Spill over into Brentwood, Oakley and Pittsburg where gunshots were fired; police chase of one car ends in crash, arrest

By Sergeant Rob Green #3639, Antioch Police Field Services Bureau

On Saturday, May 22, 2021, over 150 cars converged into several areas in Contra Costa County and engaged in several side shows. The vehicles eventually took over the intersection of West 10th Street and Auto Center Drive. There were several vehicles doing donuts in the intersection and the parking lot of Arco Gas Station near the gas pumps.

There were over 100 vehicles and close to 200 spectators in this intersection, several blocking the path of patrol vehicles. The spectators set off fireworks and at times threw fireworks at patrol vehicles and pointed high powered lasers at officers. Mutual aid was requested and several officers from Brentwood, Pittsburg and the Sheriff’s Office responded to assist in dispersing the crowd. Several vehicles continued to drive recklessly, and a vehicle nearly ran over an officer who was on foot. APD officers were able to stop a group of the vehicles with the help of the allied agencies. 20 subjects were issued citations and 21 vehicles were placed on 30-day tows from this scene.

The remaining group of vehicles entered the City of Brentwood where the vehicles took over the intersection of Lone Tree Way and HWY 4. Several vehicles made it into the City of Oakley and at approximately 1:09 AM, Oakley PD officers had bottles thrown at them from occupants from a vehicle that fled back into Antioch. Antioch Officers located a vehicle that matched the description, and a traffic stop was attempted. The vehicle fled from officers at a high rate of speed onto Hillcrest Avenue where it lost control and crashed. The driver of that vehicle fled on foot and was caught by officers a short distance later. The subject was arrested for an outstanding warrant and his vehicle was towed for 30-days.

At approximately 1:32 AM, more than 50 vehicles took over the intersection of Buchanan Road and Somersville Road and started another side show. Officers responded to the area; however, the group continued the side show despite the presence of law enforcement. After several minutes, the vehicles eventually dispersed in several different directions. At approximately 2:32 AM, APD officers responded into the City of Pittsburg to assist PPD with a large side show that resulted in several shots being fired by subjects in the side show.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Antioch Police Department non-emergency line at (925) 778-2441 or Detective Bledsoe at (925) 779-6884. You may also text-a-tip to 274637 (CRIMES) using the key word ANTIOCH.

“armed and dangerous”; victim’s name also released

By Sergeant James Stenger & Lieutenant John Fortner, Antioch Police Investigations Bureau

The Antioch Police Department is asking for the public’s help in locating 19-year-old Michael Dwyane Fritz (born on 4/22/2002). Fritz has been identified as the suspect who shot and killed 12-year-old K’Lea Davis on May 12, 2021, in Antioch. Fritz currently has a warrant for his arrest for this case. It is believed that Fritz has cut his hair since the above photographs were taken. Fritz should be considered armed and dangerous and should not be approached. If Fritz is seen or you know his location, please call 9-1-1 or the Antioch Police Dispatch center at (925 )778-2441.

On Wednesday, April 12, 2021, at approximately 7:00 PM, Antioch police officers responded to the 1200 block of Oak Haven Way for a female that was shot.

Numerous officers responded to the scene. When officers arrived, they located a female victim suffering from at least one gunshot wound inside an upstairs bedroom. Evidence at the scene indicated the shooting occurred indoors. Officers immediately began administering first aid and called for emergency fire department and AMR paramedics.

Unfortunately, the 12-year-old female victim succumbed to her injuries and she was pronounced deceased at the scene. The suspect fled the scene and has not been contacted. Currently, there are no suspect leads.

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 and took over the investigation.

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

Anyone with information is asked to call the Antioch Police Department non-emergency line at (925) 778-2441, or Detective Bledsoe at (925) 779-6884. You may also text-a-tip to 274637 (CRIMES) using the key word ANTIOCH.

 

By Antioch Police Department

It was a relatively quiet Sunday for APD Dayshift officers, until 2:21 pm. APD 9-1-1 received an emergency call reporting a bike robbery in the 4600-block of Lone Tree Way. The suspects were reportedly armed with knives.

Officers Amiri (with Canine Purcy) Carpenter, Hill, Morris and Corporal Vanderpool swarmed the area and began looking for the suspects. Within nine minutes of the original 9-1-1 call, Officer Hill located one of the involved suspects with the victim’s bike at Lone Tree Way and Indian Hill Drive. He was detained without incident and found to be in possession of a kitchen knife. The 15-year-old suspect was placed under arrest for robbery and the victim was pretty darn happy to have his bike back.

This is yet another example of APD 9-1-1 dispatchers (the best in the business) and officers working together to quickly respond to your calls for help.

 

Both he and Councilwoman Torres-Walker posted about it on social media hours before APD press release issued; promote their previously announced proposals

By Allen Payton

In a post on his mayor’s Facebook page late Wednesday night, hours before the Antioch Police Department issued a press release about the incident, announced that the chief of police had informed him and Thorpe then went to the scene of the fatal shooting of a 12-year-old girl and spoke with neighbors. In addition, the mayor announced a special council meeting for next Tuesday to discuss gun violence in the city, instead of waiting for their regular meeting on May 28, as he had previously announced. (See related articles here and here)

In addition, District 1 Councilwoman Tamisha Torres-Walker announced on her council Facebook page that she too had been informed of the homicide. Both the mayor and councilwoman used the opportunity to promote their anti-violence proposals. The other three council members did not post anything about the incident on their council Facebook pages.

Chief T Brooks informed the council members about the homicide in compliance with the new required protocol for the council members to be informed of critical incidents that occur in the city. However, no requirement for informing the public was including in the council’s vote. (See related articles here and here)

Following is the post by Thorpe last night:

“This evening the Chief of Police informed me about a homicide involving a 12 year old girl. This is an unfortunate situation as these events impact all of us.

I went to the neighborhood where this happened and spoke to a few neighbors. As a parent of an 11 year old, it’s emotionally difficult to learn about these kinds of incidents. You literally can’t stop thinking about your own child. As I was out there, I also saw the 12 year old’s mom searching and demanding answers. This is still an active investigation so that’s all I can say for now.

I want to personally thank our men and women in law enforcement for their work on this matter. While I was there a small but emotionally charged crowd gathered. Understandable, given the circumstances. Our officers worked to keep things peaceful and displayed incredible restraint under very difficult circumstances.

I had originally planned to bring additional youth programming measures to the May 25th Council meeting. Instead, I’ll be bringing those measures to a special meeting next Tuesday, May 18th including the creation of a Community Led Violence Prevention Task Force in partnership with Moms Demand Action – CA.

I’ll reiterate my message to young people, guns are not the answer to solving problems! Cease fire!”

In addition, District 1 Councilwoman Tamisha Torres-Walker posted about the incident on her council Facebook page late Wednesday night prior to the APD issuing their press release. She wrote:

“Earlier this evening I found out about a homicide involving a 13-year-old girl. This makes me so angry because for the past 6 years I have been warning people that if we didn’t do something this particular kind of violence would escalate.

I can’t stop thinking about the loss of my baby brother to senseless violence and my heart is in the kneeling position for these families.

I am sure that during these difficult times that APD will be doing everything they can to bring closure to those harmed.

My hope however is that we can prevent this kind of senseless violence before it happens to another family.

Last week at the Mayors press conference I called for the creation of a Community Led Violence Prevention and intervention Task Force and I am hoping that my peers on the council will respond to this call to action with urgency.”

An email was sent to Thorpe, City Attorney Thomas Lloyd Smith, City Manager Ron Bernal and Police Chief T Brooks asking the following:

Do you think it’s appropriate for the mayor or any council member to use the info they receive from APD about critical incidents in our city to one, announce them on social media or anywhere else and two, to show up at the scene of the incident, prior to the official press release being issued?

Might this cause a challenge for both the police and a possible legal issue for the city should incorrect and premature information be released by either the mayor or one of the council members?

An additional email was sent to all those above and the other four council members asking similar questions, as well as the following:

Shouldn’t there be some kind of restrictions and limitation on the use and dissemination of the information received by council members from the APD about critical incidents that occur in the city, prior to the official release of that information to the public by the APD?

Thorpe Responds

7:00 P.M. UPDATE: In response, in an email Thursday afternoon, Thorpe wrote to the Herald while copying the other council members and city staff, “Asking the Mayor and City Council’s employees to weigh in on your editorializing related to our roles as elected officials is highly inappropriate. So we’re clear, my colleagues and I do not need a special permission slip from the police department or any other department for that matter about our decision making whether it’s on the dais or social media.

As mayor, I have a job to ensure our community is safe and I will do everything in my power to do so including showing up at active crime scenes, homeless encampments that are being actively cleared out, putting out information that I deem appropriate, and more.

We don’t have time for your editorializing and rumor mill operation. The City Manager, City Attorney, Chief, and I have jobs to do. Right now, our job is to figure out how a 12-year(-old) child was murdered, getting answers to the family as well as Antioch residents, bringing those responsible to justice, and preventing senseless murders like this from happening anywhere.

Respectfully,

The Mayor of Antioch”

The following questions and comments were then emailed to Thorpe and the others:

“Please point out what was opinion or rumor in the article I wrote quoting your and Tamisha’s Facebook posts verbatim. Did you not both post your comments hours before the APD press release was issued? Did you not both promote your previously announced anti-violence proposals? Did you not show up at the scene and speak with neighbors?”

“My questions were also appropriately directed to city staff because of the potential legal implications and interference in the police investigation your and Tamisha’s actions, both last night and possibly in the future, and/or those of other council members who jump out ahead of the official press release from the APD could mean for our city.”

Finally, the mayor was asked, “as for keeping our city safe and preventing senseless murders like this from happening – again, your words – how did showing up at the scene and posting your comments on social media before the official press release from APD was issued help accomplish that?”

Thorpe did not respond by 7:00 p.m., Thursday night. Attorney Smith’s email auto response shows he is out of the office until Monday. No responses were received from any of the others as of 7:00 p.m., Thursday night, either. Please check back later for any updates to this report.

By Lieutenant John Fortner, Antioch Police Investigations Bureau

On Wednesday, April 12, 2021, at approximately 7:00 PM, Antioch police officers responded to the 1200 block of Oak Haven Way for a female that was shot.

Numerous officers responded to the scene. When officers arrived, they located a female victim suffering from at least one gunshot wound inside an upstairs bedroom. Evidence at the scene indicated the shooting occurred indoors. Officers immediately began administering first aid and called for emergency fire department and AMR paramedics.

Unfortunately, the female victim succumbed to her injuries and she was pronounced deceased at the scene. The suspect fled the scene and has not been contacted. Currently, there are no suspect leads.

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 and took over the investigation.

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

Anyone with information is asked to call the Antioch Police Department non-emergency line at (925) 778-2441, or Detective Bledsoe at (925) 779-6884. You may also text-a-tip to 274637 (CRIMES) using the key word ANTIOCH.

Police determine it was in self-defense

By Sergeant James Stenger #3604, Antioch Police Investigations Bureau

On Saturday, April 17, 2021, at about 7:52 am, Antioch Police patrol officers were dispatched to the 3100 Block of Contra Loma Boulevard for a shooting. It was determined that two neighbors were involved in an argument stemming from long term issues between the two. During the argument 70-year-old James Bain produced a knife and attempted to stab the 62-year-old male he was arguing with. The 62-year-old male was carrying a firearm and shot Bain as Bain was attempting to stab him. Bain was transported to a local trauma center where he remained in critical condition until May 12, 2021, when he died from the injuries he sustained during the shooting.

The 62-year-old male was originally arrested in this case but was later released once it was determined the shooting was in self-defense. We are not releasing the 62-year-old male’s name at this time.

Additional inquiries or information can be directed to Antioch Police Detective Gragg at (925) 779-6889 or by emailing rgragg@antiochca.gov. Anonymous tips or information about this – or any other incident – can be sent via text to 274637 (CRIMES) with the keyword ANTIOCH.

APD also receives eight complaints of ATV’s and dirt bikes driving recklessly Monday

By Antioch Police Department

Many of you may have seen slow traffic tonight, (Monday night, May 10, 2021) or weren’t able to go down Buchanan Road from Contra Loma Blvd. for a time. The reason for this, was a driver without a helmet on an ATV collided with another motorist as they attempted to turn onto Buchanan Road from a side street. As you can see from the damage in the pictures, the collision caused substantial damage and the ATV driver was thrown from his vehicle and was unresponsive when the first officers on scene arrived. While he did suffer substantial injuries, we are happy to learn that he is expected to survive this incident.

Tonight alone, between 3pm-6pm, dispatch received eight separate complaints of ATV’s and dirt bikes alike driving recklessly all over the city prior to this collision In many of these instances, the riders aren’t wearing helmets and flee at high rates of speed if they see officers attempting to stop them. This not only puts other motorists at risk of being injured in a collision, but as illustrated in this post, also puts the riders themselves at risk of significant injury.

Incidents like these are sobering reminders that everyone needs to drive with due caution and that all off-road vehicles are illegal on city streets. The Antioch Police Department takes public safety seriously and will continue to enforce all traffic laws in order to keep us all as safe as possible.

 

A shooting occurred on westbound SR-4, west of Railroad Avenue at around 10:00 PM Thursday night, May 6, 2021. A driver and his passenger were shot at in what appears to be an attempted road rage incident. The driver and passenger sustained non-life-threatening injuries as a result of this shooting and were transported to a local hospital for treatment. The unknown suspect fled the scene in an unknown vehicle subsequent to the shooting.

Detectives assigned to CHP – Golden Gate Division Special Investigations Unit (SIU) are actively investigating this shooting. Our detectives are requesting assistance from the public in gathering the details surrounding this incident. If you or anyone you know have any information that might be helpful, please call the CHP Investigative Tipline at 707.917.4491.