Alameda County prosecutors/ announced felony evasion charges Monday against one of dozens of people suspected of recently taking their ATVs and dirt bikes on an illegal joyride across Oakland, Berkeley and San Francisco.
Prosecutors also charged the man with a single misdemeanor count of battery on a police officer, after authorities claim he tried to hit an officer when confronted by law enforcement on the Bay Bridge, according to the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office. They also have petitioned to revoke his probation in an earlier case.
The charges come several days after the Oakland and San Francisco police departments partnered with the California Highway Patrol on a massive operation to track down and later trap dozens of people who participated in sideshows and rides Sunday across the Bay Area. The officers ultimately shut down a span of the Bay Bridge to detain the riders, leading to a “pretty chaotic” scene that saw numerous riders either try to drive away or ditch their vehicles and run, Oakland police Interim Chief Jim Beere said at an earlier press conference.
In all, officers impounded 77 dirt bikes and ATVs that, collectively, were valued at $200,000 or more, Beere said.
The man charged this week drove “recklessly within the blocked-off section of the bridge at high speed” while being chased by California Highway Patrol officers, according to the district attorney’s office’s announcement.
At least four other people were arrested on suspicion of felonies, and 19 more people received misdemeanor citations, according to Oakland police.
One of those people has since been charged with a felony probation violation, said Casey Bates, an Alameda County District Attorney’s Office spokesperson. More charges have yet to be filed in the remaining cases, because prosecutors are still awaiting reports from the law enforcement agencies that made those felony arrests, he said.
Jakob Rodgers is a senior breaking news reporter. Call, text or send him an encrypted message via Signal at 510-390-2351, or email him at jrodgers@bayareanewsgroup.com.