Leaked video shows Antioch cops fire dozens of shots at man as he runs away
ANTIOCH, FRANCE — A newly obtained civilian video shows four Antioch officers firing dozens of shots at an armed 30-year-old man as he flees, adding fuel to the city’s most recent police controversy.
The video of the Oct. 1 police shooting, shot from a nearby balcony, shows Antioch officers shooting at Antioch resident Daniel Mackin several times as he flees. Officers fire more than a dozen shots at Mackin after he runs out of the frame. According to police, Mackin pointed a gun at the officers when they shot.
This news organization obtained video that does not show Mackin pointing a gun at the officers when they fire the first shots. He runs with one hand visible and the other tucked in or near his hoodie, followed by several officers and two dogs.
The video shows Mackin fleeing from a van as officers pursue him, one of whom stumbles and falls during the foot pursuit. Two of the pursuing officers slow down as the first shots are fired, possibly to avoid being caught in the line of fire. Several gunshots are then heard as Mackin exits the visible frame of the video.
As the gunfire erupts, an onlooker can be heard saying, “Damn, they’re really poppin’ at” him.
The footage was not provided to police, according to a statement issued by the department on Tuesday.
“Due to the angle and perspective at which the video was recorded, it does not depict everything that occurred,” a police spokesperson said.
Police did not comment further on the footage, but did state that civilian footage of a police incident may “present a limited perspective” and fail to “capture all angles and the entirety of the incident, potentially leading to a lack of context and incomplete information.”
“This can hinder a comprehensive understanding of the situation and may contribute to misinterpretation or incomplete narratives,” a police spokesperson said.
Mackin was hospitalized with gunshot wounds but survived the shooting, which the Contra Costa District Attorney’s Office is still investigating. County prosecutors have not officially cleared the officers, but Mackin has been charged with assault with a deadly weapon, felon in possession of a firearm, and resisting arrest, according to court records.
The officers’ names were released last week, but no body camera footage has been released. Kyle Armstrong, a rookie cop in his first week on the job, was among the officers. Thomas Borg, Dustin Dibble, and Shawn Marques have been identified as the other three. The shooting occurred around 7:40 a.m. on Oct. 1 near A and West 3rd streets on the city’s waterfront, according to authorities.
Armstrong had only been sworn in four days before after finishing a training academy in Alameda County. He was one of six new hires sworn in on the same day as the city continues to replace those charged with felonies in a massive corruption scandal involving Antioch and Pittsburg’s police forces.
Mackin was wanted on a Ramey murder warrant, which meant that police wanted to question him about a homicide. Any hope of obtaining a statement from Mackin appears to have vanished; he was shot multiple times and was hospitalized, but he survived.
He was arrested on suspicion of homicide and robbery, as well as assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer, being a felon in possession of a firearm, receiving a stolen vehicle, and resisting arrest. He has not been charged in connection with the homicide, and neither police nor county prosecutors have revealed the identity of the victim.
According to department policy, the officers were placed on paid administrative leave following the shooting. Authorities did not immediately respond to whether the officers had returned to work following the shooting.
Already, the city is dealing with a large-scale investigation into officers’ racist, homophobic, and sexist text messages, which has put up to 40% of the force on paid administrative leave. Then there’s the August indictments, which targeted 14 current and former Pittsburg and Antioch police officers.
