Oakland (Special to ZennieReport.com) – Author Note: this post was originally published at Zennie62Blog.com on January 20th, 2023 with the title “Oakland Police Report Of A Bumbling Cop Was Really A Hit Job On LeRonne Armstrong“. Last year, December 2023, a representative of the law firm under contract with the City of Oakland called and emailed this blogger to ask if an Oakland Police Officer was the source. Although, legally, I was not obligated to answer her question, I thought it best to help out their investigation by answering the question. My answer was “no”.
That contact was confirmation that what you’re about to read is 100 percent true. It started on January 19th, 2023 when a source reached out to tell me “Got something for you on the LeRonne Armstrong situation”. At the time of that outreach to me, it was just a few days after January 4th 2023, when I blogged about then Oakland Mayor-Elect Sheng Thao’s Chief of Staff Renia Webb’s explosive New Year’s Eve 2022 email announcing her resignation from her job, and blasting both Thao and her partner Andre Jones in an Oakland News Online post called “Renia Webb Chief Of Staff To Oakland Mayor-Elect Sheng Thao Resigns; Physically, Verbally Abused”
Renia Webb Said OPD Deputy Chief Angelica Mendoza Was “Sheng’s Girl”
Ms. Webb sent a series of text messages to me in response to my seeking her comment on my original OaklandNewsOnline.com post regarding her resignation and starting on January 6th 2023 and including one that claimed that Thao’s controversial aide Brandon Harami had released an audio of him “bashing” Mayor Thao, to use Webb’s words. Webb went on to text “Saying she is basically on the take for the unions. He is trying to save himself knowing they’ll throw him under the bus. A bunch of thieves with no honor” – that’s the text with the time stamp “7:08”.
The text message with the time stamp 7:36, is where Renia Webb pointed out that Deputy Chief Angelica Mendoza was “Sheng’s girl too”, following up with “Oakland is sooo sad. Breaks my heart”. The text with the time stamp “8:04” is where Webb reports that Sheng said she could not fire Brandon Harami because he “knows too many of her secrets”.
And in another text message timed stamped “8:15”, Webb called Oakland Public Ethics Commission Investigator Simon Russell “a crook”. That explains why Webb did not initially take her complaint to the Oakland Public Ethics Commission, stating to me that she was going to go to the “Department of Justice and the DA”.
Renia Webb (Linkedin photo)
Renia Webb Points Finger At Sheng Thao For Fake Complaint To Get Rid Of Chief LeRonne Armstrong
And Webb included a text that was originally posted by Seneca Scott, critical of Webb, and claimed that an Oakland Police Officer was stationed next to City Hall after reports that Webb threatened Thao.
The text time-stamped 7:49, and by Webb, reported her response to the information contained in the Scott text message she sent to me, exclaiming “Really Chief?” Pointing to Chief LeRonne Armstrong. (Later, Oakland Police Lt. Aaron Smith would respond to Webb, saying that she was not being observed, and that her claim was “misinformation” according to another text she sent to this blogger, and that appears in the first ZennieReport.com post about Ms. Webb as the possible trigger for the FBI investigation. )
But the smoking gun text message that ties Mayor Thao to the whole, made-up, allegation that LeRonne Armstrong did not appropriately follow up on one of 1,500 Oakland Police Internal Affairs investigations, is the first one of two time-stamped “8:15”. That’s where Webb agrees with my question of Sheng Thao had something to do with the ridiculous complaint about the IAD issue and the Chief, texting “Most certainly. She didn’t have to suspend him”, referring to what Thao did to Chief Armstrong.
Regarding Thao’s Aide Brandon Harami, on January 14th, 2023, then-Mayor-Elect Thao announced that Brandon Harami would, indeed, be retained and join her new staff at the Oakland Mayor’s Office, which included new Chief of Staff Leigh Hanson, hired to replace Webb, who resigned on New Year’s Eve. Zennie62 YouTube has a video that features a photo of that staff meeting and from the computer of Andre Jones. Contrary to Mayor Thao’s recent claims, Jones was a constant fixture at the Mayor’s Office, just as he was when she was Oakland District Four Councilmember. Here’s the photo and video:
It was that news which triggered Ms. Webb to the point of anger. Webb reached out to me and Seneca Scott simultaneously on January 15th 2023, sharing text messages made between her and Mayor-Elect Thao, accusing Jones of physical and verbal abuse done to both her and Thao, accusing Jones of “selling jobs” in the Mayor’s Office, and threatening to file a lawsuit and was already talking to the Department of Justice and the Alameda County District Attorney. I reintroduced that post here at ZennieReport.com at this link.
As I wrote then about Renia Webb’s email, “The Borgias Era” of Oakland had begun, pointing to the Italian family of lore, noted because they “became prominent in ecclesiastical and political affairs in the 15th and 16th centuries” and accused of many crimes, made a lot of enemies, and were said to be “infamously steeped in sin and immorality”.
Thus, The Anatomy Of A Hit Job On A Popular Police Chief in Oakland
Oakland Police Chief LeRonne Armstrong is the victim of a high tech hit job. Oakland’s a mess and it’s not going to get better. Why? Because we have the appearance of Oakland employees at high levels setting other valuable Oakland employees at high levels to take a fall that costs them their job, starting with “paid leave”. Why? Well, so those Oakland employees at high levels can take over the jobs of the valuable Oakland employees at high levels they managed to get rid of.
How else to explain a report of a completely bumbling Oakland Police Officer many in a position to know have reached out on their own, and without my proding, to tell me is named Michael Chung?
And how else to explain that those same City Hall sources point the accusatory finger at decorated Deputy Chief Angelica Mendoza and Oakland Mayor-Elect (at the time) Sheng Thao (who was said to have wanted Armstrong out but came up with this scheme)? How else to explain how Officer Michael Chung’s bumbling – first by running into a parked car while driving his OPD officer girlfriend to parts unknown, then by pretending to conduct target practice in a freight elevator at OPD Headquarters, only to accidentally shoot off his revolver – became an instrument used against Chief Armstrong?
How else to explain that (sources tell me) DC Mendoza is supposed to be Chief Armstrong’s trusted agent to review these cases and yet she did not disagree with the investigation (something confirmed by the Chief himself in my May 24, 2021 interview)?
Deputy Chief Angelica Mendoza Said To Be Architect Of Chief LeRonne Armstrong Hit Job
If you look at the previous OPD organizational charts from 2019, Deputy Chief Angelica Mendoza (Oakland’s highest ranking Latina officer) was arguably next in line to be Chief of Oakland Police behind Anne Kirkpatrick. But Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf, tired of folks (like this blogger writing and vlogging what you’re seeing now) complaining that she’s seemingly allergic to promoting black men in OPD, elevated the popular 25-year veteran Mr. Armstrong to the level of top cop.
But the fact remains that Deputy Chief Angelica Mendoza has a stellar 25 year record as OPD employee, and her only blemish is that she attended Fremont High School rather than Skyline High School like myself, and the great Class of 1980. But seriously, one look at Deputy Chief Angelica Mendoza’s resume is all you need to know about what’s going on here: the possible result of her frustration at not getting her due, all the while Oakland Police Officers like Chung are screwing up and LaRonne Armstrong leap-frogs her.
So, my sources claim that the whole thing is a political maneuver by DC Mendoza and they assert Fremont High’s finest should also be on leave for failing Chief Armstrong. The monitors know this is not a huge case considering all the things Armstrong has been doing and the amount of cases he has to review. Chief Armstrong has “deputies” for a reason. They are supposed to be his trusted agents to carry out his goals, strategy, values, and mission. My sources claim DC Mendoza set Armstrong up and is benefitting from this character assassination.
A Reformed Recap Of Events Based On Zennie62Media Sources
To recap, here’s what really happened, separate from the law firm’s report and from my Oakland City Hall sources. Sergeant Michael Chung lives in San Francisco and has an unmarked take home car. Chung leaves his apartment complex with his OPD Officer girlfriend (name not yet known) and some how hits another parked and unoccupied car. Chung does so with enough force to tear the bumper off of the parked and unoccupied car. Sergeant Chung stops for a while, then drives away.
Later, City of Oakland Police gets a bill from an auto insurance company for damages.the OPD Internal Affairs Division (IAD) gets all civil claims against the Dept. IAD reportedly realizes it’s a city car, but no report is made. The IAD Commander realizes the sergeant is a friend and advises him to make an official collision report and he does.
The OPD Internal Affairs Division (IAD) case is handled as a regular accident as the hit and run part is omitted from the initial IAD report. Allegedly the IAD Commander influenced the IAD Investigator to omit “certain things” and the case goes away. It should be noted that the IAD Commander has a boss and that Boss is said to be Deputy Chief Mendoza – and who is the “whistle blower” on this case. My sources assert that the case was screened by DC Mendoza, so she is just as responsible as Chief Armstrong.
Sergeant Michael Chung Practices Shooting His Gun – In A Service Elevator
Then, a few months later, the same sergeant Michael Chung gets into the Oakland Police Administration Building service elevator late at night. Chung’s reportedly alone and so decides to practice his gun draw skills (you can’t make this up) and as he does, accidentally pulls the trigger and shoots the elevator wall, sending a bullet on a course that could have ended hitting someone, fatally. The shocked Chung leaves the service elevator after picking up the casing and doesn’t report it.
Later, the bullet hole in the elevator gets noticed and it turns into an investigation (ordered by Chief Armstrong). Days go by and nobody admits to it and eventually sergeant Chung thinks he will get caught so he admits to it. Chung is out on admin leave and his actions are investigated.
The case is reviewed by the IAD Commander and DC Mendoza. Sergeant Chung is found guilty and discipline is recommended. Again, the IAD Commander omits facts to downplay it. To repeat, Deputy Chief Mendoza is Chief Armstrong’s trusted agent to review these cases and she doesn’t disagree with the IAD investigation.
So, Chief Armstrong takes the recommendation of the IAD and the sergeants chain of command, which leads to DC Mendoza. That’s different from the law firm report, which skips over the chain of command and points the finger at Chief Armstrong in an almost knee-jerk way.
My City Hall sources tell me Deputy Chief Mendoza reports this to the monitors but interestingly leaves out her role as a part of the chain of command. Reportedly from my sources, Deputy Chief Mendoza has built a relationship with the monitors where they use her to keep extending their $1.1 million-dollar-a year-contract. So she makes it appear that Chief Armstrong failed but my sources say with authority that is was she who failed.
And in this update, all of that after Chief Armstrong worked to promote Officer Mendoza to the level of Deputy Chief:
UPDATE: @oaklandpoliceca Capt. Angelica Mendoza, an @oakland native, promoted by @ChiefLeronne Armstrong to deputy chief of the newly created bureau of risk management pic.twitter.com/bPGkHkZ7UW
— Henry K. Lee (@henrykleeKTVU) March 19, 2021
UPDATE: Chief Armstrong Put Deputy Chief Mendoza over A New Department Called The Bureau of Risk Management
According to the document below, the new division is charged with:
Understanding, assessing, and managing risk – to officers, the Department, and the City of
Oakland – is critically important. The Department’s Bureau of Risk Management conducts data-based assessments of risk behavior, helps the Department mitigate risk by developing interventions and other strategies for individual officers, and promotes policies and procedures to reduce risk in the Department.
If that’s the case, why did the monitor report at the bottom of this page fail to mention or question why the Oakland Police Bureau of Risk Management was not activated to look into the matter of how Officer Cheng’s situation was handled and then report back to Chief Armstrong? That’s supposed to be Deputy Chief Mendoza’s area.
Interestingly, the monitor does mention the OPD Office of Internal Affairs, but this report I found by the same Office of Internal Affairs was written by Deputy Chief Clifford Wong from the same Bureau of Risk Management that Deputy Chief Mendoza’s supposed to be in charge of. Have a look:
Oakland Office of Internal Affairs: FINAL OIA 1st 2nd Combined Quarterly Report 2022 30Nov22 by Zennie Abraham on Scribd
Now, read about The Oakland Police Bureau of Risk Management:
City of Oakland Oakland Police Risk Management Bureau – What It Does by Zennie Abraham on Scribd
The monitors say Chief Armstrong didn’t watch the video and review the evidence. My sources assert that he only has the time to do that on termination cases, high level uses of force, and any officer involved shootings. By contrast, this is a case of a bumbling Oakland Police officer.
Was This A Political Maneuver By Deputy Chief Mendoza?
To repeat, my sources argue that the whole affair is a political maneuver by Deputy Chief Mendoza who should also be on leave for failing Chief Armstrong. If that’s the case, then the question is why would Mendoza backstab Chief Armstrong? It’s quite clear she did not watch his back. Why?
My City Hall sources also argue, once again, that the monitors know this is not a huge case considering all the things Armstrong has been doing and the amount of cases he has to review. The constant comment is that Chief Armstrong has “deputies” for a reason. My sources say that folks like DC Mendoza are supposed to be Chief Armstrong’s trusted agents to carry out his goals, strategy, values, and mission. My sources argue that DC Mendoza set Chief Armstrong up and is set to benefit from this character assassination.
The question is, why does Chief Armstrong continue to cover for Deputy Chief Mendoza and Mayor Thao when others tell me Mendoza has been the instrument Warshaw and staff have used to engineer his demise, and that Sheng is “tight” with the highest ranking Latina?
The Chung Case Players List:
Michael Chung — shooting and hit and run
Wilson Lau —- told IA investigator to change report about Chung. Now works for EB Regional parks.
Deputy Chief Angelica Mendoza – was responsible for IA at the time of both of these incidents.
Police Chief LaRonne Armstrong – the fall guy.
My City Hall sources say the short video was shown at executive meeting when presented to the Chief Armstrong. Chan Lee never presented the long video.
The monitor report:
Report To Oakland Police De… by Zennie Abraham
The report link: https://www.scribd.com/document/620833731/Report-To-Oakland-Police-Department-Of-Conclusions-And-Recommendations-In-Wake-Of-Rules-Violations
Stay tuned.