A train was halted at Lafayette BART and a sizable police response mobilized after passengers reported two armed men aboard, fiddling with or loading a firearm. Two men were detained and at least one weapon or facsimile weapon was eventually recovered after several tense moments.
The incident was reported at approximately 11:40 a.m. with BART and local police quickly organizing an aggressive response to the station, which closed as a result.
Passengers reported seeing heavily armed police from Lamorinda and surrounding agencies mustering before boarding the train and eventually detaining two men. A facsimile weapon, reportedly a lighter fashioned to look like a gun, was recovered.
Grown men, playing with toy guns. But they look like the real deal in the dark don’t they?
Never saw so many police around here before!
just missed this. blind luck.
Daughter was there and freaking — glad they got them. good work police!
With little information to go on, I will speculate that perhaps this was intentional for those two to see what kind of reaction they could get pretending to have a gun on BART. Reminds me of that clown in Virginia that harassed someone at a mall so much while filming him for his TikTok that the guy pulled out a gun and shot him in the stomach. It’s a bad idea to make other people be your entertainment.
We’ve said often and on the threshold of boredom that the careless display of Airsoft, Nerf, BB, Pellet, Ciggie Lighters shaped like guns is ill advised. Both the public and police agencies are rightly edgy when such “weapons” are produced. There are plenty of recorded incidents where people wielding replica firearms have been shot and killed as a result. As for today’s incident, we can only think that the pair involved had to be well aware the BART car they were in was under video surveillance and that their actions would likely kick off an armed response. Why did they do it? We can only leave that to their interrogators to figure out…
I was kind of wondering if it was a distraction coordinated to draw resources away from some other bad stuff happening. I am not usually this cynical, but damn, these guys are getting clever and ruthless.
We’re cynical enough to consider that possibility on every call but don’t think it was in play today.
NEWS24/680
Race?
In custody…
Thank you for not falling for the usual race baiting we see on so many social media sites.
@ NEWS24-680 – Clever, witty and appropriate here!
It was repotted that they were black.
You guys always have the best photos……
Thanks, Denise! Full credit for that goes to a team of dedicated professionals who often put a lot on the line to bring home good photographs…
NEWS24/680
If we were an open carry state, there would be no reason to freak out at the sight of a real gun or a fake gun.
Tell that to the victims of gun violence, Wyatt. “Do not be afraid, people!”
Tell that to the children victims of Uvalde, TX. If only they had more police. Police are not afraid of confronting a weapon of war…Are they? Ask a police officer about that prospect.
Tell that to the children who die from gun violence more than any other cause in THIS country. Right now.