Felon hurt in shootout charged with murder
A convicted felon found shot and wounded in Antioch has been arrested and charged with murdering a man during a robbery attempt that led to a shootout, authorities said Monday.
Gary Bryant Jr., 28, of Antioch was found seriously wounded from gunfire in an apartment complex on Hudson Court about 2:30 p.m. July 8, said Antioch police acting Lt. Tony Morefield.
Police determined that Bryant and Diallo Jackson, 21, of Antioch had walked up to a car parked at another apartment complex on the 3900 block of Delta Fair Boulevard. They planned to rob the four occupants, said Mary Knox, a Contra Costa County prosecutor.
Bryant pistol-whipped a juvenile who came out of the car in a bid to escape, Knox said.
A man sitting in the car, Kenneth Wayne Cooper Jr., 23, of Pittsburg, opened fire on Bryant, who was struck, Knox said. Bryant and Jackson returned fire, fatally wounding Cooper, authorities said.
Bryant ran off but collapsed and was detained, and a gun was found near him, Knox said. He and Jackson have been charged with murder, robbery and being ex-felons in possession of weapons. Jackson has not been arrested.
After being shot, Cooper drove off but crashed in the parking lot. His slaying came amid a spate of shootings in Antioch over the past month that have left more than a dozen people — including an 11-year-old boy — wounded.