Recent gang arrests should curb some of the violence
The capture of seven East Oakland gang members and the subsequent charges filed against them for multiple shootings in Antioch of the past several months — including one that killed a 20-yearold man — figure to curb at least some of the violence that has plagued those cities recently.
At least, that’s the expectation of the police chiefs in those cities.
“We believe it will have a significant impact on the city of Oakland,” Police Chief LeRonne Armstrong said of his city during a news conference in Antioch, where more details of the operation that resulted in the arrest of the seven were revealed. “Also, I want to apologize to the residents in Antioch.”
Prosecutors have charged three men — Charles Bolden Jr., 19, D’Marco Lindsey, 19, and Charles Bolden Sr., 42, — with killing 20-year-old Daunzhay Young last summer. That Aug. 29 shooting in the 1800 block of Tioga Pass Way in Antioch came about 61/2 weeks after prosecutors allege the three attempted to kill Young in a neighborhood he frequented. All three also are charged with conspiracy to commit a crime, and the charges carry gang enhancements.
The murder charges against Bolden Sr., Bolden Jr. and Lindsey also carry enhancements of lying in wait, which make the three defendants eligible for life without the possibility of parole or the death sentence.
Another four men — Terryonn Pugh, 20; Eric Windom, 21; Keyshawn McGee, 22; and Trent Allen, 20 — are charged with three counts of attempted murder that all carry gang enhancements for the non-fatal shootings of two people on Aspen Way in Antioch on March 9. Pugh also is charged with attempted murder and assault with a semiautomatic firearm for a Feb. 27 shooting at an Antioch gas station.
The shootings were the result of gang warfare between an East Oakland gang and a gang in Antioch that the police chiefs of both cities said drive much of the violent criminal activity.
“I don’t think there’s any question you will see a difference after this,” Antioch Police Chief Tammany Brooks said. “The feud between the two gangs has fed a lot of violence that you’ve seen here recently.”
Authorities called the investigation Operation Windstar and Brooks said it began to explode following Young’s death because he belonged to a street gang based in Contra Costa County. Pugh, Windom, McGee and Allen all are alleged to have traveled from
San Leandro in an attempt to kill Young.
Eventually, the operation resulted in more than 50 arrests for crimes throughout the state, Brooks said. Authorities also believe they have solved not only Young’s killing, but that of Davaun McNeal, who was shot to death in Oakland on Aug. 14.
Operation Windstar involved 27 agencies from throughout the state and Nevada, Brooks said.
As they spoke, Brooks, Armstrong and Contra Costa District Attorney Diana Becton could point to a nearby table covered with dozens of guns, including assault rifle models and ghost guns. There were magazine clips and ammunition laid out, as well.
“These are weapons that look like they should only be used in war,” Armstrong said. “But they’re being used against human beings.”
Armstrong said he apologized to residents for seeing some of Oakland’s worst crime spill over into their city. He also emphasized that Oakland’s troubles remain a major mountain — the city has investigated 41 homicides this year — and that measures of success are measured in “small steps.”
Referring to the Oakland and Contra Costa County gangs, he said, “These two groups are the primary groups that are driving the violence in the city of Oakland.”