A security guard for Joe Vazquez, a reporter for CBS affiliate KPIX 5 in the San Francisco Bay Area, was shot in the leg and hospitalized while Vazquez and his crew were covering the Oakland teachers’ strike on Sunday night.
The crew also had their camera and tripod stolen by the armed robber, according to KPIX 5. Security guard Matt Meredith is in “stable” condition, according to KPIX 5 assignment editor Maya Castro. Vazquez later tweeted “we believe his wounds are not life threatening, thank God.” Vazquez included a 40-second video of the scene on Sunday night, showing Meredith being helped off the ground and taken away in a stretcher.
Thank you, friends, for your well wishes. Our guard was shot today in Oakland while we were on assignment covering the Oakland teachers strike. We believe his wounds are not life threatening, thank God. Photographer John Anglin was robbed at gunpoint. 1/3 pic.twitter.com/TP225CUJNQ
— Joe Vazquez (@joenewsman) February 25, 2019
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Vazquez and KPIX 5 did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for details on the shooting and robbery.
According to KPIX reporter Elizabeth Cook on Twitter, Vazquez and photographer John Anglin “are safe.” She added she was “grateful for the bravery of their guard..praying for a fast recovery.”
So thankful @joenewsman and photographer John Anglin are safe. Grateful for the bravery of their guard..praying for a Fast recovery #hero #brave #protectjournalists
— Elizabeth Cook (@ElizabethKPIX) February 25, 2019
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Vazquez and Anglin were preparing to interview strikers at the Oakland Library when they were robbed, according to KPIX 5. The crew was inside the news van when a car rolled up and the driver “pulled a gun on the crew, demanding their camera,” according to KPIX 5. It’s unclear whether the driver was a man or a woman.
The shooter fled the scene and remains at large, according to KPIX 5.
The Oakland Police Department did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for details on the shooting and robbery.
The Oakland teachers’ strike is heading into its second week. About 3,000 teachers went on strike last week, with many picketing outside its schools on Thursday and Friday. The teachers are seeking a 12 percent retroactive raise, covering 2017 to 2020, according to Fox News.
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