EL CERRITO — One man was in county jail while another was hospitalized after they were taken into custody in connection with a home-invasion robbery, authorities said.
In a statement Thursday, police said that officers responded just before 9:05 a.m. Wednesday to a call reporting the robbery had just happened at a home in the 900 block of King Drive.
Officers later learned that armed suspects had forced their way into the home, with one suspect shooting a round from a handgun, but fled shortly after the victim managed to get hold of a weapon and defend himself.
But as officers arrived at the home, they saw a vehicle fleeing the neighborhood at such high speeds that it was involved in two hit-and-run collisions that damaged property.
Officers pursued the vehicle on city streets and onto Interstate 80 near Central Avenue, where the driver got out and ran across westbound I-80 lanes before he was taken into custody.
The driver, identified as a 28-year-old Oakland man wearing an ankle monitor, was booked into county jail on suspicion of parole violation, felony evasion and conspiracy.
Back at the scene, officers set up a perimeter around the home to help search for two other suspects seen taking off clothes and hopping fences to run through nearby homes’ backyards.
Other law enforcement agencies, including Richmond and San Pablo police and the California Highway Patrol’s Golden Gate Division air unit, aided in the search.
During that search, El Cerrito High School’s campus was placed on lockdown for a short time. Soon after reports that suspects had confronted two community members, one of the suspects was found around 2:30 p.m. after he crawled out of a utility culvert.
That suspect, identified as a 28-year-old man wanted for violation of supervised-release terms, was injured during the home invasion and taken to a hospital for treatment. A third suspect was not found, but detectives were working to establish his identity, police said.
Police said an investigation into the incident is ongoing. Anyone with information may call the department at 510-215-4400 and reference case No. 2022-0000980.
Contact George Kelly at 408-859-5180.
Source: www.mercurynews.com