Also possessed unregistered handgun
One man was arrested and four other suspects fled when police responded to a report of suspects smashing car windows on Aug. 17.
The report came in at 12:42 a.m. on Pacific Avenue. When Piedmont police found the vehicle, one of the suspects was out of the car, described in the police log as a late model gray Mustang. The other suspects fled in the vehicle. Police chased down Antwain James Ware on Pacific Avenue and apprehended him, according to Piedmont Police Capt. Chris Monahan. The police log reported the suspect said he had a bullet in his chest. He was eventually taken to Santa Rita Jail in Dublin.
According to Monahan, the suspect admitted he had been breaking into cars on Pacific Avenue. He was arrested for the auto burglaries and possession of an unregistered handgun.
On Aug. 12, an Automated License Plate Reader pinged the intersection of Grand and Rose avenues at 9:54 p.m. for a silver 2011 Hyundai Accent. The vehicle had been reported stolen in Oakland.
An officer attempted to pull over the vehicle on Grand Avenue, but the suspect fled west on Oakland Avenue at “a high rate of speed,” according to Monahan. The vehicle was found shortly thereafter on Mariposa Avenue in Oakland after an apparent accident. The suspect fled on foot and was hiding in the front yard of a house where Piedmont police officers found him. According to Monahan, the suspect “provided a spontaneous statement stating he was the driver of the stolen Hyundai.” Burglary tools and stolen items were recovered from the car. The suspect was taken to Santa Rita Jail.
On Aug. 16, a police officer was hit and injured by a suspect’s vehicle as the suspects fled. A report came in at 10:14 p.m. for a black 2016 Hyundai Elantra stolen in Oakland. The vehicle was on Requa Road. Officers attempted to stop the vehicle and the driver hit an officer, causing a possible fractured wrist and sprained left knee, according to Monahan. The suspects fled on Crocker Avenue towards Mandana Avenue in Oakland. The driver was described as a white male wearing a sleeveless shirt. A white female was reported to be in the passenger seat and there may have been one more suspect in the back seat.
A man was arrested on Aug. 14 after a red 2016 Hyundai Sonata was pulled over without license plates on Sunnyside Avenue. A female passenger got out of the car and walked down Grand Avenue shortly before the vehicle was stopped. The driver was arrested and taken to Santa Rita Jail. The vehicle had been reported stolen in Oakland. The man was found with a vice grip and two screwdrivers, which police said could be used to steal vehicles. The suspect was arrested for possession of a stolen vehicle and possession of burglary tools.
At least three attempts were made within the week to steal wheels from cars, with two of them successful. Monahan said he is “not sure how widespread this is” and that they will discuss this at the county level.
“I do suspect the tires and rims are being resold,” he said.