The leafy East Bay city of Antioch is in the midst of an escalating gang war after police numbers collapsed under the Democratic council and its “equity-conscious” mayor.
Crime was already rising across all major metrics before a weekend of unprecedented gun violence that left one man dead, emptied the city’s downtown and left business owners fearing for their future.
The number of police officers has been reduced from 115 to 76 in the past four years under Mayor Lamar Hernandez-Thorpe, who was elected despite opposition from the local Police Officers Association.
And the city has become a magnet for “Chinese crime syndicates” supplying drugs to the rest of the state, with more than 60 illegal marijuana smoke houses discovered in the past two years.
“Antioch is now the old Oakland,” said Tony Loinab, a local bar owner. “In one week there were over 200 shots fired in Antioch. How many people were injured? Three or four? In one week, not in one year, but in one week!”
Antioch’s progressive mayor, Lamar Hernandez-Thorpe, admitted that his city in California’s coveted East Bay area is now in the grip of a gang war.
Businesses were clearing Sunday morning after “several people” were shot as bullets sprayed across a Rite Aid parking lot on E 18th Street.
The city nestled among national parks on the banks of the San Joaquin River has long been a desirable haven for those escaping the chaos of the West Coast, with median home prices double the national average at $588,000.
But the latest wave of violence has sparked anger among city officials for allowing the gang war to rage.
It appears to have begun with the murder of 21-year-old Elijah Scales on Sept. 3 near Sycamore, west of the city.
One man was killed and an 18-year-old man seriously injured at 12.30pm on Friday at Cavalla Road and Sunset Drive after eight shootings in five days.
And ‘several people’ were shot, police revealed as bullets sprayed through the Rite Aid parking lot on E 18th Street Sunday morning.
“I was working with one of my employees and we heard a gunshot,” Loinab said. Kron4.com.
‘I didn’t think it was a gunshot, but then it was like boom, boom, like six shots.
“I looked and saw police, ambulances, fire trucks. I went there. Apparently a lady was shot and a young gentleman.”
Mayor Hernandez-Thorpe admitted that his city is now experiencing an “unprecedented level of gun violence” and that it is “vindictive in nature.”
“These gangs have no respect for human life, they have no respect for law enforcement, they have no respect for you or me,” he said.
Local bar owner Tony Loinab fears the city has become the new Oakland
Homeless encampments have returned to the city after a cleanup during the previous mayor’s term.
Crime was already rising across all major metrics ahead of a record-breaking weekend of violence.
In April, a drug raid at a luxury two-story, five-bedroom home in Antioch uncovered hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of illegal cannabis in a single residence (pictured)
But critics have blamed him for the hollowing out of the police department, which has left officers struggling to cope with a widespread rise in crime.
The 43-year-old, who has a master’s degree in Women’s Studies, promotes himself as a “motivational speaker” and “equity-conscious leader” (sic) on his LinkedIn page.
Bullet holes riddled the storefronts along E 18th Street on Sunday morning.
He has insisted he is trying to recruit more officers, offering a $30,000 signing bonus to new hires.
But the Antioch Police Officers Association criticized him for being “the leader in the effort to defund the Antioch Police, which would be devastating to our effort to combat crime in our community,” ahead of his election in 2020.
“Mr. Thorpe’s vision for the future of Antioch will increase crime, increase our homeless population and lead to further deterioration of our city,” they wrote.
Homeless encampments have returned to the city after a cleanup during the previous mayor’s tenure in 2018, and murders rose by a third in the first six months of the year compared with the same period last year.
Robberies increased by 12 percent, thefts by 40 percent and vehicle thefts by 65 percent.
At a time when crime rates were falling across the country, there were also increases in theft, vandalism and assault.
“Who in their right mind would want to work for a police department under an incumbent mayor and a majority city council?” asked local blogger Mike Burkholder. Contracosta.news‘Not many and it shows.
‘And people really wonder why crime is up and the city as a whole has four times the number of vacancies than the national average?
Nestled between the San Joaquin River and a trio of stunning national parks, the California city of Antioch (pictured above) feels like a quiet part of the state’s East Bay region.
‘The majority council has sabotaged its police department through defunding tactics, which has only hurt residents, businesses, and even the school district.
‘It all depends on the city council, which has created the tone of the city and a culture of anti-police rhetoric.
“People want stability, not a circus where anything can happen at any moment.”
Meanwhile, residents cleaning up after the latest shootings say they fear the city is heading in the same direction as its crime-ridden neighbors, Oakland and San Francisco.
“I mean, look at this,” Loinab said, looking around her empty bar on Sunday.
“It’s football Sunday. The Raiders and Niners are playing. I have six customers. This bar should be packed. And people are scared, honestly. We invested our hard-earned money. We got no recognition, no help at all.”
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