Six-car accident on Vasco Road, Friday evening, July 19, 2019. Photos by East Contra Costa Fire Protection District.

By CHP-Contra Costa

Friday evening at about 5:32 P.M., Contra Costa CHP was advised of a six-vehicle collision on Vasco Road, just north of Camino Diablo in east Contra Costa County. An on-duty Contra Costa Sheriff’s deputy was involved but thankfully only sustained minor injuries.

Three parties from the collision were transported to local hospital’s by CHP helicopter, Contra Costa Sheriff’s office Cal-Star helicopter, and Reach regional helicopter as well. Three other parties were transported to local hospitals by ground ambulance. Thankfully all injured parties sustained non-life-threatening injuries. We’d like to thank our allied agencies and emergency personnel on scene for their help in this incident.

The cause of the collision is still under investigation. Alcohol and/or drug impairment is not suspected. If anyone has information about this collision, please call the Contra Costa CHP Office at 925-646-4980. Thank you and please drive safe.

By Lieutenant John Fortner – Investigations, Antioch Police Department

At approximately 1:00 am, Thursday, July 18, 2019, an Antioch police officer spotted a vehicle travelling on Somersville Road matching the description of the stolen vehicle. As officers got into position to initiate a traffic stop, the suspect driver accelerated away from the officers. After the officers activated their emergency lights and siren, the 21-year-old suspect driver fled eastbound on Buchanan Road at a high rate of speed.

At the 1100 block of Buchanan Road, the suspect vehicle crossed the raised center divider and stopped after colliding with a tree on the north side of the roadway. Emergency fire department and ambulance paramedics were immediately called to the scene to render first aid. Ultimately, the suspect driver succumbed to his injuries and he was pronounced deceased at the scene.

The Antioch Police Department’s Investigations Bureau responded to the scene and the Contra Costa County Law Enforcement Involved Fatal Incident Protocol was invoked.

The incident is currently being jointly investigated by the Antioch Police Department and the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s office.

No further information will be released regarding this case at this time. Any further information or additional press releases will be provided by the Investigations Bureau.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Antioch Police Department non-emergency line at (925) 778-2441. You may also text-a-tip to 274637 (CRIMES) using the key word ANTIOCH.

Shaneta Brown. Photo by Hercules Police.

By Hercules Police Department

On July 10, 2019, at 5:12 A.M., the Hercules Police Traffic Officer was conducting traffic enforcement in the area of John Muir Parkway. He noticed a Honda Civic that was described as a felony vehicle and trailed it to westbound I-80 at the Appian Way off ramp. Dispatch confirmed the felony vehicle and he initiated a felony stop. The Honda was used as a getaway vehicle in an armed robbery that occurred in Antioch on July 9, 2019. The driver, 26-year-old Shaneta Brown, of Pittsburg was detained.

She had an unrelated warrant for theft out of Antioch. Antioch P.D. arrived to take custody of the Honda and Brown was transported to Martinez Detention Facility.

During the felony stop, a traffic break was initiated and lasted approximately five minutes.

By Lt. John Fortner – Investigations, Antioch Police Department

On Saturday, July 6, 2019, at approximately 9:36 A.M., Antioch police officers responded to the intersection Lone Tree Way near Davison Drive on the report of several gunshots in the area.

While officers were responding, dispatchers received information that a male suspect was shooting at a vehicle and one subject had been shot. When officers arrived at the scene, they located a 33-year-old male gunshot victim. Officers immediately provided first aid to the victim until ambulance and Contra Costa County Fire paramedics arrived. Paramedics transported the victim to a local area trauma center. The victim was admitted into the hospital in critical condition.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Antioch Police Department non-emergency line at (925) 778-2441. You may also text-a-tip to 274637 (CRIMES) using the key word ANTIOCH.

By Scott Alonso, Public Information Officer, Contra Costa District Attorney

Earlier this week, the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office charged Hakeem Doeparker of Antioch with multiple felonies including a series of carjackings, attempted extortion, second degree robbery and criminal threats. The criminal complaint filed against Doeparker also alleges multiple enhancements for the defendant’s use of a firearm during the commission of these alleged crimes. Doeparker pleaded not guilty on July 2 to the charges our Office filed against him. He remains in custody and his bail is $787,000.

Doeparker allegedly used female profiles on apps such as Skout and MeetMe! to arrange meetings with unsuspecting male victims. After instructing victims to go to a particular address on Tehachapi Court in Antioch, Doeparker would approach them from behind, point a gun (often with a green laser) at the victim, and threaten to shoot or kill them if they did not hand over either money or their car keys.

The current charges relate to four known victims, with those offenses occurring throughout the month of June 2019. All victims were able to get away unharmed, though the defendant did succeed in taking money and two cars. The cars were later recovered by Antioch police officers near the defendant’s residence.

Doeparker attended Skyline High School in Oakland where he played football and was on the track team, according to his Facebook profile and Athletic.net.

The District Attorney’s office is actively working with Antioch Police Department on the case. The investigation is ongoing, and police believe there may be several additional victims in the Bay Area. Victims and anyone else with information are encouraged to contact Antioch Police Department Detective Adrian Gonzalez at 925-779-6923.

The public is also urged to exercise caution when arranging meetings with unknown persons through various phone apps, as this is increasingly becoming a strategy used to set up unsuspecting victims.

Case information: People v. Hakeem Zimikael Doeparker, Docket Number 04-197157-1

Allen Payton contributed to this report.

By Scott Alonso, Public Information Officer, Contra Costa County District Attorney

Earlier this month, the Board of State and Community Corrections awarded the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office $1 million to establish a county-wide juvenile diversion pre-filing program. This diversion program will be the first county-wide program for Contra Costa County and comes on the announcement earlier this spring that our Office was starting a pilot program in Richmond for the fall of 2019. The BSCC grant will enable the pilot program in Richmond to be expanded and eventually taken county-wide.

The District Attorney’s Office joins the Contra Costa County Department of Probation, the RYSE Youth center, and Impact Justice to initiate a restorative justice program that will redirect youth from the juvenile and criminal justice system over a period of four years. The program will work with young people who have committed crimes and bring them together with those they have impacted in the community in order to atone for damages made and rebuild relationships.

“I am proud to have this program for the first-time ever in our county’s history. Our Office has a crucial role to play in reducing the pipeline into the juvenile justice system while at the same time reducing disparities in the entire criminal justice system. We have to invest in our youth to ensure they have other opportunities in their lives,” said District Attorney Diana Becton.

With the help of RYSE, the program hopes to lower recidivism rates, increase victim satisfaction, improve the youths’ relationships with their families, and lower incarceration and probation costs. Youth will learn about accountability and healing, as well as, how to establish trusting relationships with adults and authority figures. During the restorative justice process, RYSE will provide the victim and the youth offender with wrap-around services along with a facilitator for each person involved in the case.

By providing troubled youths with more resources and opportunities, Contra Costa hopes to divert up to 230 youths away from the juvenile justice system. A similar program in the Bay Area proved to be successful. Alameda County’s restorative justice program was remarkably successful as recidivism rates decreased; youths who participated in the program were 44 percent less likely to recidivate compared to similarly situated probation youth. The program carries a one-time cost of $4,500 per case while probation costs $23,000 per year and incarceration costs nearly $500,000 annually.

By Sgt. Rick Smith, Field Services – Patrol, Antioch Police

On Tuesday, June 25 at 10:11 AM, a uniformed Antioch Police Officer in a fully marked Antioch Patrol Unit driving north on Deer Valley Road observed a driver, travelling southbound on Deer Valley Road approaching Country Hills Road, commit various traffic violations, including striking the median. The Ofc made a U-turn at the next intersection to attempt to get behind Bickham and conduct a traffic enforcement stop.

As the Officer made the U-turn, for unknown reasons, Joshua Bickham, age 33, ran the light he was stopped at and turned down Country Hills Drive while speeding away at an estimated speed in excess of 75 MPH. The officer attempted to catch up to Bickham, but due to his speed, did not pursue. A short distance away, the officer found Bickham after he had lost control of his vehicle near Montara Drive. Bickham crossed over into oncoming lanes and collided with several parked cars in the driveways of two residences.

Bickham was the only occupant of the vehicle and was found unconscious in the vehicle when officers checked on him. He quickly regained consciousness and began to fight with officers as they were attempting to help him. He was found to be under the influence of alcohol and transported to John Muir Hospital as a precaution. He suffered no injuries as result of being arrested.

Luckily, no officers, pedestrians or other motorists were injured as result of this incident. The investigation is ongoing and will be forwarded to the District Attorney for review once completed.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Antioch Police Department non-emergency line at (925) 778-2441. You may also text-a-tip to 274637 (CRIMES) using the key word ANTIOCH.

By Scott Alonso, Public Information Officer, Contra Costa County District Attorney

Investigators with the Contra Costa County Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force recently participated in Operation Broken Heart, a nationwide effort to investigate technology facilitated crimes against children, including those who receive and distribute child pornography. Throughout April and May, the team conducted investigations of subjects who distributed child pornography over the internet and focused on individuals traveling to Contra Costa County to meet minors to engage in sexual activity.

In addition to the proactive investigations the ICAC team participated in, a significant school outreach program was also undertaken to teach parents and student about the risks associated with smartphones and social media. During the last year, investigators and prosecutors delivered presentations at multiple schools and community organizations, reaching thousands of parents, students and educators.

Some notable arrests and investigations conducted during Operation Broken Heart include:

-On April 11, 2019, Investigators arrested Gerald Jue of Danville, California. During the investigation, investigators learned Jue was accessing the internet and searching for child pornography. Jue is a third and fourth grade teacher in the Fremont School District. When a search warrant was served at Jue’s residence, a computer was seized that contained evidence of Jue’s internet searches as well as web pages containing child pornography. Jue was indicted by a federal Grand Jury in Oakland, Ca on June 6, 2019 and arrested on June 7, 2019. He was subsequently released on bond and is awaiting trial. This case was investigated by the ICAC Task Force and the United States Secret Service.

-On May 2, 2019, investigators arrested Sonny Mitchell, a registered sex offender from Antioch, California. During the course of the two-month investigation, it was discovered that Mitchell was distributing child pornography via the Facebook Messenger platform. When a search warrant was executed at Mitchell’s residence, investigators seized a device that contained additional images of child pornography. Mitchell was indicted by a federal Grand Jury in Oakland, California on May 9, 2019 and remains in custody. This case was investigated by the ICAC Task Force and the United States Secret Service.

-On May 3, 2019, investigators arrested William Cashell of Walnut Creek, California. In April 2019, Yahoo sent tips to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children when child pornography was found in Cashell’s e-mail account. During a warrant at Cashell’s apartment, investigators located an iPhone which was later determined to contain images of child pornography. Cashell’s is charged with one count of possession of child pornography by the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office and a warrant has been issued for his arrest. This case was investigated by the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office and the ICAC Task Force.

-On May 16, 2019, investigators executed a search warrant in the 2400 block of L Street in Antioch related to a child pornography possession investigation. ICAC Investigators found evidence the suspect, Henry Cordon, a 34-year-old resident of Antioch, California and formally of Orange Park, Florida, kept images of child pornography stored in his various e-mail accounts. Additionally, during the search warrant Cordon confessed to sexually assaulting a child under the age of ten in 2009 while living in Orange Park, Florida. Cordon produced at least one image of the sexual assault of that child. Cordon was indicted by a federal Grand Jury in Oakland, California on May 30, 2019 for Receipt and Possession of Child Pornography. Cordon remains in custody and is currently under investigation in both California and Florida for other offenses related to crimes against children. This case was investigated by the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office, the ICAC Task Force and Homeland Security Investigations.

The Silicon Valley Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force is managed by the San Jose Police Department. In Contra Costa County, detectives and investigators from the Walnut Creek, Concord and Moraga Police Departments, the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office, Contra Costa County Probation Department and Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office participate in the task force along with Special Agents from the United States Department of Homeland Security and the United States Secret Service.

Parents are encouraged to discuss online safety with their children and can visit the website www.kidsmartz.org for further information. If you believe your school or community organization would benefit from a smartphone and social media awareness presentation, please contact Senior Inspector Darryl Holcombe at dholcombe@contracostada.org.