KPIX 5 Crew Robbed, Security Guard Shot

A KPIX 5 news crew covering the Oakland Teachers Strike was robbed of a camera and tripod by two suspects, one of whom shot the crew’s security guard before fleeing on Sunday evening.

Before 5 p.m. Sunday, reporter Joe Vasquez and photographer John Anglin were gathering interviews for the strike at the Oakland Library near 81st Ave. when they were robbed of their equipment.

Wounded Security Guard Assisted

The KPIX 5 crew was outside their news van when a car pulled up. Two suspects got out of the car and one pulled a gun on the crew, demanding their camera. The crew surrendered the equipment and then began walking back to the van.

One suspect and the security guard exchanged fire. The guard was shot in the upper leg, transported to Highland Hospital and listed in stable condition.

Oakland police officers engaged in a pursuit of a champagne-colored Lexus sedan in connection with the shooting. The driver crashed the vehicle into several cars before stopping. Police detained the driver.

Alameda County Sheriff spokesperson Sgt. Ray Kelly said that around 5:15 p.m., a 21-year-old man walked into Highland Hospital, seeking treatment of several gunshot wounds. Deputies detained the man and Oakland police arrested him in connection with the shooting.

Oakland Police Public Information Officer Johanna Watson confirmed that the department had detained several other individuals in connection with the armed robbery and shooting. As a result, the stolen camera was recovered.

Vasquez and Anglin were said to be OK, but understandably shaken up.

Robberies of television news crews and still photographers have plagued the San Francisco Bay Area in recent years.  The Associated Press tallied five robberies in 2012, two in 2013, three in 2014 and at least three in 2015 plus several burglaries of vehicles.

“We don’t know what the market is for these cameras,” San Francisco Police Sgt. Michael Andraychuk told The Associated Press in 2015. Even though the cameras can cost upward of $50,000 each, it is specialized equipment that can’t be easily sold on the black market, Andraychuk said, and none of the stolen cameras have turned up on Craigslist, eBay or any other online marketplace.