Man charged with shocking 2017 violent crime spree

Illegal activities included murder, car chase, robbery in November 2017

OAKLAND >> A 20-year-old man has been arrested and charged with murdering a teen in November 2017 — an armed robbery where a toddler was threatened with a pistol — and a nonfatal shooting, among 10 violent offenses he allegedly committed within the same week.

Zikih Nobles, of San Leandro, was charged with murder, five counts of attempted murder, three counts of robbery and one count of attempted robbery. All 10 offenses reportedly occurred in November 2017, the same week that Nobles was arrested for allegedly leading police on a high-speed chase through Oakland, which ended when he crashed the MercedesBenz he was driving.

Nobles was 16 when all the alleged crimes occurred. He also admitted involvement in an Oakland gang and to shooting up a house he believed belonged to rival gang members, according to a police probable-cause statement.

The victim of the Nov. 5, 2017, homicide linked to Nobles was Soane Mausia, an 18-year-old who recently has graduated from Skyline High School with a 4.0 GPA, according to a GoFundMe page written by his grandmother. Mausia’s brother was also struck by gunfire, and other family members were nearby, according to police.

“(Mausia) was wise beyond his years. He had an ear for those that needed comfort … When he saw somebody suffering, he never criticized; he always stood up for the underdog,” the GoFundMe page says.

Nobles was arrested Oct. 1 in San Leandro and has been on a no-bail hold in Santa Rita Jail in Dublin ever since. Prosecutors already have taken the initial steps to try him as an adult.

The crime spree started Nov. 3, 2017, when Nobles allegedly used an app to advertise a cellphone for sale, then produced a gun and tried to rob the woman who responded to his advertisement. He allegedly chased her through the parking lot on Fruitvale Avenue where they met and fired twice at her, missing. Nobles claimed the shooting was accidental and that a friend came up with the original idea to rob someone, according to police.

Two days later, Nobles allegedly shot and killed Mausia at a home near Lockwood Street and 78th Avenue. Police have not revealed a suspected motive but say that Mausia had dated Nobles’ sister and that Nobles had inquired about Mausia’s whereabouts that day. Police interviewed Nobles in August 2018 and he admitted involvement, according to the probable cause statement by police Detective Omar DazaQuiroz.

Daza-Quiroz wrote that Nobles admitted he “called his friends and purposely drove to the location to find (a specific person)” and that “upon their arrival Nobles and two other suspects exited from the vehicle.”

“Zikih Nobles refused to state who the other two suspects were,” DazaQuiroz wrote. “Nobles stated he … fired several shots and then reentered into the vehicle and fled the scene.”

Mausia was shot and killed at 2:55 a.m. Nov. 5, 2017. Police say Nobles traveled to Stockton that same day and used the app to rob two other people, using the aliases Jose Rodriguez and Taylor Jones to set up purchases. In one of the robberies, the victim reported that Nobles pointed a gun at the head of his 2-year-old son, who was sitting in the car. In his police interview, Nobles denied this and said he only pointed the gun at the father, according to authorities.

Two days later, Nobles allegedly led police on a chase through Oakland, after the 2002 Mercedes he was driving was identified by a patrol officer as being involved in at least one shooting, as well as a Nov. 5, 2017, robbery at an Oakland cafe. The chase went from Interstate 880 to Interstate 580; the car eventually stopped due to damage from several collisions along the way.

Three teens were arrested; one of them allegedly attempted to run away and was struck by a motorist. Nobles, the alleged driver, was not injured, police said at the time.