On Thursday, the US Attorney’s Office and the FBI held a joint press conference regarding arrests and indictments of Antioch and Pittsburg Police officers on various charges including civil rights violations.
In total, 9 police officers and 1 community services officer were indicted within four indictments that were unsealed Thursday.
US Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey unseal 4 separate indictments for Antioch and Police Department officers which he called “wide ranging”. Charges ranged from: conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy against rights, deprivation of rights and falsification or destruction of records. Others were charged with charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Manly-Williams is charged with obstruction, destruction of records, and violation of rights. Anabolic steroids and numerous civil rights violations
He called these “allegations” and no officer is charged with all the charges and they were presumed innocent until proven guilty.
- College Degree Benefits Fraud – Antioch & Pittsburg – claimed they earned college credits towards degrees, but hired people to attend classes and take tests for them which resulted salary raises and tuition reimbursement while defrauding police departments while reaping benefits of a college degree.
- Conspiracy to distribution anabolic steroids – two officers indicted with one of the defendants destroyed evidence
- Obstruction Indictment – police officer destroyed, altered, obstructed evidence, including using his own personal phone to prevent a recording.
- Deprivation of rights – 29 page indictment of civil rights violations by 3 officers within Antioch Police.. deployment of k9 & weapons to harm individuals in and around the city of Antioch. Boasted about illegal use of force. Allegedly sharing photos of victims injuries, collected mementos or spent ammunition from attacks on people in Antioch. Also did not use body worn cameras.
Officers taken into custody include:
- Antioch Officer Morteza Amiri
- Antioch Officer Eric Rombough
- Antioch Officers Daniel Harris
- Antioch Officer Devin Wenger
- Antioch Officer Timothy Manly-Williams
- Pittsburg Officer Patrick Berhan
- Pittsburg Officer Brauli Rodriquez-Jalapa
- Pittsburg Officer Ernesto Mejia-Orozco
- Pittsburg Officer Amanda Theodosy
- Antioch Community Services Officer Samantha Peterson
FBI-San Francisco Special Agent Robert Tripp said FBI arrested 9 subjects identified in the indictments. All of the individuals were previously were association with Antioch and Pittsburg Police Department. Arrest warrants served in Bay Area, Los Angeles, Hawaii, and Texas and came after 2-years of investigation.
Tripp said the FBI treated these arrests like any other investigation to mitigation risk and tactical assets and called this case one of their highest priorities.
“Color of law violations will not be tolerated,” said Tripp. “Any breach of the public trust is unacceptable and no one is above the law.”
The following was released by Antioch Police Officers Association:
The APOA has learned that several of our current and former members have been indicted by the FBI at the culmination of their investigation into members of the Antioch and Pittsburg Police Departments. We are saddened to learn of what has happened and look forward to the legal process playing itself out. We are committed to still providing quality service to the citizens of Antioch and also providing support for our members who are still working through this difficult time.
APOA Media Team
Antioch Mayor Lamar Thorpe offered the following statement:
“Today is a dark day in our city’s history, as people trusted to uphold the law, allegedly breached that trust and were arrested by the FBI.
As our city absorbs this tragic news, we must come together as one. Today’s actions are the beginning of the end of a long and arduous process. To those that have accused me and others of being anti-police for seeking to reform the Antioch Police Department, today’s arrests are demonstrative of the issues that have plagued the Antioch Police Department for decades.
Seeking to reform the Antioch Police Department is not anti-police, it is pro our residents, and pro officers that have served and continue to serve with honor.” — Office of the Mayor
Back in April, Contra Costa County District Attorney Diana Becton announced for over a year (more than 18-months ago), the FBI and the Contra Costa District Attorney’s Office have engaged in a joint federal and state criminal investigation of sworn law enforcement officers from the Antioch Police Department and Pittsburg Police Department. The broad range of offenses under investigation involve crimes of moral turpitude.
Also in April, Representatives John Garamendi (CA-08) and Mark DeSaulnier (CA-10) sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland requesting the U.S. Department of Justice investigate the Antioch Police Department (APD) in Antioch, California following extremely troubling reports of racist, homophobic, and illegal conduct by law enforcement officers, demonstrating a pattern of unconstitutional discrimination, use of force, and violations of the constitutional rights of Antioch citizens.
After text messages were publicly released, this prompted California Attorney General Ron Bonta in May to initiate a civil rights investigation into the Antioch Police Department. The investigation will seek to determine whether the law enforcement agency has engaged in a pattern or practice of unconstitutional policing amid deeply concerning allegations relating to bigoted text messages and other potentially discriminatory misconduct. If, through this investigation, the Attorney General’s Office determines that unlawful activity or practices took place, the office will also determine what potential actions are needed to ensure comprehensive corrective action takes place at APD.
Previous Stories:
- To Read the 14-pages of text Messages: Click Here
- To read the 21-pages of text messages: Click Here
- Aug 17 – Antioch and Pittsburg Police Officers in Custody After FBI Raids
- Aug 17 – Antioch POA Releases Statement on Officer Indictments
- May 10 – Civil Rights Investigation Launched into Antioch Police Department
- April 21: Federal Lawsuit Filed Against Antioch Police After Racist Texts and Targeting
- April 21: Antioch Police Union Attorney Issues Statement on Text Messages
- April 19: Antioch City Council Agrees to Move Forward With Police Audits
- April 17: Second DA Report Leaked Includes Antioch Police Text Messages
- April 13: Contra Costa DA Releases Antioch Police Text Messages
- April 13: Antioch Police Chief Statement on Inappropriate Text Messages
- April 9: Mayor Calls For Audit After Antioch Officers Sent Racists Text
- April 7: Becton Issues Statement on Disclosure of Racist Texts in Felony Case
- March 31: Antioch POA and Attorney Mike Rains Respond to Antioch Mayor
- March 30: Antioch Police Chief Issues Open Letter to Community
- March 30: Antioch Mayor Holds Press Conference on New Police Investigation
1 comment
Didn’t a clinton smash phones and computers that were evidence of a treasonous crime , while the fbi stood down? Yes , there is equal justice, (SARC).
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