Long-time Richmond police sergeant dies of COVID-19

RICHMOND, Calif. - Richmond Police Sgt. Virgil Thomas has died due to complications from the COVID-19 coronavirus, the department said Thursday. 

Thomas served for 24 years in Richmond after working for the 
Albany and Novato police departments. 

Richmond Police Sgt. Virgil Thomas.

During his career in Richmond, Thomas served on the Neighborhood Services Team and the Training Officer Program and as a public safety officer at John F. Kennedy High School. 

Thomas was a past president of the Richmond Police Officers 
Association, the city's police union. Late last year, while off duty, Thomas shot a man in Vallejo. In March, that city rejected a legal claim filed by the victim's family, which cleared the way for the family to file a lawsuit, but they have not done so. 

"Sgt. Thomas was loved and will be missed by his Richmond family," the department wrote in a Facebook post announcing his death. "We, as a department and community, will carry on his legacy in our work and service." 

Thomas is survived by his wife and four children. The RPD did not 
immediately return a request for additional information about Thomas or whether others within the department may have been affected.