Full Notification

November 3, 2015

CONTACT: Lt. R. De La Campa 510-215-4448

On November 2, 2015 at 0715 hours, the El Cerrito Police Department received a call about a suspicious person at the Walgreens store located at 11565 San Pablo Avenue. The caller, a customer, said that a man armed with an axe was trying to get into the pharmacy. Officers responded to the store and learned that the suspect entered the store, brandished the axe at employees and told them not to call the police. The employees fled the store while the suspect used his axe (or a hatchet due to its size) to break into the pharmacy office, which was not yet open for business.

Officers discovered that the suspect smashed through the glass pharmacy door and blocked the entrance behind him with a very large computer server tower. Officers tried to convince the suspect to surrender, to no avail. Officers learned that the suspect was actively ingesting a sizable quantity of pharmaceutical drugs, while inside. After clearing the blocked door, officers entered the pharmacy and learned that the suspect locked himself in a restroom. Again, the suspect did not respond to officer commands to surrender. Officers entered the bathroom, confronted the suspect, and attempted to arrest him. During the struggle, the suspect hit an officer and a police canine. After he was detained, officers discovered that the suspect was bleeding from injuries he sustained when he shattered the glass door to the pharmacy. He was also suffering from ingesting an unknown quantity of pharmaceutical drugs. Officers called for an ambulance and escorted him to an area hospital for treatment. No police department personnel were injured during the arrest.

The El Cerrito Police Department has identified the suspect as Edward Barron, 29 years of age. The department is looking for additional information about Mr. Barron. Anyone with information regarding his identity is urged to contact the El Cerrito Police at (510) 215-4400. The El Cerrito Police Department is pursuing charges for Robbery, Burglary, battery on a police officer and police dog, resisting arrest and being under the influence of a controlled substance.

Reference Case number 2015-22851