A local couple was surprised by a group of armed robbers in downtown Walnut Creek Thursday, surrendering a Rolex watch, wallet and other items when the thieves confronted them on Locust Street at approximately 3:37 p.m.
The three suspects, described only as three black males, were observed leaving the area in a grey sedan – running red lights in their haste.
The robbery was believed to have taken place quickly, with the men approaching their victims, brandishing guns and demanding their belongings before escaping. Neither of the victims was physically injured during the encounter.
Unfortunate, but not surprising given the current climate of rising crime in our perceived “good neighborhoods”.
We need to find a balance and solutions without the devolution to the partisan extremes on both ends of the spectrum…
e,g. Progressive DAs must go *Boudin, Becton, Gascon, Larry Krasner…
Good guys with guns are the best defense against bad guys with guns
Criminal justice is meted out disproportionately amongst various groups
More social services versus traditional law enforcement
CRT, replacement theory, personal freedom, 2nd amendment, Heller decision, Dobbs case
Media echo chambers
Where do we start…and how does it shake out?
So this couple should have been armed and got into a shoot out with the robbers? Why is crime increasing as the number of guns in this country has reached an all time high? I agree with some of your other statements.
Susan – don’t believe Jeff was proposing that as a solution, but rather citing that as the commonly given response to incidents of this type. Jeff, we know, is an adult and more than capable of responding so he may get back to you here…
What Jeff said is actually 100% true!
Many don’t like hearing this, because it flies in the face of some of the progressive ideas did they support. Most of these ideas are not working and are backfiring on the good citizens of society. You know, us people that work hard, obey the laws, pay the taxes and help others.
How many fingers am I holding up? Can you read the difference in gun ownership and killings in the US vs ALL other developed nations? Can you see it or not? Visible to you or not, it kills and kills.
24 680 crew is correct in that yours truly was not positing a perpetrator-victim gun battle as a “solution” to the recent spate of street crime in our area. I was simply listing the various talking points that are put forth by many, as you can see the are not limited to the right or left of the political spectrum…and yes I am an adult ,,,no chance for my record to be expunged after a stint in juvenile detention,
We gotcha. Look forward to your posts.
You are correct. Anti gun people want everyone disarmed. In that case, only criminals will be armed. Not good! I say bring back open carry. Thieves will think twice robbing someone with a 9mm on their hip. Where my family is from in Texas, everyone carrys a firearm, and their is literally no crime to speak of.
Susan,
This Jeff will reply with a ………….Yes, shoot it out with them if you’re trained and pick the right moment. I’m always armed and SCOTUS will soon be giving concealed carry to everyone.
108RS
NYSRPA II case aka NYSPRA vs Bruen case for those are interested in exploring further.
The lack of knowledge of the JUDICIAL SYSTEM by commenters is OVERWHELMING…Read, Study and Learn how criminal law is applied. May want to begin reading “The first 3 ESTATES of The USA” and UNDERSTAND our form of GOVERNMENT.
I support full Sentencing of any CONVICTED CRIMINAL!
“The knowledge we learn in life is a gift to pass along—”
“Good guys with guns”, a great approach if you own stock in gun manufacturing, but it seems those “Good guys” also do risk analysis.
Still no reports or comment by WCPD. Appreciate your coverage on this.
Morning, Michele… definitely a quick hit robbery. Sometimes it takes a few days to cycle through to the weekly statistics. Glad no one was injured. Thanks for writing!
Arrests?
Not that we’re aware of though we would not be privy to subsequent police investigation/arrests if any were made.
I always laugh when people say high gun ownership by the citizenry would curb gun violence. These are the states with highest gun violence per 100,000
Alaska (24.5)
Alabama (22.9)
Montana (22.5)
Louisiana (21.7)
Mississippi (21.5)
Missouri (21.5)
Arkansas (20.3)
Wyoming (18.8)
West Virginia (18.6)
New Mexico (18.5)
All have very high gun ownership numbers
This is a pretty popular area. Any chance there is some camera footage?
Not speaking for the PD(s), PatMac, but canvassing for surveillance camera footage has become SOP for modern-day investigators. That said, if anyone caught this crime on camera and would be willing to share, we’d run it…
The comment on whether it would have been better for an armed citizen to get into a gun fight in downtown Walnut Creek is missing the point. All it took for the two victims to give up their property was the implied use of a gun when one of the assailants branished a weapon. It can be implied that VERY few citizens in California are armed with so few CCPs issued in the state. Criminals can safely assume that they are unlikely to run into an armed citizen when they perpetrate a crime like this in broad daylight. That is not the case in other states/cities with higher rates of CCP issued. Just the implied counter threat that the criminal may be encountering someone who is armed is a type of deterrent. Criminals like these are looking for an easy mark with little chance of any resistance. They are smart cowards.
You meant “inferred”. For example, it can be inferred from the data that the US stands alone among developed nations with its extraordinary easy access to weapons of war by teenagers and mad men and by the extraordinary price paid in innocent lives compared to ANY OTHER DEVELOPED NATION. This is not mysterious.
Hey David, how many other developed nations have as many “urban youths” as the US? It’s not a gun problem, it’s a certain demographic responsible for the lions share of the crime.
Scott, It’s a gun problem AND a people problem. If we cannot even have legal background checks, a waiting period, and (I believe) banning Assault style weapons meant for war, we remain in denial. Mental health support is crucial as well as common sense background checks and gun restrictions. This has nothing to do with self-defense, hunting, etc.
Regarding the “certain demographic” you describe, almost all large-scale mass shootings at schools and elsewhere are done with assault style weapons by white men, whereas black-on-black shootings are almost never with the use of assault-style weapons but with handguns. Background checks are important in addressing both problems.
LK,
And most street crimes are done by a certain demographic. And, we have background checks, low capacity magazines and waiting periods here in California.
108RS
“urban youths” are the problem. Yeah, we know what you are saying by that. Wink Wink. Please look at who is actually doing these recent mass shootings. White suburban or rural teenagers, for example. Try to take in some new information. Expand your horizon.
David,
This article isn’t about mass shootings, it’s about street robberies in Walnut Creek.
108RS
How do we explain 13% of the population accounting for ~50% of all US homicides?
Now to the local angle..there are three cases of recent violent crime listed on the website. Can you guess the common denominator?
Criminals can safely assume they will not be arrested by police. If 100s of people can come into downtown WC, loot, have sideshows, discharge guns after dining and dashing with the police standing around watching, then they pretty much no they can get away with just about anything. How is the ‘Liberal DA’ supposed to prosecute without an arrest?
“All it took for the two victims to give up their property was the implied use of a gun when one of the assailants branished a weapon.” Well, except for slurring “brandished”, you got “implied” right there. Brandishing a gun is definitely the implied use of a gun. It’s not unlike trying to steal a wallet that reads: “Bad Mother Fucker”, as in Pulp Fiction. It might give you pause, regardless of whether you are criminal A or criminal B with the gun. Well, where was the good guy with the gun at that moment, and the next moment, and the next? Quail hunting perhaps because he hunts for sport. He is NOT in law enforcement. Didn’t you know?
David,
The good guy with the gun, me, was further down Ygnacio Valley Rd at the time, I would have shot it out with them.
108RS
Fact- Missouri’s gun laws are extremely liberal. I believe you can carry a gun there w/o a permit. Fact- Missourians aren’t safer than Californians. St Louis has maybe the highest homicide and perhaps rate at the moment.
If you carry a gun for ‘protection’ you’re living in a fantasy. Time to get a new hobby?
St. Louis, Missouri has the highest violent crime rate in the United States of 2,082 incidents per 100,000 people.
Care to discuss the demographics of the violent crime in St. Louis? Or how about we discuss the amount of gun violence in California that’s performed with legal firearms vs illegal firearms. If you want to do statistical analysis of these crimes it’s going to paint a very simple picture.
My friend and i were robbed at the speedway gas station on mt Diablo next to the 24 exit by the same group of black men around 9:30 pm. We had stopped to put gas in the car after coming back from the warriors game and we’re ambushed by the 4 scumbags all had guns and ski masks on they were driving a 2021 gray Lexus with tinted windows. The police showed up pretty quickly and told us there was a couple who had been robbed earlier in the day by the same group. They stole a Rolex and an ap along with our wallets phones and keys. Unless somebody is willing to do something about this it’s only going to get worse. I got the license plate of the car but have heard nothing back from the police which is really disappointing considering i reached out to tell them to tell them the location of my phone the next morning.
Morning, TGriff and thanks for checking in. Glad you guys are okay.
For clarification, this was the Walnut Creek Speedway? And they got a Rolex from you guys, too?
There’s a pretty obvious thread running through these crimes so, we’ll ask, do you feel you were followed or cased PRIOR to your robbery, with the thieves keying on you or the member of your group wearing the Rolex?
We know these are fast and your mind is on different things (like living) but can you describe the guns this group was using?
TGriff,
You might have been followed from the game, unlikely they were cruising WC for that length of time. The others may have been followed from a bank or supermarket. Gangs in LA have been doing this for the last six months. Why rob a poor person? Glad you are ok.
108RS
If you’re trying to rob a rich person why go to Walnut Creek?
Concealed or open carry states have less robberies by bad guys with guns against good guys with guns. This is because the bad guys don’t know if the good guy is armed. This has no relation to violence in St. Louis, Oakland, Detroit, etc. This violence is due to cultural defects, and the lack of values in a certain demographic. In addition, gun laws only apply to law abiders, not criminals. Criminals can care less about these laws, and count on the victim not being armed in states as California, where a law abiding citizen can apply for a concealed carry permit but it will never be processed.
Criminals coming to affluent and middle class areas to rob unarmed people is a whole different scenario than an unstable person who legally purchased an firearm to kill innocents. School shooters are cold cowards, and the schools need to be secured to avoid this scenario. There is no “gun crime”. It’s a people crime whether a gun, knife or brick is used.
Well, your nonsensical argument would make sense in some imaginary NRA world, but no other “modern”, “developed”, “wealthy” country (choose your favored adjective) has so many weapons of war in the hands of citizens and none has this level of armed violence. It is NOT a close call. It is NOT a mystery, if you just look up from whatever thing has captivated your attention. Look UP!
No argument, just simple facts you apparently cannot comprehend.
Well, Doug, when you say: “the lack of values in a certain demographic.”, we all understand the subspeak. We all understand prejudice in this century and the prior centuries in this country. I do comprehend. I do not shrink from my values; I do not shrink from my upbringing.
Doug, gun violence by state per 100,000. You just made up the “less robberies by bad guys” premise.
Alaska (24.5)
Alabama (22.9)
Montana (22.5)
Louisiana (21.7)
Mississippi (21.5)
Missouri (21.5)
Arkansas (20.3)
Wyoming (18.8)
West Virginia (18.6)
New Mexico (18.5)
We also understand the data supports his words: https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2019/crime-in-the-u.s.-2019/tables/table-43
David,
None of the weapons used in the recent shootings are military weapons, none had automatic capability. They just look scary, go look up Ruger Mini-14, same capability, not scary looking. As per prejudice, the statistics don’t lie, when was the last time the Klan rode through Oakland?
108RS
In 2020 i believe there was aprox 34 people in ca killed with all types of rifles including ar, while something like 270 people were killed from stabbings.
Yeah, but I need the knife to chop carrots and potatoes. I don’t need an auto or semi-auto weapon except on the battlefield, which is what it was created for. So, there’s that little detail.
David,
Actually, Switzerland has a very high percentage of owner ship of semi-automatic rifles. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firearms_regulation_in_Switzerlands
It would be good to send any or all of these gun pointing robbers to meet the Lord.
following
Soft on crime laws and DAs are the problem here. Today we have a chance to begin to change that.
How is the DA going to prosecute if the police don’t make arrests? More like soft on crime cops