who saw something not right and immediately said something to our exceptional dispatchers, who immediately sent officers to make a successful and safe apprehension.

Lowery was charged with PC25850(A) – possession of a loaded firearm in public, PC25400(C) (6) – carrying a concealed weapon, and PC626.9(B) – violating the Gun-Free School Zone Act of 1995.

Non-student arrested; police seek another suspect

By Allen D. Payton

After school let out Thursday afternoon, a gun was believed to be seen on the Antioch High School campus and later a rifle appeared to be pointed at the school from a passing car.

At 4:32 p.m., Antioch Unified School District Superintendent Stephanie Anello issued the following message to the trustees and media:

“The following autodialer will be going out to staff and students shortly. I want to commend the staff who intervened and acted quickly to ensure all students and staff were safe.

 ‘Good afternoon, this is Mr. Jimno, Principal of Antioch High School. Following dismissal this afternoon, a non-student entered campus and site security noticed what they believed was a weapon. Staff immediately called 9-1-1 and the non-student was removed from campus. The individual is in [sic] now in police custody.

 Approximately 30 minutes later, a staff member witnessed a light-colored SUV driving down G Street at a high rate of speed. A passenger in the car appeared to have a rifle pointed in the direction of the school. The passenger was wearing a red, hooded sweatshirt and black mask. Police were notified immediately. It is unknown at this time if the perpetrators are in custody.

As always, please do not hesitate to contact the school should you have any questions, etc. Thank you.’

Thank you,

Stephanie”

10/21/22 UPDATE: – Friday morning, Antioch Police Department PIO Darryl Saffold provided the identity of the one who was arrested and additional details.

“Yesterday afternoon, officers were sent to Antioch High School on report of a man (Elijah Lowery-18) seen near the campus with a handgun tucked into his waistband.

Thanks to an alert citizen, APD officers  (with the assistance from the Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office Air Unit) located the described individual shortly after he left the area. A loaded firearm was recovered after an unsuccessful attempt at hiding it.

An adult male was arrested for possession a loaded firearm in a school zone and sent to the County Jail.

We are grateful for our partnership with the Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office and for the exceptional service they provide communities like ours with their Air Unit.

Special thanks to those who saw something not right and immediately said something to our exceptional dispatchers, who immediately sent officers to make a successful and safe apprehension.

DATE: 10/20/2022  TIME: 1455   CHARGE(S): PC25850(A), PC25400(C) (6), PC626.9(B)

Maze, Pumpkin Patch, Swim for Pumpkins, Face Painting and more!

Enjoy a spooky weekend at the 3rd Annual Fall-O-Ween Fest featuring a maze, pumpkin patch, swim for pumpkins, face painting, games, food, photo areas, scarecrow contest and more. Each child will leave with a pumpkin and bag of candy, while supplies last.

This Spooktacular family event is open to all ages Thursday & Friday October 27th-28th 4:00pm-7:00pm at the Antioch water park. Entry fee is only $5 per person at the door, or you can pre-purchase tickets at www.antiochwatI waserpark.com. To signup for the scarecrow contest click here: Scarecrow Contest Entry

Female victim’s necklace and ring. Photos: APD

Deceased before being discovered by Con Fire; believed to be African American under age 30

By Public Information Officer Darryl Saffold, Antioch Police Investigations Bureau

10/18/2022 UPDATE: The Antioch Police Department Investigations Bureau is seeking public assistance in identifying the female victim located yesterday morning on the Mokelumne Trail between Gentrytown Drive and Lucena Way. Unfortunately, due to the severity of her sustained burns, we are having difficulty identifying her. (See related article)

The victim is believed by to be of African American descent and is thought to be under 30 years old. She is believed to be approximately 5’6″, and her weight is unknown. The victim was found to be wearing a ring on her right ring-finger and a metal necklace with a pendant and letter “K” attached. It is unknown if the letter “K” was the only letter attached to the chain and could be part of a series of letters that was not part of the original discovery. The above photos depict the jewelry items described.

Female victim’s ring. Photos by APD.

Moreover, the victim had extensive dental work done in the past, including three missing left lower molars and a distinctive gap between her top front middle teeth.

After the autopsy, investigators learned that the victim was deceased before being discovered by Con Fire.

This is still an on-going and active investigation.  Anyone with information is asked to call the Antioch Police Department non-emergency line at (925) 778-2441, or Detective Whitaker at wwhitaker@antiochca.gov or (925) 779-6890. You may also text-a-tip to 274637 (CRIMES) using the key word ANTIOCH.

Police, fire department personnel investigate the scene of a woman’s body found on fire along the Mokelumne Coast to Crest Trail in Antioch, Monday morning, Oct. 17, 2022. Photo by Mike Burkholder. Published with permission.

Police seek suspect(s)

By Lieutenant John Fortner, Investigations Bureau, Antioch Police Department

On Monday, Oct. 17, 2022, at approximately 5:36 AM, a resident called the Antioch Dispatch Center to report a small fire on the paved Mokelumne Coast to Crest Trail north of Lopez Drive, between Gentrytown Drive and Contra Loma Boulevard.

The Contra Costa County Fire Protection District responded to the area and located a human body on fire. The CCCFPD requested Antioch police to respond to the scene as they worked to extinguish the fire. Several Antioch police officers responded to the scene along with CCCFPD Arson investigators.

Unfortunately, the victim succumbed to their injuries at the scene, and the remains were determined to be a female. The suspect(s) left the scene and have not been located.

Antioch Police Department’s Investigations Bureau, consisting of Crime Scene Investigators and detectives with the Violent Crimes and Special Operations Units, responded to the scene to assist with the investigation. At this time, the identity, age and race of the victim is unknown.

Currently, detectives are interviewing witnesses and residents in the area and are working to identify the victim and any suspects or persons-of-interest. The investigation is still active, and evidence is being collected.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Antioch Police Department non-emergency line at (925) 778-2441, or Detective Whitaker at 925-779-6890 / wwhitaker@antiochca.gov. You may also text-a-tip to 274637 (CRIMES) using the key word ANTIOCH.

By U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of California, U.S. Department of Justice

SAN FRANCISCO – Sutter Health, a Sacramento-based health care services provider, and its affiliate Sutter Bay Hospitals, the successor to Sutter East Bay Hospitals dba Alta Bates Summit Medical Center (collectively Sutter Health), agreed to pay more than $13 million to settle allegations that it violated the federal False Claims Act by billing the United States for toxicology screening tests performed by outside labs, announced United States Attorney Stephanie M. Hinds; Federal Bureau of Investigation San Francisco Special Agent in Charge Robert K. Tripp; Office of Personnel Management Office of Inspector General (OPM OIG) Special Agent in Charge Amy K. Parker; Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) Special Agent in Charge Steven J. Ryan; Department of Defense Office of Inspector General, Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) Western Field Office Special Agent in Charge Bryan D. Denny; and the Defense Health Agency (DHA).  Sutter Health DOJ Settlement Agrmt 10.17.2022

“Sutter Health agreed to pay $13 million to settle allegations that it billed government health programs for lab tests performed by others,” said U.S. Attorney Stephanie M. Hinds. “Government health care programs must be protected, and this office will investigate and pursue health care providers that fail to provide the services paid for by public health care programs.”

“Investigating health care fraud and abuse is a priority for the FBI,” said FBI San Francisco Special Agent in Charge Robert K. Tripp. “These cases are often worked in conjunction with our federal law enforcement partners, and this settlement is a great example of the multi-agency investigative team’s hard work to protect the integrity of the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program.”

“The OPM OIG is committed to protecting the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program from fraudulent claims,” said OPM OIG Special Agent in Charge Amy K. Parker. “I applaud the dedicated team for their effort in securing today’s settlement.”

“When medical providers charge federal health care programs for services that other providers actually performed, the integrity of these programs is undermined,” said HHS-OIG Special Agent in Charge Steven J. Ryan. “Working with our law enforcement partners, we will continue to uproot and investigate such schemes.”

“Today’s announced outcome concludes a collaborative effort to hold Sutter Health accountable for its improper billing practices that harmed our health care system, including the Department of Defense’s TRICARE program,” said DCIS Western Field Office Special Agent in Charge Bryan D. Denny. “DCIS will continue to work closely with our law enforcement partners to protect the integrity of the health care system.”

“We commend the Department of Justice, the U.S. Attorney’s office, and the other state and federal agencies for their commitment to justice,” stated the Defense Health Agency. “Their efforts protect taxpayer dollars to ensure our service members, veterans and their families continue to receive the highest level of medical care.”

The United States contends in the civil settlement agreement signed by Sutter Health that under the terms of a contract which the Sutter Health hospital Alta Bates Summit Medical Center entered into with Navigant Network Alliance, LLC, Navigant referred urine toxicology specimens obtained from physicians and laboratories across the country to Sutter. Sutter submitted bills, or caused bills to be submitted, for reimbursement of the qualitative and quantitative testing it performed on the specimens. The United States asserts that Sutter did not perform the quantitative testing on thousands of specimens referred under the agreement and that these quantitative tests were instead performed by third-party labs. The United States alleges that Sutter nevertheless sought reimbursement for the tests. In the settlement agreement, the United States contends that between August 1, 2016, and June 30, 2017, Sutter billed for urine toxicology tests it did not perform and was paid for the testing by the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program, Medicare, Medicaid, and Tricare.

Sutter agrees in the settlement agreement to pay $13,091,452 to settle the false claims allegations. Of that amount, Sutter has already paid more than $6.5 million to the United States. Sutter agrees to pay the remaining amount of approximately $6.5 million to the United States within 30 days. The settlement agreement resolves the civil law claims that the United States might have brought based upon these allegations.

This matter is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney David DeVito, with assistance from Garland He, Jonathan Birch, Lillian Do, and Alan Lopez. The matter is the result of a coordinated investigation between the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California and the FBI, OPM OIG, HHS-OIG, DCIS, and the DHA.

The investigation and resolution of this matter illustrate the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Tips and complaints from all sources about potential fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement, can be reported to the Department of Health and Human Services at 800-HHS-TIPS (800-447-8477).

The civil settlement agreement is neither an admission of liability by Sutter Health nor a concession by the United States that its claims are not well founded.