“…our response to the…burglary incidents fell short of our goals, and I want to be very clear about that.” Lt. Michael Mellone

By Allen D. Payton

In response to multiple business burglaries in Antioch, this week the Antioch Police Department issued a statement on Thursday, Feb. 16, 2023 apologizing for the slow response times.

A list and videos of various restaurants that were broken into was published on Facebook and by another media source, including Hillcrest Taphouse, Cocina Medina, Muscle Maker Grill and Tailgaters Sports Bar & Grill. A Thursday, February 15 post on the Hillcrest Tap Facebook page shows photos of the damage and reads, “So somebody broke into the restaurant this morning, alarm company called me when they shattered the front door before they even got into the restaurant we called the police they spent 10 minutes going through the restaurant loading up backpack trying to get into everything. Police never showed up. I’ve been in the restaurant for close to 1 and half hours and the police still haven’t showed up. They said they have no officers available for non-emergency. So basically they’re saying it’s a free ride to break in to any restaurant or business because people know that there’s no repercussions for it because the police aren’t going to show up.”

A video posted on the Cocina Medina Facebook page, yesterday shows the damage and included the brief comment, “What’s the point?”

According to a report on ContraCostaNews.com it took police four hours to respond to the burglary at Cocina Medina.

Following is the APD’s statement:

“February 16, 2023

To the Antioch Community:

We are aware of recent concerns about our police response to in-progress property crimes (such as burglaries). I wanted to take a few moments to offer a few words – and apologize. Specifically, our response to the Hillcrest Restaurant & Taphouse and Cocina Medina burglary incidents fell short of our goals, and I want to be very clear about that.

When our Dispatch Center receives an emergency call, they often get triaged based on our available officer resources, and whether the incident is a threat to life, property, or both. In this instance, all of our officers were committed to high priority calls, and we did not respond in a timely manner to these burglary incidents. We have looked into both incidents, found areas where we could’ve done better, and are taking immediate steps to address it.

If I could ask our community, please do not fault our hard-working officers or dispatchers for this lack of performance. I can tell you – without question – that our officers and dispatchers take great pride in serving and protecting Antioch, especially since many of them are from here. In the majority of incidents, we would normally respond quickly to an in-progress burglary, but for these particular incidents we did not, and I apologize to these individual business owners, and our community.

We know that folks in Antioch do not like to hear excuses – especially from their Police Department. I can tell you we are taking immediate steps to improve our staffing levels through robust recruiting efforts. We are sending four police recruits to an academy in the next few days. Three out of four are from Antioch (the other from East County), and all represent a cross section of the community we serve. We also have 10 police applicants in our hiring process currently – and if they meet our high-standards – will be additional help for improving our staffing levels.

These recruiting efforts include concerted attempts to attract women and individuals from the wonderfully diverse community we serve. Soon, we will be announcing a nationwide campaign we have joined to improve our efforts to increase the numbers of women and diverse individuals into our Police Department. We look forward to telling you more about this very soon. My shameless plug is – if you know someone you think would make a great Antioch Police Officer, please ask them to visit our website JoinAntiochPd.com, or give me a call.

We greatly appreciate the support we receive from everyone, but also appreciate (truly) when you hold us accountable when we fall short. Hopefully you’ve noticed our attempts to double-down on our transparency efforts. This is not just in-line with best practice policing reform efforts, but is our obligation to keep you informed about what’s going on, and also level with you when we fall short.

I am pleased to announce that we will have some positive news about these specific burglary incidents very soon – stay tuned. If anyone would like to talk to me about their concerns on this or any other matter where you expected better (or thought we did a good job), I can be reached at (925) 779-6938, or email: mmellone@antiochca.gov.

Thank you, Antioch.

Michael Mellone

Lieutenant of Police

Professional Standards Unit

www.visitmonicas.com

Dinner & Live Music Show & Celebrating February Birthdays.

Get your tickets now!

Presented by Wright’s Catering and The Wright Social Spot

Saturday, February 11, 2023, 4:00 – 11:00 PM

509 W. 2nd Street, Rivertown, Antioch

$75 per person. Purchase your tickets today on EventBrite.

The Wright Social Spot welcomes our first event of 2023 with The Best Indoor Pre-Valentines Dinner & February Birthday’s Event of the Year with Live Music Performances & 4-Course Dinner.

Please Join Us in celebrating LOVE at a Classy, Upscale, Fun-Filled Pre-Valentine’s Day “2023” Event.

COME AND GET YOUR LIFETIME GLASS ROSE!!!!!!

Live Music, DJ, Dancing, 4-Course Dinner included with the $75 cover.

DON’T MISS THIS AWESOME DINNER MUSIC EVENT!! GET YOUR TICKETS NOW BEFORE THEY ARE SOLD OUT!!!

• HOSTED BY: Paul & Maggie Wright from The Wright Social Spot & WrightCatering.net
• WHERE: 509 W. 2nd Street, Antioch, CA
• DATE: Saturday, February 11, 2023

• TIME: 4:00 PM -11:00 PM
• WHAT’S INCLUDED: Singing 🎼🎵🎼♪ Dancing 💃🕺4-Course Dinner 🍽😋Beverages🍸 🍹 🍸
• INCLUDES DINNER SERVICE: 7:00PM – 8:30PM (Choice of Chicken, NY Steak, Salmon, Shrimp) – included with $75 Admission. Dinner Options available for Oxtails (+ $25), Lamb (+$25), King Crab Legs (+ $50), Lobster (+$50)
• RSVP BY: February 11, 2023, Pre-paid Reservations Required so get your tickets early.
• PAYMENT OPTIONS: Zelle, Cash App, Venmo, Debit/Credit or PayPal to 415-971-8776 Or Eventbrite, Credit/Debit (NO REFUNDS, NO EXCEPTIONS)
• DOORS OPEN: 4:00 PM
• PARKING: Lots of free parking (FIRST COME FIRST SERVE) THEME: Black & Gold & Red
• MORE INFORMATION: Call or Text Paul at (415) 971-8776 or Maggie at 209-896-7131
• YOUTUBE: https://youtu.be/W0QgsYc2DEo
• WEB: WrightCatering.net
• FB: #WrightSocialSpot
• FB/IG: #RightsCatering
• PAST EVENTS PHOTOS: https://photos.app.goo.gl/TnMVF8fCJitKAtpr6
• THEME: Black, Gold & Red
• VENUE VIDEO: https://youtube.com/clip/UgkxuhKD3v6bDqgpXy3nukv1RaxissbySzeE

DONT MISS THE BEST INDOOR PRE-VALENTINE’S & FEBRUARY BIRTHDAYS PARTY IN THE EAST BAY!!!

OUR EVENTS ARE ALWAYS FUN FILLED AND SOLD-OUT!!

Please share this link with your friends and family.

Also, celebrating their One Year Anniversary!

Also celebrating all December birthdays

The Best New Year’s Eve 2023 Party Event of the Year in a Very Classy, Upscale INDOOR restaurant and entertainment venue.

Live Music, DJ, Full Course Dinner, Champagne Toast & Blessing for 2023 all included in the $75 cover.

Please Join Us in celebrating each other, Paul’s & Maggie’s and all December Birthdays.

DON’T MISS THIS!! GET YOUR TICKETS NOW BEFORE THEY ARE SOLD OUT!!!

HOSTED BY: Paul & Maggie Wright from The Wright Social Spot

MC: Mickel London

LIVE MUSIC: Michael Nelson & Samantha Alexis

DJ & SOUND: Dr. Carl

WHERE: 2370 Buchanan Road, Antioch (INDOORS)

DATE: Saturday, December 31st, 2022

TIME: 6:00 PM -1:00 AM

WHAT’S INCLUDED: Live Music Performances by Two Amazing Bay Area Singers 🎼🎵🎼♪

Dancing 💃🕺Full Course Dinner 🍽😋Beverages🍸 🍹 🍸 Champagne Toast

DINNER SERVICE: 7:30PM – 9:30PM (Choice of Chicken, NY Steak, Salmon, Shrimp) Additional Options, Available for Lobster -$125, Oxtails – $100, Lamb – $100, King Crab Legs – $125 – WrightCatering.net

RSVP BY: December 24, 2022, Pre-paid Reservations Required so get your tickets early.

PAYMENT OPTIONS: ZELLE, CASHAPP, VENMO, PAYPAL 415-971-8776 OR EVENTBRITE CREDIT/DEBIT (NO REFUNDS, NO EXCEPTIONS)

DOORS OPEN: 5:00 PM

PARKING: Lots of free parking (FIRST COME FIRST SERVE) THEME: Black & Gold

MORE INFORMATION: Call or Text Maggie or Paul (209) 896-7131 or (415) 971-8776

YOUTUBE: https://youtu.be/W0QgsYc2DEo WEB: WrightCatering.net

FB: @WrightSocialSpot

FB/IG: @RightsCatering

Please share this link with your friends and family.

DONT MISS THE BEST INDOOR NEW YEARS EVE EVENT IN THE EAST BAY!

For tickets click, here – 2022 Heritage Foundation Dinner | Contra Costa County (cccfheritagefoundation.com).