The brazen nature of some recent auto burglaries in Oakland, California, has prompted officials to warn the community about attempting to interfere with such crimes in progress.
Seven suspects were arrested in three such incidents on Sept. 28 as part of the Oakland Police Department’s auto burglary suppression strategy; six of the individuals face charges by the district attorney’s office.
“The individuals involved in locked auto burglaries have become extremely brazen. Something that’s typically a non-violent crime has become much more dangerous for police and for the community,” Tony Jones, Oakland’s interim assistant police chief, said at a news conference on Oct. 3. “We want to caution the public. Don’t try to engage with these individuals who are breaking into your car.”
During one of the incidents, police noticed suspects stealing a catalytic converter from a vehicle parked in an underground garage. When officers approached, the suspects fled and rammed a police vehicle that was blocking the exit.
“A lot of these individuals have guns, and they’re armed, and they’re dangerous,” Mr. Jones said. “[Our officers] got rammed, it could have gotten deadly, and so we don’t want people to risk their personal safety over personal belongings that they can acquire some other day. It’s just not worth it.”
Training that’s specific to such risky encounters allowed the officers to be able to avoid having to respond with lethal force, according to Mr. Jones.
“This operation got a little dangerous, and our officers showed tremendous restraint,” he said. “We have experienced an uptick in individuals ramming our police cars attempting to escape.”
After a car chase and pursuit on foot, police apprehended the two individuals—and later discovered burglary tools and additional catalytic converters in their vehicle.
Another situation involved a person driving a vehicle with a switched license plate who fled when officers attempted a traffic stop. After later apprehending the suspects, police found multiple firearms and evidence of previous auto burglaries.
Stolen vehicles and those with switched license plates are commonly used for criminal activity, but police are monitoring such tactics and are focusing on identifying vehicles to stop crimes while in progress, Mr. Jones said.
“We have to be just as vigilant in how we adapt to the different techniques they do,” he said. “We’re aware of the plates being switched, but you can’t switch the color of the car. You can’t turn a Honda into a Lexus.”
Nearly 11,000 auto burglaries and another 11,000 auto thefts have occurred in Oakland this year, representing a more than 40 percent increase since last year, according to police department statistics.
“That’s a significant increase, and that’s why you’re seeing the police department take more of an initiative to focus on auto burglaries in the city,” Mr. Jones said. “We’re going to be out there a lot more, focusing on this, trying to prevent these crimes from occurring, trying to investigate these things and find people’s property that’s been taken.”
Oakland residents have recently complained about calls for emergencies, with some saying they are put on hold for extended periods of time and often wait hours or days for officers to respond.
The interim assistant chief acknowledged the predicament and said the department is working on solutions.
“We are aware of the challenges with the 911 system, and we’re doing everything that we can to get the staffing up in the communications division so that those problems are rectified,” Mr. Jones said. “What’s more important is the personal safety of the people of Oakland.”
With budgetary constraints facing the department, and the city failing to secure millions of dollars in public safety grants because they missed a state deadline earlier this year, the department is working to reallocate its budget to further investigate auto burglaries, he said.
“We do have limited resources, but we can manage them in a way that allows us to do these operations regularly,” Mr. Jones said.
No further details could be provided as to how often helicopters and drones would be used and how regularly the operations would occur, as doing so could jeopardize the integrity of the investigations, Paul Chambers, strategic communications manager for the Oakland Police Department, told The Epoch Times by email on Oct. 4.
Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao thanked the officers for their work in making the arrests and promised the community that more efforts are planned.
“We must and we will do more to hold accountable those individuals behind these crimes,” Ms. Thao said during the news conference. “This is harming our community at large. We take this very seriously.”
The prevalence of auto crime is affecting families across the region, she said.
“Auto thefts and auto burglaries have become all too common here, not just in Oakland, but throughout the Bay Area, as well,” Ms. Thao said. “I think we all know someone or have personally been a victim of this type of crime. I know that I have.”
With some residents reporting that they no longer feel safe in the city, the mayor said she understands the frustration.
“I truly believe that we deserve better; all of us,” Ms. Thao said. “Whether you’re a business, individual, or part of a community, we all deserve better than to feel as if we are unsafe.”
She said officials are committed to finding solutions and mentioned prior steps taken to increase public safety, including securing $1.2 million in funding for surveillance cameras—designed to facilitate identification and capture of suspects—and doubling the city’s foot patrol to 12 officers from six.
“We are standing together, hand in glove, as one Oakland to say we will not stop until we get to a safer Oakland.”
