Oakland police: No arrest in attempted robbery where toddler was injured by bullet

EDITOR'S NOTE: A previous version of this story quoted an Oakland Police Deputy Chief who incorrectly told residents at a public meeting Wednesday night that "multiple arrests" had been made in this case. 

OAKLAND, Calif. - Oakland police reversed course Thursday, saying no arrests had actually been made in the high-profile attempted robbery of a nanny pushing a 15-month-old girl in a stroller, who was struck by flying bullet shrapnel despite a high-ranking officer saying otherwise. 

Deputy Chief James Beere on Wednesday told the crowd at a meeting at the Lakeshore Avenue Baptist Church that an arrest had been made, while acknowledging more investigation was needed. At another point in the meeting, Beere also said that "multiple individuals" had been arrested.

It's likely the confusion occurred after OPD made multiple arrests related to recent robberies in the area, and crimes in a "neighboring city." But it also remains unclear how the misinformation made it to being shared at the public meeting. 

Oakland police said Thursday that the attempted robbery of the nanny was still under investigation.

It remains unclear how close police currently are to finding the person or people responsible for Tuesday's brazen theft on Trestle Glen Road, where suspects tried to grab a nanny's purse and then fired a bullet, which struck the ground hitting the little girl with shrapnel. 

A department spokesman said police found a gun that was the same caliber as the bullet casing found at the scene of the Trestle Glen incident. That gun and shell casing have both been sent to a crime lab for ballistic testing, according to police. 

After the attempted robbery, the nanny spoke to KTVU. She was not injured despite not giving the robbers her purse. The 15-month-old girl suffered some lacerations when the bullet bounced off the ground and struck her. 

The toddler's mother came to the meeting at the church to implore police to do more, wiping away tears as she spoke. 

"I'm sorry, I really don't want to be here today," she said. "I'm trying to get answers to a situation that should have never happened."

The mother, who did not identify herself by name, said her daughter and nanny go to the park regularly, which is normally teeming with parents and children.

She said this type of violence has never happened before, and she never thought she would have to pick out "bits of shrapnel from her [daughter's] shoe." 

As she spoke, a few in the audience wiped away tears. When she finished, she received a standing ovation. 

"There's nothing I can do or do to make any of this right," Beere told her. "No person should have to experience that. It's tragic and unnecessary. I'm sorry." 

Neighbors who previously spoke to KTVU said they’ve seen an uptick in car vandalism, property crimes and violent robberies of people walking in the area, and they believe they are related.

A few days before, on Saturday, another woman was injured during a purse snatching in the 700 block of Grosvenor Place. 

And then on Sunday, a woman, who only wanted to be identified as Stephanie, described how she was followed home after she stopped at the Wells Fargo ATM at Lakeshore Avenue and Trestle Glen about 9:45 p.m., and then was held up by two carloads of robbers. 

Four robbers got out and one of them demanded her belongings.

"We struggled over my purse a little bit," she said.

She honked her horn, and they took off with her purse.

"It's scary," she said. "In hindsight, I absolutely know they followed me from the ATM."

Neighbors at the meeting implored police to do more to prevent future crimes from happening. 

"The safety of the community is in question," Jim Donatell said. 

KTVU's Henry Lee contributed to this report. 

OaklandNewsCrime and Public Safety