Pleasant Hill Police returned to Cleopatra Drive on Friday to serve a felony warrant for former Pittsburg Police Detective Chunliam Saechao.
Police continue to surround the home of Saechaeo in the City of Pleasant Hill which now continues into Saturday morning after announcing Friday the area was closed off to the public for safety reasons.
According to police, Saechao fired numerous shots from inside his house (rifle and shotgun) at armored police vehicles parked in front of his residence. There were no injuries to anyone on scene.
Saechaeo remains in the home following a welfare check where police located a woman, later identified as his wife, with “minor injuries to her lower body”. However, police also confirmed the female had tried to gain entry to the residence, through the barricaded side garage door, and her husband fired a single shot from a shotgun towards the door, striking his wife. She was transported to an area hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
Early Friday morning, police actually ended the standoff which began Thursday without taking Saechaeo into custody as police said he was not a threat–Pleasant Hill Police did not answer any questions on whether their decision to end the standoff had to do with Saechaeo being a former cop.
1:15 pm UPDATE
**UPDATE** This morning at around 7:52 am Chunliam Saechao exited his residence and surrendered to the FBI SWAT Team without further incident.
The FBI SWAT team was summoned early this morning to relieve Central County SWAT who intended to return to the scene at 2:00 pm, if necessary. Mr. Saechao will be booked on several felonies to include assault with a deadly weapon and attempted homicide on a police officer.
We acknowledge this prolonged and serious event caused great disruption and stoked fear within the Sherman Acres neighborhood and the surrounding community. De-escalation tactics, including disengagement, are routinely utilized in hope for peaceful resolutions, such as this one. Even after disengaging with the suspect during the early morning hours of December 8, the community’s safety and security was consistently monitored and constantly assessed. Police officers remained ready in the area, and we continued to monitor Mr. Saechao’s social media activity. We are relieved that the tactics employed led to a peaceful resolution, avoiding any bodily injuries or fatalities to members of law enforcement or the surrounding community.
9:00 am UPDATE
Pleasant Hill police say Saechao is now in officer custody. This comes after a three-day stand-off.
5:30 am Saturday: Police Activity Continues
The Central County SWAT team and crisis negotiators attempted to speak with Mr. Saechao throughout the night, trying to have him surrender. Mr. Saechao fired numerous shots from inside his house (rifle and shotgun) at armored police vehicles parked in front of his residence. There were no injuries to anyone on scene. Mr. Saechao remains inside his residence, while SWAT team members remain around the residence. Attempts to contact Mr. Saechao continue. The shelter in place for the Sherman Oaks neighborhood remains in place and Monument Blvd remains closed, in both directions, from Interstate 680 to Mohr Ln.
Photo by Pittsburg Police of Detective Chunliam Saechao (Marine Corps) in Iraq. The post was thanking officers who had served in the military.
12:22 am Saturday: Release Suspects Name
On December 8, 2023 at approximately 2345 hours, the Central County SWAT team, and crisis negotiators responded to the 200 block of Cleopatra Drive. The husband from the previous incident, Chunliam Saechao (40 years old), was determined to be a danger to the public and a felony warrant was obtained for his arrest. During the day, information was gathered from social media and other investigative means, which led to this decision.
Currently Monument Blvd, between Contra Costa Blvd and Mohr Ln, is shut down in both directions during this incident. Efforts to contact Mr. Saechao and arrest him are currently ongoing.
5:30 pm — police announced that Monument Blvd at I680 both directions and Marcia Dr is closed to all thru traffic. Please use alternate routes. Shelter in place issued for the Sherman Acres neighborhood due to police activity.
FRIDAY UPDATE FROM PLEASANT HILL POLICE
On December 7, 2023 at around 1905 hours, Pleasant Hill Police Officers responded to a residence on Cleopatra Drive for a welfare check on an adult female who reported to family that she had been locked out of their residence by her husband.
Upon arrival, Officers located the female who had minor injuries to her lower body. Officers determined the female had tried to gain entry to the residence, through the barricaded side garage door, and her husband fired a single shot from a shotgun towards the door, striking his wife.
The female was transported to a local hospital with non-life threatening injuries where she was treated and later released. The husband remained inside the residence, alone.
Officers secured the scene and called crisis negotiators and the Central County SWAT team to the scene. Over several hours, numerous attempts to contact the husband, via telephone and loudspeaker, were made, but he was unresponsive to these attempts. The husband continuously posted to social media during the incident. The posts suggested he may be suicidal.
Crisis negotiators tried for several hours to communicate with the husband with no success. The circumstances surrounding this event indicated the husband was not an immediate threat to the general public. The SWAT team disengaged from the scene and the husband was left alone inside the residence.
This is an ongoing investigation by the Pleasant Hill Police Department.
Previous Posts
- Dec 8 – Updated: Man Barricaded Inside Pleasant Hill Home After Shooting His Wife
- Nov 16 – 29: Pleasant Hill Police Calls
9 comments
I am amazed by their patience , do they always give this much time?
Probably just after you wrote this, the flash bangs went off and he was in custody.
Absolutely not. Renardo Flores was killed within hours. This went on for 3 days. Still can’t believe they left and came back. Unbelievable.
This isn’t the first time PHPD’s competency is called into question………………
Might as well bring him some Starbucks.
He will post bail. No jail time for him. Probably suffering from PTSD and needs mental health intervention. He probably didn’t mean to hurt his wife. She was at the wrong place at the wrong time.
He has dishonored the Marine Corps.
Time for a real Chief in PHill. What an embarrassing display of weakness, lack of leadership and decision making. This is what it looks like when you don’t care about the public you are there to protect. Instead handling the suspect with kid gloves. Luckily no citizen was injured or taken hostage.
It doesn’t sound as if they all just packed up and went home. Why rush the situation? The police are damned if they do and damned if they don’t.
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