Pittsburg residents face up to 20 year prison sentences; eight others including three more Contra Costa County residents also indicted in conspiracy

OAKLAND – The U.S. Justice Department’s Northern District of California announced, today, Thursday, June 15, 2017 that former Antioch police officer Gary Bostick and his wife, Ana Bostick, pleaded guilty to their respective roles in a scheme to illegally obtain money from the United States announced United States Attorney Brian J. Stretch and Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation, Special Agent in Charge Michael T. Batdorf.

Also indicted in the conspiracy were nine others, including three other residents of Contra Costa County. The indictment, unsealed on Dec. 9, 2015, charges the following additional defendants:

• Hugh Robinson, of Richmond
• Devonnie Davison, of San Pablo
• Brandon Robinson, of El Cerrito
• Ronald Blake, of Fort Worth, TX
• Kyadrian Dennis, of Fort Worth, TX
• William Odom, of Berkeley
• Jamia Lewis, of Fairfield
• Janel McDonald, of Los Angeles
• Everardo Laurian, of Daly City

According to the indictment, from at least August 21, 2013, through April 27, 2015, the defendants conspired with one another to commit offenses against the United States, including theft of government money.  The scheme involved obtaining the names of deceased individuals, filing false tax returns in the names of the individuals, obtaining false identifications, and illegally cashing U.S. Treasury checks.

(Related press release: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndca/pr/eleven-defendants-named-seventy-one-count-indictment-charging-conspiracy-commit-theft)

Gary Bostick, 39, and Ana Bostick, 37, both of Pittsburg, pleaded guilty to their respective roles the conspiracy.  The Honorable Jeffery S. White, United States District Judge, accepted Ana Bostick’s guilty plea on Tuesday, June 13, 2017, and accepted Gary Bostick’s guilty plea this morning. 6/16/17 UPDATE: Gary Bostick worked for the Antioch Police Department from July 30, 2007 to April 29, 2015 according to Nickie Mastay, Director of Human Resources for the City of Antioch. Ana Bostick is listed as a teacher at Black Diamond High School in the Pittsburg Unified School District. But there is no photo or information about her on the school’s webpage. On Friday morning, June 16, 2017, Nicole Mora, District Communications Public Relations Specialist said she had “learned about this, this morning”, was “looking into it” and waiting to speak with the principal and others before commenting.

Then, in a later email, Mora released the following statement from the district: “Ana Bostick is employed by Pittsburg Unified School District as a teacher. Her current employment status for the 2017/2018 school year is a personnel matter and we have no other details to release at this time.”

According to the Bosticks’ plea agreements, between January and April of 2015, the conspiracy involved filing false federal income tax returns in order to obtain fraudulent federal income tax refunds and cashing stolen U.S. Treasury checks at Walmart stores throughout the United States.  Specifically, Gary Bostick admitted that in January 2015, he assisted in filing false tax returns with the IRS in the names of deceased individuals.  The defendants obtained names, dates of birth, and Social Security numbers from websites such as www.rootsweb.ancestry.com and www.ssnvalidator.com.  In order to receive payment, the conspirators directed the IRS to mail the fraudulently obtained U.S. Treasury checks to addresses he and his co-conspirators could access.  The conspirators cashed the U.S. Treasury checks at various Walmart stores.

Ana Bostick admitted that she aided her co-conspirators by, among other things, cashing two U.S. Treasury checks.  Ana Bostick admitted she requested another co-conspirator to send her photos of the two U.S. Treasury checks so that she could use the information on the checks to obtain fake identification that matched the names.  After obtaining the fake identifications, Ana Bostick cashed the two checks and kept the corresponding funds.

Gary Bostick’s participation in the scheme included traveling with two co-conspirators to Los Angeles to obtain stolen U.S. Treasury checks and then to Walmart stores in various areas, including Kentucky, to cash the checks.  The former police officer acknowledged that he supervised other individuals in the scheme, including managers and runners, who were responsible for cashing the fraudulent or stolen U.S. Treasury checks.  In sum, the conspiracy involved $720,530.40 in stolen U.S. Treasury checks.

On November 15, 2015, a federal grand jury indicted Gary Bostick, Ana Bostick, and their co-conspirators.  For her part in the scheme, Ana Bostick was charged with conspiracy to commit theft of public money, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371; two counts of theft of public money, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 641; and two counts of aggravated identity theft, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1028A.  She pleaded guilty to all charges.  For his part in the scheme, Gary Bostick was charged with conspiracy to commit theft of public money, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371; four counts of wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1343; and four counts of aggravated identity theft, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1028A.  He pleaded guilty to the conspiracy charge and to the wire fraud charges.  Pursuant to the plea agreement, the identity theft charges were dismissed.

Judge White scheduled Gary Bostick’s sentencing for September 19, 2017, and Ana Bostick’s sentencing for November 14, 2017.  The maximum sentence for conspiracy to commit theft of public money is five years in prison and a fine of $250,000.  The maximum sentence for theft of public money is ten years in prison and a fine of $250,000.  The maximum sentence for wire fraud is 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.  The maximum sentence for aggravated identity theft is a mandatory minimum of two years in prison and a fine of $250,000.  However, any sentence will be imposed by the court only after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas Newman and Jose A. Olivera and Trial Attorney Gregory Bernstein are prosecuting this case with assistance from Jonathan Deville of the Tax Division.  The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation.

By Acting Captain Tony Morefield, Antioch Police Department

On June 28, 2012, Denny Gonzales lost his life in the City of Antioch in a confrontation with Antioch Police Department (APD) officers. On that date, Gonzales, a local barber, made numerous statements to the police that clearly indicated he was homicidal, including comments that he was going to kill a police officer and other threats. Gonzales, who was later found to have been emotionally distraught and significantly intoxicated, was shot and killed when he challenged officers with a firearm in front of his Antioch home.

(See related articles: Distraught Antioch Man Shot and Killed by Police, and Judge dismisses case against Antioch Police in shooting death of Antioch man in 2012)

In 2013, the wife of Gonzales and his young daughter (Plaintiffs) filed a lawsuit against the City of Antioch for claimed civil rights violations, negligence and battery. In October of 2015, Judge Westmore of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, ruled in favor of the City of Antioch on all claims, dismissing this lawsuit. Judge Westmore found that “a reasonable officer at the scene would have reasonably believed that Mr. Gonzales posed a threat of serious physical harm to him or his fellow officers, justifying the use of deadly force.” Judge Westmore went on to state that “the undisputed evidence shows that the officers acted reasonably under the totality of the circumstances, and the City, therefore, faces no liability for the officers’ conduct.”

Plaintiffs appealed this decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, challenging the ruling by Judge Westmore. The appeal was argued on April 20, 2017, by outside counsel for the City, Noah G. Blechman, Esq., from the McNamara Law Firm in Walnut Creek. On June 7, 2017, the Ninth Circuit unanimously ruled that Judge Westmore did not err in dismissing the lawsuit in favor of the City.

See Memorandum, here.

The Ninth Circuit found that “viewing the facts in the light most favorable to appellants (Plaintiffs), no reasonable jury could conclude that the officers’ use of deadly force was objectively unreasonable.” Pg. 2. The Ninth Circuit found that it was undisputed that the “responding officers were confronted with a suspect who had repeatedly threatened to kill a police officer and raised his gun in the direction of officers.” Pg. 3. In addition, the Ninth Circuit found that Plaintiffs did not show sufficient evidence of any negligence on the part of any City employees with regard to their actions or tactics leading up to the shooting.

Per Mr. Blechman, “The Ninth Circuit extensively analyzed this incident from start to finish on this appeal and came to the same rightful conclusion as Judge Westmore, that these officers acted lawfully, appropriately and reasonably in this difficult situation to which they were thrust. While it is clearly unfortunate when any citizen escalates a situation that necessitates the use of deadly force by officers, these involved officers of the City had no choice but to act in self-preservation and to protect fellow officers and the public when Mr. Gonzales came out onto his driveway with the firearm and raised the firearm. The extensive training of the involved officers and the well supervised tactical decisions on that date protected all other citizens as well as possible.”

The City of Antioch continues to extend their deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Denny Gonzales who have suffered from this unfortunate incident. The City of Antioch also wants to praise the actions of those involved officers and supervisors for their efforts which no doubt likely saved the lives the others and maintained public safety on June 28, 2012.

By Jesus Cano

Deer Valley outside hitter Carson Zollars is praised to be a leader and powerhouse player on the court by his team and the rest of the league. His hard work has paid off, as he was named the 2017 Most Valuable Player for the Bay Valley Athletic League.

The senior is regarded to be one of the top hitters in all of the North Coast Section. Zollars was a league leader in kills with 365 and serving aces with 56. Defensively, he came second in with 353 digs. Along with his work on the court, he maintained a 4.0 Grade Point Average all four years of high school.

“I’m so honored to be recognized by the BVAL as the most valuable player,” Zollars said  “I’ve worked hard and put in countless hours of gym time, and it just feels incredible to have it all pay off”

Zollars has been on the varsity squad since his freshman year. Many people state that the teams he participated in were considered one of the best in Deer Valley history. Not only that, but he played under the direction under legendary Deer Valley coach Lou Panzella.

Deer Valley had a championship year. They began their season by conquering the Golden Valley Tournament in Merced,Calif. Later in the season they captured their ninth BVAL Boys Volleyball League title in the past decade. The season ultimately came to an end in the NCS Division one playoffs where the lost to Foothill (Pleasanton) on the road.

His coach and father Andrew Zollars describes him to not only be a phenomenal player, but mentor to the entire program.

“Carson was our team captain and led by example with his positive attitude, constant communication on the court and ongoing encouragement to his teammate,” Zollars said “He was mentally tough all season and simply refused to let negative emotion determine the outcome of any match this season.”

He had received many scholarship offers to play volleyball in college, however many of those schools were located on the other side of the nation. Zollars stated he did not want to make the long move in order to have a more traditional college experience.

The newly crowned MVP will be attending the University of Nevada, Reno where he intends to major in Mechanical Engineering and play on the club volleyball team for the Wolfpack.

The Warriors have taken care of business by bringing home another NBA championship and now it’s BART’s turn. We’re gearing up for an epic day Thursday when Oakland hosts a victory celebration starting at 10 a.m. We’ve put together some tips to help make your championship parade day safe and enjoyable.

Ten tips for riding BART to the victory celebration in Oakland

1. Be patient, it’s going to get crowded; our busiest hours in 2015 were 8am-10am
2. Use 19th Street Station, avoid the much smaller Lake Merritt Station
3. Buy a Clipper card (clippercard.com) in advance to avoid extremely long lines at ticket machines
4. Look for tables with cash only $15 Clipper card sales at 10 of our busiest stations
5. Parking will be packed; think about taking the bus or walking to BART or getting dropped off
6. “Permit” spaces in parking lots are for permit holders only, a citation will ruin the fun day
7. When boarding trains, move to the center of the car so more can fit, remove backpacks
8. Don’t jam a train door- it will take the whole train out of service and everyone will boo you
9. Some trains may not stop at Lake Merritt if the Rally Zone has reached capacity or crowding
10. Our service will not match the published schedule so listen and pay attention

The Details

First, know that BART is going to be crowded like you’ve never seen it before. On the day of the 2015 Warriors parade, BART carried 548,076 people – second only to the 568,061 people who rode BART when the Giants held a victory parade on Halloween 2012. If you’re not going to the celebration and will be taking BART to work or elsewhere, we suggest leaving home early – maybe even before 7 a.m.

Getting to the Station

If you must drive and park at a BART station, consider getting there very early. Parking will be packed so instead, if you can, we suggest taking the bus or walking to BART or getting someone to drop you off at your station. 

If you do drive and park, remember that “Permit” spaces are for passengers who have paid for monthly and single day permits in advance.  Those without a Permit may only park in the “Fee” areas, which are First-Come/First-Serve.  If you park in the “Permit” area without a permit, you are subject to citation.

The Lake Merritt Station permit parking lot (located near Laney College) will be CLOSED all day.

Overflow Parking (NEW!)

BART staff is working to gain permission from parking lots located near BART stations that can be used as overflow parking. We will continue to update this information.

Fremont Station- Riders can use the upper lot of the City of Fremont parking garage located at 39701 Civic Center Drive in Fremont at no cost. Please use upper lot only; not library or police parking. Map: https://tinyurl.com/y8zp8qnj

San Francisco Stations- SFMTA has several public parking garages in San Francisco that are located within walking distance to BART stations.

From Antioch Park and Ride to Pittsburg/Bay Point BART Station- Lots A & C (lot B is still under construction) of the Antioch Park and Ride have 400 spaces available for use. Address: 1474 Slatten Ranch Road, Antioch, CA (this address drops the pin on the road that gives access to the lots for map apps) Enter the lot at Sunset Drive & Hillcrest OR take SR-4 Map: https://tinyurl.com/y9uckvqv  

From there, take a Tri-Delta Transit bus to Pittsburg/Bay Point station. Routes that will take you to the Pittsburg/Bay Point Station: 300 (express), 380, 388, 390, 391, 392, 393, 394

Tri-Delta Transit System Map

Map of bus stops at Pittsburg/Bay Point (for return trip)

Tri-Delta Bus Schedules 

Purchasing Fares

Don’t be the person stuck in a line for the ticket vending machine while Steph and KD are waving to the crowd. We suggest you buy a Clipper card or ticket at least a day or two in advance.

Go to www.clippercard.com and find a retail location closest to you. 

If for some reason you don’t, BART will be selling $15 Clipper cards at special cash-only ticket tables at the stations listed below.  We picked these stations because they had long lines in 2015.  Be sure to keep these Clipper cards and register them. They work on other Bay Area transit.  

Stations with $15 cash only Clipper card table sales

 4am-10am

·         Fremont

·         Warm Springs

·         Dublin/Pleasanton

·         El Cerrito del Norte

·         Coliseum

·         Bay Fair

·         Millbrae

10:30am-2:30pm

·         12th Street

·         19th street

·         Lake Merritt

Heading to Downtown Oakland

We are doing extra maintenance now so we can put every available train out to carry passengers, but you’ll be joining a half million or more fellow riders. 

The Lake Merritt BART Station will be in the epicenter of the celebration so it’s best to avoid it. We strongly suggest taking BART to either 12th Street or 19th Street stations in Oakland. They are bigger and they’re right along the parade route so you’ll have more elbow room. They will also be your best options for starting your trip home.

Trains coming from Dublin/Pleasanton and Fremont Warm Springs towards Oakland may skip Lake Merritt after 8:30am if the rally zone has reached capacity and has closed or if the station becomes too crowded.  Listen to announcements and use 12th or 19th street instead. 

Service changes to be aware of

The Pittsburg/Bay Point morning service WILL NOT match the regular published schedule. Some trains will be rerouted to other crowded areas in the system.

Specifically:

The following trains that originate at North Concord in the morning will be redistributed to other areas and will not run on the Pittsburg/Bay Point line: 6:59 a.m., 7:14 a.m., 7:29 a.m

The following trains that originate at Pleasant Hill in the morning will be redistributed to other areas and will not run on the Pittsburg/Bay Point line: 8:12 a.m., 8:27 a.m., 8:42 a.m. 

After 8 am every other train from the Warm Springs to Daly City line will not go to San Francisco and instead go to Downtown Oakland to serve the parade route. These trains will terminate at MacArthur Station.

At any time, we may need to skip a station due to crowding, or hold riders outside the fare gates and wait until the platform clears to allow riders to enter the paid area.  Listen to instructions from BART workers- we’re here to help.

What we’re doing to prepare

Besides getting all the train cars ready, we are staffing up to make sure we can quickly respond to any issues that pop up. We will have extra paramedics on standby and extra police officers on patrol including the Transportation Security Administration’s Vipr team.

We’ll have extra escalator and elevator technicians in our stations, and train technicians ready to respond to an equipment problem on a train. 

Code of Conduct

Finally, it probably goes without saying but we’ll say it anyway: smile and have fun. We at BART enjoy serving you on what should be a joyous and memorable day. We only ask that you show common courtesy to your fellow riders, follow our simple rules and -if you start to get a little impatient- think about the folks in Cleveland who wish they had a parade.  

By Jesus Cano

The elite runners of the Bay Valley Athletic League showcased their skills on Saturday, May 13th at Deer Valley High School where the BVAL League Championship track meet was held.

The city of Antioch was represented by both Deer Valley and Antioch High School at the meet, but freshman Trinity Bolden stole the show by taking home first place in both the 100 and 200 meter races. 

Bolden was not the only female competitor to place first for the Wolverines, as her teammate Lauren Siao come out on top in the 100 meter hurdles competition.

Not far behind Siao was Antioch’s Alyssa Morelli, who came in third place for both 100 meter hurdle and 300 meter hurdle. Morelli also placed third in the 4×400 relay along with Taaje Pete, Jenna Salas and Zoe Davis-Watkins.

Antioch Junior Dalaan Green’s speed helped him accolade him to place first in the Boys 100 meter dash and second in the 200 meter.

Ryan Redman, Dior Walker, Jason Johnson and Jamir Collier worked together in the 4×400 meter relay and took third place.

To view a YouTube video of Trinity’s first place run in the 100 meter race at the BVAL Championship, click here.

For more information on Trinity’s track and field times and results from this year’s competitions, visit https://www.athletic.net/TrackAndField/Athlete.aspx?AID=10974089#/L0.

By Sergeant John Fortner #3264, Antioch Police Investigations Division

On April 30, 2017, a female juvenile victim came forward to report that she was molested by a male adult neighbor in 2013. The suspect in this crime was no longer living near the victim.

During the investigation, it was learned that the neighbor was a trusted family friend and he was identified as 40-year-old Christopher Liff. The victim was 10-years-old at the time of the crime, and the suspect was 37-years-old.

Through investigative techniques, detectives were able to gather evidence revealing that a molestation crime did in fact occur. In an undercover capacity, Antioch detectives maintained contact with Liff under the guise of the juvenile victim. Liff’s communications inferred his willingness to commit further unlawful acts.

The investigation culminated on Saturday, June 10, 2017, at approximately 12:30 PM, when Liff was arrested by several undercover detectives. Liff had agreed to meet the victim (who was not present) at a designated location for the purposes of committing lewd and lascivious acts. Liff was intercepted by detectives and placed under arrest without incident.

Liff was charged with several felony crimes and he was booked into the Martinez Detention Facility with a bail of $165,000.00. This case is currently being filed at the District Attorney’s Office.

Anyone with information is asked to call Detective Brian Rose at (925)779-6930. You may also text-a-tip to 274637 (CRIMES) using the key word ANTIOCH.

Recently the City of Antioch Marina was awarded a grant by the San Francisco Bay Water Trail to enhance non-motorized boat facilities along the city’s waterfront.  Among the newly-installed amenities funded by the Water Trail are a kayak launch and storage facilities for kayaks, stand-up paddle boards, and canoes.  A second dual-lane launch dock will be delivered soon.

According to Marina Manager James Pflueger, small boat storage is rare in the Bay Area, and the new storage racks will fill fast.  Special introductory rates are part of the marina’s mission to be “The Best Deal on the Delta.”  Pflueger is happy to announce that the marina will also host kayak tours, classes, and lessons.  Launch facilities are free for cartop boats and the marina serves visiting kayak clubs and groups as well as the general public.

For more information, additional photos, or to schedule an interview, contact Marina Manager James Pflueger at 925-779-6957.

To read more about Antioch Marina’s designated status on the San Francisco Bay Area Water Trail visit Antioch Marina.

Antioch, CA—Free Lunch at the Library is back at the Antioch Library this summer for children ages 0-18 on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 12:00-2:00 p.m. starting June 13. After lunch, stick around for fun activities from 1:00-2:00 p.m. on Tech Tuesdays you’ll receive a new Summer Reading challenge and play with a tech toy from our collection; Every Wednesday spend an hour learning how to code using our laptop computers; Thursdays will feature something different each week, including visits with First Generation Farmers, a story with a special guest from the Roller Derby Ladies, a movie, etc. The program continues through August 3.

This program was developed as a partnership between the California Library Association and the Summer Meal Coalition, and with support from the Antioch Unified School District. Public library summer meal programs provide children and teens in low-income communities with free and healthy summer lunches and summer reading and enrichment programs, to help combat hunger and obesity and prevent summer learning loss.

The Antioch Library is located at 501 W 18^th St. The Library is open:  Tuesday, 1-8, Wednesday and Thursday 10-6, and Saturday 12-5. For further information, phone the Library at 925-727-9224.