San Leandro Police Arrest Oakland Man After Recovering Firearm, Stolen Motorcycle

Two separate incidents occurring at San Leandro bars last week led to the arrest of one man who was carrying a concealed weapon and another in possession of a stolen motorcycle and methamphetamine, police said Monday.

At 10:45 p.m. Thursday, in a parking lot at a Safeway grocery store near the Parker House Lounge at 577 Bancroft Ave., a police officer noticed a man loitering in his car. The officer waited to see if the man was going to consume any alcoholic beverages or illegal drugs while in the vehicle before heading into the bar, according to police. At one point, the man, later identified as 45-year-old Lavanz Crosby of Oakland, walked to the trunk of his 2000 Ford Mustang convertible and pulled out a camcorder bag.

Crosby then allegedly pulled out of his waistband a Glock 9mm semi-automatic pistol, which he then placed back in the camcorder bag in the trunk and walked back to the driver’s seat of the car, police said. Other officers arrived minutes later to assist. Upon approaching the suspect, they smelled a strong marijuana odor from inside the car. In their investigation of the vehicle, they recovered a fixed-blade knife with a 6.5-inch blade stored between the driver seat and the center console and a small bag of marijuana on the driver’s side, according to police.

The officers found the pistol where Crosby had left it and took him into custody without incident. The pistol was not loaded and the magazine was found stored in the car’s glove compartment, police said. Crosby was booked into the San Leandro city jail on suspicion of gun-related offenses.

Later, he was transported to Santa Rita Jail on $10,000 bail and was scheduled for arraignment this morning on concealed firearm charges. The second incident occurred at 6 p.m. Saturday in the parking lot of Shilo’s Cocktails at 991 Manor Blvd., where two officers observed a man standing next to a Honda RC51 motorcycle down the street from the bar. The man walked toward the bar and the officers thought it was suspicious that the motorcycle was not in the bar’s parking lot and checked to see if it was stolen, police said.

The ignition was visibly damaged and a toggle switch had been installed to start the vehicle without a key. Upon further investigation, the officers discovered that the motorcycle had been stolen on June 5 in San Francisco, according to police. The man who was found with the motorcycle was later identified as the bartender of the venue, 40-year-old Steven Ballesteros of San Leandro. Ballesteros was arrested on suspicion of possessing the stolen motorcycle and was taken to the San Leandro city jail. After he was taken out of the police car, the officers found that he had discarded methamphetamine in the back seat, police said.

While being booked into jail, Ballesteros was also discovered to be on probation for firearm-related convictions. He was booked on suspicion of possession of the stolen motorcycle, possession of illegal drugs, and violating his probation.

“Our officers are committed to making our city safe for everyone,” police Lt. Robert McManus said in a statement. “The officers in both of these cases knew that something was out of the ordinary, and their intuition was right, as it led them to the recovery of a stolen motorcycle and recovery of another gun that shouldn’t be on the street.”

According to police, they intend to increase patrols at San Leandro bars to cut down on illegal activities and provide a safer environment for patrons.

If anyone has information regarding these cases or any others like them, they are asked to contact San Leandro police at (510) 577-3230 or submit anonymous tips to (510) 577-3278 or text “TipSLPolice” to 888777.

By Bay City News