Antioch Police Community Engagement Team Officers Riosbaas (left) and Shipilov (center) check on Harry on Tuesday, April 28, 2026, who was given a job by 7-Eleven owner Mena. Photo by Antioch PD
By Antioch Police Department
On Thursday, April 23, 2026, officers with the Antioch Police Community Engagement Team responded to a report of an unhoused individual trespassing on private property. When Officers Riosbaas and Shipilov arrived, they made contact with a young man named Harry. During their conversation with Harry, he explained that he had been experiencing homelessness for an extended period of time and was making efforts to obtain employment, so he could afford housing and transportation, but had been unsuccessful so far despite applying to several local businesses.
Officers used their contacts with Mena, the owner of 7-Eleven on Sunset Lane and Davison Drive, and gave Mena Harry’s contact information. Within 15 minutes Mena called Harry and set up a job interview while officers Riosbaas and Shipilov were still on scene. Harry was extremely grateful for the opportunity! Officers gave Harry some pointers for the interview and he aced it! Harry was hired and his first day of work was April 26, 2026.
Officers Riosbaas and Shipilov checked in on Harry on Tuesday, April 28 to congratulate him on his success and took the opportunity to pose with him and Mena.
These are the contacts that make a difference in our community. At the Antioch Police Department, our Community Engagement Team is committed to more than just enforcement. They’re here to build relationships, connect people with resources, and help create pathways to success.
This is just one example of how collaboration, compassion, and proactive policing can positively impact lives. We would like to thank Mena for being willing to give Harry an opportunity, and we wish Harry continued success in this next chapter.
Suspect Ronald Benjamin Jackson, III was charged with homicide, kidnapping and criminal threats in the 2024 death of Raheem Coe. Photo: Antioch PD
Suspect Ronald Benjamin Jackson, III currently in San Quentin state prison on unrelated charges.
Previously arrested in 2022 for shooting, killing Antioch convenience store clerk, but DA Becton didn’t charge with murder
By Allen D. Payton
According to Antioch Police Lt. William Whitaker of the department’s Investigations Bureau, “after an extensive investigation, the Antioch Police Department has solved the homicide of Raheem Coe, a 48-year-old Antioch homeless resident who was found deceased on May 15, 2024, near medical office buildings in the Country Hills Drive area.”
As previously reported, at approximately 7:19 AM, on that date, Antioch police officers responded to the 2200 block of Country Hills Drive to assist Contra Costa Fire on a reported male down on the sidewalk possibly in need of medical attention.
When officers arrived, they located a deceased male. The cause of death was unknown at the time. The Antioch Police Department’s Investigations Bureau, consisting of Crime Scene Investigators and detectives with the Violent Crimes Unit took over the investigation. After an autopsy and further investigation, the death was determined to be a homicide. The victim frequented the area where he was discovered.
As previously reported, independent reports from two sources claimed Coe’s death was believed to be caused by blunt force trauma, including to his head and chest.
At the time, local homeless advocate Andrew Becker, who knew Coe and had several interactions with him, said, “Raheem Coe was on the street for the last couple of years, in the Lone Tree-Deer Valley area. He’s had several interactions with City staff including being swept multiple times by Public Works and Code Enforcement.”
“We had several conversations about shelter and services, and he was seeking shelter,” Becker continued. “He did have contact with his family who are also local.”
Through the processing of evidence, witness interviews, and the review of video surveillance, detectives identified 23-year-old Ronald Benjamin Jackson, III as the suspect in this homicide. Jackson is currently in custody at San Quentin State Prison on unrelated charges.
The case was presented to the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office, which has filed charges against Jackson for PC 187 – Homicide, PC 207(a) – Kidnapping, and PC 422 – Criminal Threats. Jackson will be transferred to the Martinez Detention Facility pending future court proceedings.
Jackson was previously arrested for robbing an Antioch gas station convenience store and killing the 36-year-old clerk in November 2022. (See related articles here and here)
However, Contra Costa District Attorney Diana Becton announced the following week that her Office declined to file murder charges in the case, based on the clerk’s actions and “upon an established law that clearly states a person cannot pursue another to retrieve stolen property once the threat of bodily injury or harm to the victim has subsided.”
According to localcrimenews.com, Jackson was also arrested by Antioch Police on May 25, 2024, for kidnapping, battery on a spouse, cohabitant or former spouse and threats of violence, and on Oct. 26, 2022, for vandalism: paint, cruelty to an animal and carrying a loaded firearm when not the registered owner.
Anyone with additional information regarding this investigation is encouraged to contact Antioch Police Detective John Cox at (925) 481-8147 or by email at jcox@antiochca.gov.
During the first regular meeting of 2026, Tuesday night, Jan. 13, the Antioch City Council will discuss three options for opening warming centers during severe cold spells, including relying on the County, partnering with faith-based and community organizations or a City-funded warming center.
The council will first hold a Closed Session on three matters, the recruitment of a new City Attorney, significant exposure to two potential lawsuits and conference with labor negotiators regarding contracts with various City employee groups.
In addition, during the regular meeting the Council will review the Council 90-Day Request List Items submitted through November; appoint a City representative to the Contra Costa County Library Commission through June 2029; consider approving the proposed 2026 City Council 6-Month Priorities to guide policy direction; discuss approving a waiver of “City-only” building permit fees, up to $50,000, for Loaves & Fishes of Contra Costa (LFCC) for renovations to their property located at 408 O Street; and forming a General Plan Advisory Committee that could include Councilmembers, Planning Commissioners and representatives from the community.
Warming Centers
According to the City staff report for the item, #7 on the agenda, the Council will discuss three options for warming centers:
Option 1: Rely exclusively on Contra Costa County’s warming center program, acknowledging that no guaranteed warming center location currently exists in Antioch.
Option 2: Direct staff to pursue partnerships with faith-based or community organizations to explore shared staffing, resource-sharing, or cost-sharing models for warming center operations.
Option 3: Direct staff to further evaluate a City-funded warming center, recognizing the staffing, cost and operational challenges identified above. Nightly expenses would range from $3,500 to $4,500.
Contra Costa County opens warming centers during severe cold spells based on National Weather Service (NWS) criteria, which specify predicted temperatures at or below 32 degrees for three straight days. When County warming centers are activated, City staff coordinate with the County to support advance community notification.
While the County has confirmed it will activate centers during qualifying conditions there are currentlyno guaranteed or identified warming center locations in East Contra Costa County, including Antioch. As a result, Antioch residents may need to travel outside the immediate area to access County-operated warming centers when they are activated.
The Public Safety and Community Service Department (PSCR) has activated a hoteling-based emergency placement program. This Emergency Motel Voucher Program (EMVP) is a separate, non-congregate emergency response strategy designed to address life safety risks during severe weather events, particularly when congregate warming center options are unavailable, inaccessible, or not appropriate for certain individuals. EMVP does not replace warming centers, but instead provides a focused, referral-based option for high-vulnerability individuals during qualifying conditions.
In the absence of a County-operated warming center in Antioch, City staff has explored whether local churches or community organizations were independently operating public warming centers. None were found to operate public warming centers. However, one Antioch-based church has recently expressed willingness to activate a warming center if the City provided funding for staffing, supplies, and operations. Another option is for the City to work with local faith-based organizations to jointly explore partnership models, shared-resource approaches, or cost-sharing options, which might be more sustainable than a City-operated center.
Another option considered is for the City of Antioch to operate its own warming center based on activation criteria established by the Council, such as when temperatures fall below 40 degrees or other local thresholds. However, this option is not recommended due to staffing limits and high estimated costs. All responsibilities would be managed through overtime, with estimated nightly expenses ranging from $3,500 to $4,500.
Meeting Details
The Closed Session begins at 5:00 p.m. and the regular meeting begins at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall located at 200 H Street in Antioch’s historic, downtown Rivertown. It can also be viewed via livestream on the City’s website and the City’s YouTube Channel, on Comcast Cable Channel 24 or AT&T U-verse Channel 99.
Join us for Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day, where we will create a space to remember, honor and celebrate those in our community with a lived experience of homelessness who have died in the past two years. As part of the event, we will be reading their names and stories. You are invited to share the names of people whom you would like to be remembered here: https://forms.gle/ksauQ1dwxKT2j2rR7.
This hybrid (in person and online) event will take place:
Event co-hosted by Antioch Seventh Day Adventist Church, Bay Area Rescue Mission, City of Antioch, Contra Costa Council on Homelessness, NAMI Contra Costa, and Safe Organized Spaces Richmond.
At these events each year, we remember those who have died and we strengthen our resolve to work for a world where no life is lived or lost in homelessness. We state clearly, together with others in scores of communities across the nation, that no person should die for lack of housing.
About NAMI CC – Support. Educate. Advocate. Outreach.
Mission Statement – To provide support, outreach, education, and advocacy to individuals impacted by mental illness, their families, and the broader community.
NAMI Contra Costa is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization providing outreach, education, support and advocacy to individuals living with mental illness, their families, and the broader community. We have been serving in Contra Costa County and beyond for over 35 years. All our programs are free, so get involved today and help make a difference in your life, others’ lives, and in the local community.
NAMI Contra Costa is an affiliate of the National Alliance on Mental Illness. We are unique in our independence with long history of supporting individuals living with mental illness, their families, and the broader community.
NAMI CC has a commitment to serve the needs of all impacted by mental illness. We have staffed our agency to be reflective of those who are unserved, underserved, and inappropriately served. We have many support groups, classes, and services for these communities. Additionally, to help reach much of the homebound community, we provide almost all of our groups and classes via Zoom, and now more are in-person. So please visit our calendar page for group dates and times.
NAMI Contra Costa was named the 2023 California Nonprofit of the Year.
About the Delta Bay Wellness Hub
NAMI CC is committed to ensuring ALL individuals impacted by mental illness have their needs met and no one is left behind. We, therefore, lifted the 40 Voices Campaign to advocate for an African American Holistic Wellness & Resource Hub to improve outcomes for the African American community. Despite 40 Voices’ successful advocacy for a total of $8.9 million dollars from the Contra Costa Board of Supervisors, we have been asked to wait until 2029 for the physical site of the hub to be realized. We cannot afford to wait. NAMI CC CEO and Founder of the 40 Voices Campaign, Gigi Crowder, decided to move forward with the hub – primarily using her own personal funding and securing donations from others.
If you would like to support this important effort, you can Zelle a payment (510-990-2670) or mail in a check (2151 Salvio Street, Suite V, Concord, CA 94520) or simply go to ww.namicontracosta.org/donate to make a donation. All donations are tax deductible. Donations of $40 dollars or more will be recognized on a poster as a “Founding Contributor” of the 40 Voices African American Holistic Wellness & Resource Hub at Delta Bay. The renovations have resulted in a beautiful healing space.
59-year-old Frank Troia in a photo from Facebook posted on May 27, 2024.
Attacker used “improvised weapon”, held on $530,000 bail
Sister organizes GoFundMe to pay for “proper services”
By Lt. William Whitaker #6155, Antioch Police Investigations Bureau
According to a press release issued by Antioch Police Lt. William Whitaker today, “On December 4, 2025, the victim of the November 18 attack, 59-year-old Frank Troia, died from the injuries he sustained. The charges initially filed against the suspect, 34-year-old Brandon Rowlett, will be amended to murder (187 PC).”
Evidence markers were placed at the scene of the physical altercation on Lone Tree Way Tuesday morning, Nov. 18, 2025. Photo courtesy of Spotlight CoCoCounty. (Redacted by the Herald)
As previously reported, on November 18, 2025, at approximately 2:46 a.m., the Antioch Police Department dispatch center received multiple calls of a subject down on the roadway at Lone Tree Way and W. Tregallas Road. When officers arrived on scene, they located the victim who appeared to have been involved in a physical altercation. Antioch police officers provided aid to the victim at the scene. The victim was transported to a local hospital where he is in critical condition.
On November 19, at approximately 8:30 a.m., the Antioch Police Department’s Investigations Bureau, located and arrested Rowlett.
“He passed late last night,” Whitaker stated.
Asked if Troia was struck with a pipe, he said, “We found the improvised weapon used. It’s crucial evidence to the case. But we’re not going to release that information at this time.”
As previously reported, the sister of Troia has organized a GoFundMe campaign to raise funds to pay for “proper services” for her brother.
Additional inquiries, tips, or information can be directed to Antioch Police Detective Arturo Becerra at (925) 779-6937 or by email at abecerra@antiochca.gov.
According to the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office, the five-foot, four-inch tall, 162-pound Rowlett is Hispanic, and now being held on $530,000 bail in the West County Detention Facility. His next court appearance is scheduled for Dec. 9 at 1:30 p.m. in Martinez Superior Court.
Asked to form Ad Hoc Committee; at least $16 million spent since 2021 so far
By Allen D. Payton
During a special meeting at noon on Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025, the Antioch City Council will consider a plan to reduce homelessness and policy guidelines for homeless services. The meeting was scheduled on Nov. 20, but the agenda was not provided to the public until Monday, Dec. 1.
The one agenda is labeled a “City Council Priority Setting Discussion” on the “Plan for the Department of Public Safety and Community Resources to Reduce Homelessness and Increase Access to Critical Resources for Unhoused Residents,” by Focus Strategies, completed in December 2023.
The plan was a result of the Council adopting the “Policy Guidelines for the City’s Approach to Unhoused Resident Services” in 2021.
According to the City staff report on the item, “The Policy Guidelines of 2021 outlined three strategies that the City would use to prioritize to achieve this goal:
1. Address the immediate and public health needs of unhoused Antioch residents;
2. Invest in interim housing and services solutions designed to facilitate the transition into permanent housing; and
3. Increase permanent housing and linkages to permanent housing.
The City Manager (Bessie Scott) has recently restructured the housing investments approach for the City, to include the creation of a dedicated Housing Services Division, and she has bolstered regional relationships with external partners to address policy interventions as well as possibilities for increasing service provisions, in addition to identifying funding opportunities in the area of housing services and housing opportunities for all.”
Scott is asking for direction from the Council on forming an Ad Hoc Committee for this purpose.
UPDATE: Asked how much has been spent to help the homeless in Antioch, including ARPA COVID-relief funds, Monserrat Cabral, Director of the Department of Public Safety and Community Resources responded, “Since 2021 with ARPA (federal) and ERF (Encampment Resolution Funds from the State of California), I’d say a little over $16 million. The $16 million is also only what I can see from my department and when the Unhoused Resident Coordinator was hired as part-time in 2021 from the City Manager’s office, there might be other expenses from Public Works or Antioch Police Departments, but I would confirm with City Manager Scott.”
Asked why the meeting is being held at Noon when most residents can’t attend Mayor Ron Bernal responded, “It was the only time we could get the City Council and facilitator together before the last City Council meeting (of the year) on 12/9.”
Frank Troia in a photo from Facebook posted on May 27, 2024 (left), and from the GoFundMe page (right).
Family raising funds for “proper service” of 59-year-old Frank Troia suffering from severe brain damage
By Allen D. Payton
The sister of Frank Troia, an Antioch homeless resident, who was injured in a fight with a younger homeless man earlier this month, has organized a GoFundMe campaign to raise funds for his funeral as he is not expected to survive his injuries. The suspect, 34-year-old Brandon Rowlett, was arrested for attempted homicide. (See related article)
On the GoFundMe page Frank’s sister wrote, “My name is Mary Troia. My brother, Frank Troia, was a victim of assault on November 17, 2025. He was beaten with a weapon and has been hospitalized since. He has severe brain damage and has not regained consciousness. The doctors are giving our family time to come to terms with end of life.
Frank suffered from mental illness and was unhoused at the time of the assault. It occurred in Antioch, CA, and was covered by the Antioch Herald and the East Bay Times. Unfortunately, Frank has no assets and I am asking for any donations to cover any costs associated with proper services. Donations of any amount would be appreciated by my family. God bless you, and if unable to donate, please remember Frank in your prayers.”
Asked about her brother, Mary shared about him and their family, “Frank did attend Antioch High School. However, he did not graduate with his Class of 1984. He got a G.E.D. Frank is the youngest of four children, my brother, John Myers, the oldest, myself, then my sister Janet Troia and he followed her. Frank has a 36-year-old son, Frank, Jr.”
Asked if he was a Marine Corps veteran due to the flag on the wall behind him seen in a photo from Facebook, she replied, “He was not a vet our stepfather was. He is still in critical condition at this time.”
Evidence markers were placed at the scene of the physical altercation between two homeless Antioch men on Lone Tree Way, Tuesday morning, Nov. 18, 2025. Photo courtesy of Spotlight CoCoCounty.
34-year-old Brandon Rowlett with 10-year history of 25 arrests injured 59-year-old Frank Troia who remains in critical condition
Held on $500,000 bail
“It was a one-on-one fight that got out of hand.” – APD Lt. Whitaker
By Allen D. Payton
As previously reported, on Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2025, at approximately 2:46 a.m., the Antioch Police Department dispatch center received multiple calls of a subject down on the roadway at Lone Tree Way and W. Tregallas Road. When officers arrived on scene, they located the victim who appeared to have been involved in a physical altercation. Antioch Police officers provided aid to the victim at the scene. The victim was transported to a local hospital where he is in critical condition.
According to Antioch Police Lt. William Whitaker, on November 19, at approximately 8:30 a.m., the Antioch Police Department’s Investigations Bureau located and arrested 34-year-old Brandon Rowlett for attempted homicide.
Police also identified the victim, 59-year-old Frank Troia, who remains in critical condition at an area hospital.
“Both are unhoused in Antioch,” Whitaker shared.
Asked if any vehicles were involved as the original post on APD’s social media claimed it was a traffic accident, he said, “No vehicles were involved. It was a one-on-one fight that got out of hand.”
Whitaker also explained the difference in the markers placed at the scene. The yellow markers are for evidence placed by officers who first arrive on scene. The blue markers are placed by the detectives during their investigation.
This is an active investigation, and no further information will be released at this time.
Additional inquiries, tips, or information can be directed to Antioch Police Detective Arturo Becerra at (925) 779-6937 or by email at abecerra@antiochca.gov.
According to localcrimenews.com, Rowlett has a history of 25 arrests dating back to 2015 by Antioch Police and the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Department on weapons and drug charges and for crimes including vandalism, burglary, multiple counts of disobeying a domestic relations court order and multiple counts of failure to appear.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, the five-foot, four-inch tall, 162-pound suspect is Hispanic, but also listed as white, and being held on $500,000 bail in the West County Detention Facility.
