For the second time in recent months, I’ve been tripped up by police scanner traffic that led me to believe there was an active SWAT incident going on in the Tri-City area.
In May I heard SWAT action on the Fremont police radio channels, and it turned out to be nothing more than a training exercise at a defunct car dealership. And today I heard similar static on the Union City radio channels. One big difference though: I didn’t race out there today with my notebook and press pass in hand. Instead I was able to confirm by telephone that stuff I was hearing was indeed a training exercise.
I suppose it’s a dead give away when you hear an officer calmly say “shots fired,” instead of screaming it as would be the case if the incident were real.
For you scanner junkies, be aware that this training will also be taking place tomorrow.
Although investigators have not released the name of the teen believed to have been shot to death by her ex-boyfriend before turning the gun on himself Friday, multiple outside sources have identified the girl as Amanda Caravantes and the suspect as Erik Petersen, both 17.
Both teens attended Newark Memorial High at some point, and Petersen still is enrolled there, according to sources.
Community members have called a candlelight vigil at 7 tonight near Newark Junior High (at Lafayette Ave./Newark Blvd.).
The text in blue is a statement from the Newark school district:
The Newark Unified School District and the Newark Memorial High School community are saddened by the tragic loss and injury of two young people on Friday night in Fremont.
In order to provide support to students and staff who may know these families, the District will have counselors and psychologists on call this week.Parents and students are encouraged to contact school staff if they need, or know of anyone who needs support regarding this incident.
Please join us in keeping these young people and their families in your thoughts.
Two Oakland police detectives took Louis Ross, the foster father of missing 5-year-old Hassani Campbell, away from his home today at 1:34 p.m. for more questioning. Here’s video of it. Kind of uneventful, but only The Argus (Bay Area News Group) and Channel 7 were present.
UPDATE: Teen arrested after running from home to nearby church, gun recovered. Story to come shortly …
Fremont cops are currently (10 a.m.) working a SWAT incident near Paseo Padre Parkway and Darwin this morning. Word is they are looking for a teen who stole a gun out of a truck at a liquor store last night.
Story should be online momentarily, but a 25-year-old mom was shot and wounded this morning in a Union City apartment during an argument with her husband. Cops say two children were home at the time (and the mother of the suspect), but none of them were hurt. Woman is expected to live, although she is undergoing surgery as I write this.
The feds announced today that Union City and Hayward are among the California cities to receive money for more police officers.
Fremont had asked for $1.2 million a year for three years — enough to pay for eight new officers. It was rejected.
The feds based the grants primarily on violent crime rates, and Fremont didn’t have enough violence to qualify, Chief Craig Steckler said. Only 14 percent of requests were granted, he added.
Fremont this year is budgeted for 185 sworn officers, but actually has 179 in uniform, Steckler said.
In 1992, the city was budgeted for 180 officers.
By Stecker’s math, he’s got five more officers patrolling a city with 40,000 more residents.
Of course, in 1992 a rookie cop made about $44,000 before overtime. Now the officer makes at least $80,000 with the city chipping in at least another $24,000 to cover the pension costs.
The City Council is expected to approve two contracts for this project. For those who forgot, Fremont opened a new police building adjacent to the Hayward Fault in 1996. But it was designed with structural system that proved vulnerable in the 1994 Northridge earthquake.
City officials knew it was a problem during construction, but they decided it made more sense to complete the building as designed and then retrofit it later, which is now what they’re doing.
**Update: Cops this morning said they found a gun in the lake yesterday and have placed it into evidence. No crime has been committed.
If you go walking at Lake Elizabeth today, don’t be alarmed if you see a dive team from the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office in the water. The group is not searching for a dead body or anything like that. They’re actually searching for a gun that someone reportedly threw in the lake last night.
Here’s the skinny: Someone threatened to commit suicide last night and a roommate of that person took the gun away, drove to Lake Elizabeth and threw it in the water.
Upon hearing this, Fremont police called the county dive team and told them they could use this opportunity as a training exercise. The county agency agreed, and apparently headed out there this morning.
Remember the cases about a year ago in which a man wearing an Atlanta Braves baseball cap was robbing banks and check cashing business in the East and South Bay to payoff gambling debts? Maybe you remember this picture?
Well, the man suspected of those crimes has been charged in federal court. Court records show Shaun Shinkyu Kim, A 27-year-old Fremont man, has been charged with a dozen crimes, all of which are a variation of robbery.
In all, authorities believe the man stole almost $58,000 during the six month stretch. In most of the heists only a few thousands dollars were stolen. But in the last one, June 10, 2008, the robbery suspect made off with more than $18,000.
UPDATE: The lockdowns have been lifted. Police caught the suspect more than a half-mile from the nearest school. No incidents were reported at the schools.
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(ORIGINAL ENTRY:) American High, Thornton Jr. High, and Oliveira and Cabrillo elementary schools are in lockdown, as police search for a suspected armed robber in the Cabrillo neighborhood. There’s been no report of injuries or suspicious activities at the schools.
We’ll have an online story soon, so check our Web site.
