Police ID Man Arrested In Wednesday Sideshow In Milpitas

Police on Thursday identified an 18-year-old Oakland man arrested during an alleged sideshow attended by about 1,000 people in Milpitas on Wednesday night.

Jesus Piza-Espinoza was arrested on suspicion of recklessly driving in an off-street parking facility and resisting arrest, police Lt. Raj Maharaj said. He was part of a large crowd that gathered around 9 p.m. Wednesday at Milpitas Square, a shopping center on Barber Lane, he said.

The center is located near the interchange between Interstate Highway 880 and state Highway 237. A group of people affiliated with a car club had decided to meet at the center’s parking lot, where the gathering turned into a sideshow with hundreds of people and multiple street racing cars, he said.

• Previous: Man Arrested For Sideshow Antics At Milpitas Square

Police responded to the scene, where people were seen doing donuts and burnouts in the center’s parking lot, Maharaj said. There were also some people jumping on cars during the sideshow, according to Maharaj.

Officers spotted Piza-Espinoza, who was allegedly driving a gray 1998 Ford Mustang in front of a large crowd, and arrested him, the lieutenant said. Officers also issued nine vehicle code violations during the sideshow, he said.

Milpitas police were able to disperse the large crowd nearly three hours later with assistance from Fremont police, the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office and the California Highway Patrol, he said.

Maharaj called the incident “unusual” for the city and said there were two similar incidents that occurred within the last year in the vicinity of the center. While no injuries were reported during Wednesday night’s sideshow, Maharaj said the police department’s “biggest concern is public safety.”

“The last thing we want is someone to get struck,” he said.

Anyone with information on the alleged sideshow or on a similar incident is asked to call Milpitas police at (408) 586-2400.

Anonymous tips can be left by calling the police crime tip hotline at (408) 586-2500 or visiting http://www.ci.milpitas.ca.gov/government/police/crime_tip.asp.

--Bay City News