Illegal guns confiscated by Antioch Police Officer during arrest on Saturday, Jan. 22, 2022. Photo: APD

By Allen D. Payton

According to Antioch Police Department Strategic Communications Officer Darryl Saffold, Officer Milner made an arrest, today, Saturday, January 22, 2022, in which he recovered an AR-style pistol and another illegal firearm. The suspect arrested is Giovanni Garcia, 21 years old from San Francisco, who was taken to the Martinez Detention Facility.

Officer Milner observed a vehicle that was in violation of the California Vehicle Code in numerous ways and made a traffic enforcement stop in the 700 block of W. 18th Street to speak with the driver.

In addition to the traffic violations, Officer Milner noted the strong odor of smoked marijuana coming from inside the vehicle. In California it is illegal to smoke marijuana inside your vehicle while driving. Think of it the same way one would think about having an open container of alcohol while driving.  Milner had probable cause to search the car.

After the various vehicle code violations and the incense strength aroma of smoked marijuana that exited the car, imagine Officer Milner’s surprise when he searched the car and located multiple firearms.

Needless to say, the vehicle was towed, and the driver went to the county jail in what is another example of proactive policing leading to more guns being taken off our streets.

Authorized to have 115 to 121 sworn officers on the force, currently 94 are at “full duty” status; below 1 officer per 1,000 population; state average greater than 2 officers per 1,000, national average of 2.4

By Allen Payton

Th Antioch Police Department is down 21 and as much as 27 sworn officers from what the city council has authorized of between 115 and 121, as of Thursday, Jan. 13, 2022. In addition, there are currently no lateral officers in process that could be hired from other departments.

Plus, the city council, in spite of increases in tax revenue of $5.6 million and $8.7 million in this and next years’ budgets, did not include the hiring of any additional officers. Although District 1 Councilwoman Tamisha Torres-Walker has asked for four more officers to be hired for her district,  District 2 Councilman Mike Barbanica called for adding six more officers over the next two years and requested the hiring of additional police officers be placed on a council meeting agenda, and District 3 Councilwoman Lori Ogorchock was the only one to vote against the current, two-year budget because it didn’t include funding for any additional police officers, Mayor Lamar Thorpe has refused to agendize the matter. (See related articles here, here and here)

Current Antioch Police Staffing

In response to questions about police staffing, Captain Trevor Schnitzius wrote, “We are currently staffed at 109 sworn-police officers (authorized to 115) with Council approval to over hire by six (in theory 121).  We have 15 Officers on various leaves which places us at 94 officers at “full duty” status (this number is current as of today and can fluctuate due to injuries and staff returning to work from injuries).  We had two applicants formally withdraw from our hiring process in recent months.  We do not currently have any lateral police officers in process with our department, but that can change at any time.”

“It is not at all unusual for this time of year just coming out of the Holiday Season and heading into the New Year to experience a lull in applicants, it’s typically one of our slowest times of the year for recruiting,” he continued. “We have three new police officer trainees that started the Academy in January, and we maintain continuous, open recruitments for lateral, academy grad, and police trainee positions.  Our agency is still offering a $10,000 hiring bonus for lateral officers dispersed over benchmark timeframes.”

“It’s still an extremely competitive market for qualified police officer candidates these days.  Our recruiting challenges are not unique to us, and we still have a ton to offer as one of the premier law enforcement agencies in our area.”

Less Than One Officer Per Thousand Population

That leaves the city with only 1.0 officer per 1,000 population authorized based on the 2020 Census figure of 115,291 and less than 0.82 officers per thousand at full duty. The goal has been to achieve 1.2 officer per thousand since the mid-1990’s. That’s well below the approximate 2.0 officers per thousand statewide as of 2019 statistics. “Nationwide, the rate of sworn officers was 2.4 per 1,000 inhabitants” in 2019, according to an FBI report.

Source: APD

By Antioch Police Department

Antioch Police Detectives are requesting help in locating murder suspect Robert Mathews. A felony warrant has been issued for his arrest for first degree murder and attempted murder with gang enhancements.

On Nov. 10, 2021, Matthews shot and killed Johnta White in an unprovoked attack, in the middle of the day, at a busy gas station on Lone Tree Way. (See related article)

Another suspect in the shooting was arrested in December and is currently in custody. (See related article)

Matthews is described as a black male, 23 years old, 5’10”, 200lbs, with black hair and brown eyes.

Matthews is considered armed and dangerous and should not be approached. Anyone with information with his whereabouts is asked to contact Detective Whitaker at (925) 779-6890.

Yellow markers indicate the locations of bullet casings at the Sinclair Gas Station on Lone Tree Way in Antioch following the shooting Wed. morning Nov. 10, 2021. Photo courtesy of Mike Burkholder.

Second suspect identified, both from Antioch

By Strategic Communications Officer Darryl Saffold, Antioch Police Investigations Bureau

The Antioch Police Department announced, today, Jan. 13, 2022, that on Dec. 8, 2021, Raymond Elijah Jenkins, 24 years old of Antioch, was arrested in connection to the Nov. 10, 2021 murder of 25-year-old Johnta White of Richmond and is currently in-custody. Additionally, another suspect involved in the unprovoked homicide of White has been identified as Robert Matthews, 23 years old, also of Antioch. (See APD announcement about Matthews)

Another victim, a 30-year-old Antioch man was shot at the scene. A felony warrant for his arrest has been issued for murder and attempted murder related to this incident. There are no additional updates at this time.

On Nov. 11, 2021, White was pronounced deceased at a local trauma center.

As reported previously, on Nov. 10, 2021, Officers responded to the report of shots fired at the Sinclair Gas Station located at 3720 Lone Tree Way. Moments later, a local hospital called APD dispatch and stated two shooting victims arrived at the emergency room. One of victims was suffering from a gunshot wound to the abdomen and the other sustained a gunshot wound to his head. At the time of this writing, one of the victims is in grave condition and the other is in critical condition. The suspects are still outstanding. Investigators are actively following up on suspect leads.

Additional inquiries or information can be directed to Antioch Police Detective Whitaker at (925) 779-6890 or by emailing wwhitaker@antiochca.gov. Anonymous tips or information about this – or any other incident – can be sent via text to 274637 (CRIMES) with the keyword ANTIOCH.

Allen Payton contributed to this report.

Coroner’s Office identifies victim

By Strategic Communications Officer Darryl Saffold, Antioch Police Investigations Bureau

On Wednesday, Jan. 12, 2022, at approximately 7:52 PM, Antioch Police Department Dispatch began to receive reports of a major injury collision, in the area of Delta Fair Blvd and San Jose Drive, in which a pedestrian was down in the roadway. The pedestrian was said to have been struck by a vehicle and was described as being in critical condition. Additional information that was provided indicated the responsible vehicle fled the scene in an unknown direction of travel.

At approximately 7:56 PM, Antioch Officers arrived in the area of the collision and noticed an unresponsive black female adult in her late 40’s, lying motionless in the roadway. After life saving measures were attempted by officers, the female ultimately succumbed to her injuries and was pronounced deceased at the scene. Deputy Wong of the Contra Costa Coroner’s office identified the victim as Iola Robinson, aged 49 of Antioch.

According to witnesses, the responsible vehicle drove away from the area at a high rate of speed. The vehicle was described as being white, but the make and model are currently unknown.

Please avoid this area, as this is an active crime scene.

Due to the ongoing and active nature of the investigation, no further information will be released at this time. Updates may be made available on the Antioch Police Departments social media pages.

This information is made available by the Support Services Division. 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.

Allen Payton contributed to this report.

A driver crashed his car into a light pole while doing donuts in the Antioch Marina parking lot on Tuesday, Jan. 11, 2022. Photos by APD

Not the kind the cops are known to enjoy! Suspect tried to flee scene; see video

By Antioch Police Department

While Police Officers have an affinity for donuts, I think we can all admit that not all donuts are created equal. On this occasion, Antioch Officers were dispatched to the Marina due to reports of a white Camaro doing donuts and then crashing into a light pole. If that wasn’t bad enough, the subject then attempted to flee the scene (see our post regarding leaving the scene of a collision).

As a result, the 25-year-old subject was arrested for reckless driving and a 30-day hold was placed on his vehicle (Though he wouldn’t have been able to drive away anyways). (See video)

While we are on the topic of reckless driving, sideshows continue to be a huge issue in the greater Bay Area and law enforcement remains committed to using the full extent of the law to stop people involved in such activity. In addition to having your vehicle towed, any driver participating in a sideshow can have their driver’s license suspended up to six months and be subject to arrest.

Skidmarks in the Antioch Marina parking lot left by the driver of the car doing donuts.

Sideshows are extremely dangerous and affect every driver on the road. We all share the road together and have an obligation to each other to drive responsibly.

Make better donut selections please, perhaps something with sprinkles. -6136 #drivesafe #donuts #antiochca

Guadalupe Zavala, a 57-year-old resident of Antioch

By Strategic Communications Officer Darryl Saffold, Antioch Police Investigations Bureau

This is an update to a previous December 10, 2021 press release.

On Dec. 10, 2021, at approximately 1:11 PM, Antioch Police Department Dispatch began receiving numerous 911 calls of multiple gunshots being fired in the area of Dove Court. Several callers reported a neighbor on Dove Court was repeatedly shooting at homes and cars as he was walking down the street in the neighborhood.

All available officers responded to the area. Officers arriving at the scene reported hearing gunshots and confirmed one male suspect was armed with a rifle. The male suspect was wearing military-style, camouflage-patterned clothing, and it was later learned he was also wearing body armor. During the police response, the suspect entered a house on Dove Court, which was later determined to be where the suspect lived.

Because the suspect was unarmed at the time he was shot and killed the countywide Law Enforcement Involved Fatal Incident (LEIFI) protocol was initiated. Antioch Police Department’s Crime Scene Investigators and Detectives with the Investigations Bureau, along with a team of Deputy District Attorneys and Inspectors from the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office and the Office of the Sheriff’s Crime Scene Investigators responded to the scene and took over the investigation.

During the investigation of this incident, the decedent was identified as Guadalupe Zavala, a 57-year-old resident of Antioch.

In accordance with law established by the California Public Records Act, the officers directly involved in December’s Officer Involved Shooting were:

– Sergeant Theodore Chang – 20 years of service

– Detective Ryan McDonald – 13.5 years of service

– Officer Scott Duggar – 7 years of service

– Officer Eric Rombough – 9.5 years of service

Currently, the Antioch Police Department Investigations Bureau, the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office, and the Department of Justice California Police Shooting Investigation Team (CaPSIT) is investigating this Law Enforcement Involved Fatal Incident. This remains an open and ongoing investigation.

Antioch Police vehicles on the scene of the shooting on Rainier Lane at Davison Drive. Thursday, Jan. 6, 2022. Photos by Antioch resident who chose to remain anonymous.

More Antioch Police vehicles near the scene of the shooting on Rainier Lane at Davison Drive on Thursday, Jan. 6, 2022.

By Allen Payton

According to Antioch Police Corporal Colley, on Thursday afternoon, a client of the BAART methadone clinic located next to the 7-11 on Sunset Lane at Davison Drive went and sat on an air conditioning unit outside a residence on Rainier Lane. A resident told him to leave and went back inside the residence, grabbed a gun and shot it into the air. That man was arrested by Antioch Police for discharge of a firearm in a negligent manner, brandishing a firearm and criminal threats.

No one was shot and there was no property damage, Colley added.