DA Charges Antioch and Pittsburg Police Officers with Obstruction of Justice and Bribery

Martinez, California – Contra Costa District Attorney Diana Becton announced the filing of charges against five officers who engaged in a criminal conspiracy and accepted bribes for voiding the citations of friends while serving as sworn police officers for the Antioch and Pittsburg Police Departments.

“The charges set forth in these complaints allege offenses of public corruption,” said District Attorney Becton. “As District Attorney for Contra Costa County, my role is to seek justice and work on solutions to improve our communities. The legal action we’ve taken here today reflects that commitment.”

In all, six complaints were filed in Superior Court of California, County of Contra Costa. The alleged offenses center on fixing traffic violations of associates of sworn peace officers. The defendants are:

Timothy Manly Williams (Antioch Police Department)
Calvin Prieto (Antioch Police Department)
Andrea Rodriguez (Antioch Police Department)
Ben Padilla (Antioch Police Department)
Juan Ernesto Mejia-Orozco (Pittsburg Police Department)

On March 22, 2022, state and federal investigators obtained search warrants for the cell phones of a number of officers. During a forensic analysis of the phones, investigators uncovered evidence of criminal wrongdoing, which culminated in conspiracy to obstruct justice and bribery.

Timothy Manly-Williams also faces a federal criminal indictment related to violations that arose out of a joint DA/FBI investigation.

In addition to the criminal conduct, a large trove of overtly racist, sexist, and homophobic text messages was uncovered. The conduct of the officers has compromised a number of cases and triggered scrutiny under the California Racial Justice Act (PC 745).

The criminal acts alleged in the complaints center on the following violations in the California Penal Code:

PC 182 (a)(5) (Felony: Conspiracy to Commit an Act Injurious to the Public)
PC 68 (Felony: Accepting a Bribe)

As with all complaints filed with the court, the defendants are presumed innocent until proven beyond a reasonable doubt that they are guilty of these offenses in a court of law. The arraignment dates are set for September 13^th in Superior Court of California, County of Contra Costa.

Case No. 202308180010 | The People of the State of California v. Williams, Timothy Manly
Case No. 202308180010 | The People of the State of California v. Prieto, Calvin
Case No. 202308180010 | The People of the State of California v. Rodriguez, Andrea
Case No. 202308180012 | The People of the State of California v. Padilla, Ben
Case No. 202308180012 | The People of the State of California v. Mejia-Orozco, Juan Ernesto
Case No. 202308180012 | The People of the State of California v. Williams, Timothy Manly

Antioch and Pittsburg Police Officers Charged With Various Crimes

SAN FRANCISCO – A federal grand jury in San Francisco returned four separate indictments today that, collectively, charge ten current and former officers and employees from the Antioch and Pittsburg police departments with various crimes ranging from excessive force to fraud, announced United States Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Robert K. Tripp. The indictments all were filed August 16, 2023, and unsealed today. The charges were described by U.S. Attorney Ramsey and Special Agent in Charge Tripp at a press conference held earlier this afternoon. — Full Story

Here are the indictments