Inauspicious start to 2026: 5 killed in Oakland as new year rolls in
Triple homicide investigation in East Oakland
Over the weekend three men were gunned down at a mini market in East Oakland.
OAKLAND, Calif. - As Oakland closed out 2025, the city's police department saw its lowest homicide rate since the late 1960s. Just four days into the new year, Oakland had already clocked five homicides at the start of 2026.
"We got my people dying out here like animals," Oakland City Councilman Ken Houston said on Monday. "Why aren't we angry?
5 killed over 4 days
By the numbers:
Three separate shootings occurred over the course of four days that killed five people – on Jan. 1 and 5, respectively, according to police and the police union. Police have yet to disclose much about the deaths, although in one of the cases, a suspect has been arrested. As of Monday, the Alameda County Coroner had not formally identified the people killed, though in two of the cases, family and friends did.
On New Year's Day, two people were killed in unrelated shootings.
The first shooting occurred after 11 a.m. Thursday in the 2700 block of East 20th Street, where a 47-year-old man who had been riding a bicycle was killed, according to a witness.
North Oakland barbershop owner arrested in deadly shooting
North Oakland barbershop owner Wesley Broach, 35, was arrested on suspicion of murder in a New Year’s Day shooting, police said.
The second shooting on Jan. 1 happened just before 1:30 p.m. in the 4500 block of Market Street.
Wesley Broach, 35, the owner of Cuts by Wesley, a walk-in barbershop near 45th and Market streets, was arrested in connection with the latter shooting, where family members identified the victim as 30-year-old Tariq Roddy Figueroa.
They described Figueroa as someone who loved nature and gardening and doted on his nieces and nephews.
A motive for the shooting has not been revealed.
Triple homicide outside Sky Market
Oakland police investigate a triple homicide outside Sky Market. Jan. 1, 2026 Photo: Angela Barron
Why you should care:
Then, on Jan. 5, three people were fatally shot just after 3 a.m. in the 8400 block of International Boulevard. Video at the scene showed the shooting occurred near Sky Market.
Two men, ages 19 and 22, died the scene. A third victim, Miguel Ramirez, 54, died at a hospital. Ramirez's family told KTVU he was a "great dad who was at the wrong place at the wrong time."
Oakland police have not said much about the triple homicide, including any motive and what led up to the shooting.
Big picture view:
Miguel Ramirez Rivera was killed in Oakland on Jan. 3, 2026. Photo: GoFundMe
End-of-year data for 2025 show that Oakland's homicide rate had dropped to lows not seen for nearly a half a century.
In all of 2025, Oakland had 57 homicides compared to 74 murders in 2024, and 117 in 2023, representing a 32% decrease compared to the three-year, year-to-date average.
The backstory:
IF YOU'RE INTERESTED in helping the family of Miguel Rivera, click here. Anyone with information is asked to call OPD investigators at 510-238-3821 or 510-238-7950.