OAKLAND — A man facing federal gun possession charges is also suspected of killing a passenger in a sedan after a collision in January 2024, federal prosecutors have revealed in court records.
Patrice Davis, 31, was never charged in the Jan. 8, 2024 killing of 31-year-old Meron Haileab Bahta but federal prosecutors have named him as a suspect, saying that he was wearing a parole GPS monitor that placed him at the scene, and driving a car consistent with the shooter’s vehicle. Davis is facing federal charges of shooting the gun that was used to kill Bahta, according to court records.
Davis, who also has active robbery charges in Alameda County, is jailed while the case is pending. Prosecutors presented a litany of evidence to convince U.S. Magistrate Judge Thomas Hixson to hold Davis without bail, alleging that he threatened to kill a man’s children during a robbery and nonfatal shooting, that he was caught with a brick of suspected cocaine in a storage unit, and that he continued to commit crimes after an Alameda County clerk mistakenly lowered his bail from $800,000 to $100,000, allowing him to be released in the pending robbery case.
On Jan. 8, 2024, Bahta and a friend were driving near San Antonio Park in Oakland when they collided with a motorcycle. Authorities believed the motorcycle driver called a friend who arrived at the collision scene and shot at the Bahta’s friend’s sedan, continuing to fire as the two men attempted to escape. Bahta was struck in the back and complained of pain and losing energy. Then he passed out and died quickly, authorities said.
Four days later, Davis allegedly robbed a family of five inside a vehicle, striking the father with the gun and stating, “I don’t give a (expletive), I’ll kill you and your children” to dissuade him from resisting, according to Oakland police. He was arrested on suspicion of assault with a firearm, released from jail due to the bail mishap, then re-arrested in March 2024, when his San Leandro storage unit was also searched.
Authorities say they found three pistols and a rifle in the unit, as well as more than 500 grams of cocaine and a money counting machine. Davis is not allowed to have guns due to having six prior felony convictions from 2013 to 2023, according to court records. One of them was a burglary and gang enhancement case for which he served a 13-year prison term, prosecutors said.