Pittsburg Police Made ‘Serious Failure’ by Allowing Suspect to Sneak Gun Into Station
Pittsburg’s police chief said Tuesday that the department will investigate how a suspect was able to enter the city’s booking facility while concealing a firearm, which he later used to injure two officers.
Chief Phil Galer revealed that 31-year-old Michael Arthur-Sanchez Martin was able to sneak the gun into the police department’s booking facility under his clothing, despite being searched by an officer both at the time of his arrest and upon arrival at the center. He was then able to shoot and wound an officer identified Tuesday as Jimmy Sanchez, who has been with the department for four years.
Martin was charged Tuesday with the willful, deliberate and premeditated attempted murder of a peace officer. He’s set to appear in court to enter a plea in two weeks.
“That was a serious failure,” Galer said in a statement. “We will determine how it happened and take immediate corrective action to prevent it from happening again.”
Police said Martin opened fire on a police officer Thursday afternoon, as he awaited transport to county jail. He had been arrested on separate charges for driving a stolen vehicle and outstanding felony warrants.
According to Galer, Martin concealed the firearm in his clothing, and then hid it in a toilet after officers placed him in a holding cell. Hours later, Martin retrieved the gun and hid it under a jail blanket around his shoulders.
Martin then asked Sanchez for water, saying he did not feel well.
When Sanchez brought Martin water and approached the cell, Martin punched Sanchez in the face, threw the jail blanket over his head and struck him repeatedly with the firearm, according to police.
Officials said that preliminary evidence suggests that Martin fired a single round, which passed through his own leg before striking Sanchez in the abdomen. Galer said that Sanchez was able to prevent Martin from firing another round while responding officers entered the facility and disarmed him.
Sanchez underwent surgery for his injuries and is recovering with family, according to police. Another officer involved in the incident was also treated for minor injuries.
Galer said that, while Martin should not have been able to bring the gun into the facility, “it was Martin who knowingly concealed, retrieved and then utilized that firearm.
“I do not want legitimate criticism of a failure of a young officer’s search to overshadow that fact,” he said in a statement.
Martin was previously convicted of voluntary manslaughter for shooting 23-year-old Antioch resident Jesse Hernandez in 2014. Reporting at the time alleged that he had ties to an East Contra Costa subset of the Norteños gang.
Last year, he was charged with illegal possession of a firearm as a felon, along with other gun-related felonies, Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office records show.
After he was treated for his injuries Thursday, Martin was transferred to the Martinez Detention Center, where he is being held without bail. He’s set to appear in court on Sept. 16.
Hours after the shooting at the Pittsburg jail, another Contra Costa law enforcement officer was shot in Richmond while responding to a mental health call. That officer was released from the hospital Friday, according to police.