Antonio Gainey and Kenneth R. Stanley
FREMONT – Several agencies assisted the Fremont Police Department respond to a call about a burglary in progress, which turned into a major manhunt that included a helicopter, a fire department drone, and two police dog K-9 units. It led to the discovery of a cannabis plantation, and the arrests of two suspects, who are scheduled to appear for a pretrial court hearing on June 30.
The incident began when a woman called 911 to report hearing a loud crash and seeing two suspicious men at her neighbor’s garage on the 32900 block of Lake Mead Drive at 2:24 a.m. on June 20. She told a police dispatcher that she witnessed one man enter the garage, while the second man remained outside, apparently waiting as a lookout.
Responding patrol officers observed what appeared to be beams of flashlights emitting from inside the garage, before hearing two individuals jumping over a fence, and then spotted a man on the roof of a nearby residence.
Fremont officers set up a large perimeter around the block, while waiting for additional law enforcement assistance. A California Highway Patrol helicopter arrived, along with Union City patrol officers, K-9 units from Hayward and Union City, and a Fremont Fire Department observation drone.
Four Fremont police units were dispatched to the scene, leaving the police departments of Newark and Milpitas to handle emergency calls in Fremont, while the manhunt for the two suspects was underway.
During the search, Fremont officers located a vehicle parked on Lake Candlewood Street with its door open, and quickly determined the vehicle had been reported stolen from Burlingame.
Soon afterwards, a CHP helicopter officer observed one of the suspects hiding in the backyard of a residence located on the 32900 block of Lake Candlewood Street, behind the home where the two suspects had fled.
Several officers went into the backyard with one K-9 unit, where they located and arrested a 31-year-old Oakland resident Antonio Gainey, Jr., whom police said has a lengthy criminal history, including a burglary conviction.
Gainey is charged with first degree burglary, vehicle theft, and a special allegation for being a habitual criminal offender under the state’s three strikes law, which means if convicted he faces state prison. He’s in custody at Santa Rita Jail, where bond for his release is set at $175,000.
During a subsequent search of the residence on Lake Candlewood Street, an indoor marijuana plantation was discovered. The Southern Alameda County Major Crimes Task Force was alerted, which assumed responsibility for investigating the cannabis.
The second suspect was arrested at another home located on the 33000 block of Lake Candlewood Street, after a Fremont officer heard a man screaming for help and saw two men struggling inside through a second-story window. Police said the suspect was choking a 67-year-old man whose home he had entered hoping to evade capture, and whom the suspect offered money to keep quiet.
The elderly victim was dragged along the floor, but he continued struggling and yelling for help, and eventually broke free from his assailant, when according to police the victim alerted them that the suspect was inside his home. The victim was later transported and treated for injuries at a local hospital.
Officers surrounded his house and heard breaking glass, as the suspect apparently was preparing to flee again, but instead officers broke down a door and captured another Oakland resident, 32-year-old Kenneth R. Stanley, who has a lengthy criminal history, including burglary, stolen vehicle, and firearms convictions, police said.
Stanley is charged with dissuading a witness, false imprisonment by violence, assault with a deadly weapon, first degree burglary, vehicle theft, and a special allegation under the state’s three strikes law, meaning if the suspect is convicted he faces state prison. Stanley is in custody at Santa Rita Jail in lieu of $250,000 bail.
