A new wave of criminal activity has hit San Francisco Bay, and it’s targeting the residents of houseboats along the Oakland-Alameda estuary. Homeless pirates, who have spilled out of the city and onto the waterways, are now using small motor-powered dinghies to launch daring smash-and-grab raids on larger vessels and houseboats. This latest criminal enterprise has sparked fear and frustration among residents, who shared their harrowing experiences at a recent community meeting.
According to residents, boats have been cut loose and left to drift out to sea, while brazen thieves have started stealing small dinghies and using them in their crimes. At the meeting, one woman recounted how she had to rescue a fellow resident in the middle of the night after pirates slashed his rigging lines during an argument. The situation has become so dire that residents have had to take matters into their own hands, as the police in the Democrat-run city have failed to intervene.
Brock de Lappe, former harbor master for the area, expressed his concerns about the escalating crime and the risks that residents are facing. “The open shoreline of the (Oakland-Alameda) estuary is littered with sunken wrecks and derelict, end-of-life vessels, and crime has risen to truly intolerable levels,” he told Fox News Digital.
The thieves have been targeting five different locations along the estuary, including popular spots like Jack London Square and Union Point Park. Kame Richards, who runs an organization that teaches kids how to sail, shared that four of their safety boats, worth $35,000 each, have been stolen. The situation has become so dire that even senior residents have been forced to personally confront the criminals without police support.
The rise in waterway thefts and robberies is largely attributed to the city’s growing homeless population, which has extended to the waterways as well. With over 40,000 homeless people in the Bay Area, crime has been soaring not just in Alameda, but also in Oakland and San Francisco. In August alone, Alameda has seen an 18.6 percent increase in burglaries and a 10.2 percent rise in thefts over $400.
The Alameda Police Department is working with the Oakland PD and the Coast Guard to address the issue, but Chief Nishant Joshi acknowledges the challenges of enforcing laws on waterways. “In the waterways, it’s very difficult to draw a line, there are no roadways or fence lines, so we all have a shared interest, much like crime as a whole, to deal with this as a regional approach,” he said.
Meanwhile, residents are taking precautions to protect themselves and their property. The Oakland PD has advised homeowners to reinforce their doors and install security cameras to prevent home invasions, and the Alameda community is considering similar measures to safeguard their vessels.
The rise of homeless pirates on the San Francisco Bay is not just a cause for concern among residents, but also a wake-up call for the authorities. As the crime wave continues to wreak havoc, it is imperative that effective measures are taken to address the underlying issues and ensure the safety of the community both on land and on water.
