Man beaten in third attack in months on Prince Memorial Greenway

A 20-year-old man hanging out along the Prince Memorial Greenway path near downtown Santa Rosa was beaten and robbed by gang members who hit him with a metal bat before running off with his money, police said Monday.

The Sunday evening assault was the third reported violent attack in the downtown area of the pathway since September involving gang members, according to police.

It has triggered promises by police commanders to step up patrols in the area while gang detectives continue to search for witnesses to the attack, which left the victim bleeding heavily from multiple face and head wounds, police said.

“The Greenway is an area that we want people to feel safe to use,” said Acting Santa Rosa Police Chief Hank Schreeder. “When we have an incident like the one (Sunday) night we need to respond appropriately to maintain the sense of safety.”

Officers learned of the assault when a passerby called police at 7:35 p.m. Sunday to report a bloodied man near the fish statue at the entrance to the popular pathway, at Santa Rosa Avenue, said Sgt. John Cregan.

The victim, who is not involved in a gang according to police, was by himself, sitting on a bench along the creek walkway and having a beer, Cregan said.

The man told police he was approached by 6 to 7 males, who he estimated were 16 to 20 years old. They demanded to know what gang he was with, Cregan said.

He told them he wasn’t in a gang and they moved on. But they quickly returned, armed with a metal bat, and confronted him again.

He repeated that he wasn’t a gang member. “One walks up and just whacks him in the side of the head with the baseball bat, knocks him to the ground,” the sergeant said.

The victim told police he was struck in the head with the bat at least two more times. “The rest (of the group) just surrounded him, giving him kicks to his upper body, ribs and back,” Cregan said.

One of them went through his pockets and took a small amount of money he carried, as well as an identification card, Cregan said. The group then fled to a nearby car and left.

The victim’s name wasn’t being released due to the violent nature of the assault and because the suspects haven’t been arrested, Cregan said. The injured man was taken to a hospital, suffering from multiple broken bones in his face and a broken nose.

News of the crime generated calls Monday to the police department from concerned citizens.

A $2,500 reward from the business group, Sonoma County Alliance, is available for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the man’s attackers, said Cregan, who supervises suspected gang crime investigations.

The Prince Memorial Greenway is the main downtown thoroughfare for bicyclists and walkers using paved and dirt pathways along Santa Rosa Creek.

The area is routinely patrolled by the city’s four-member police bike team, said Cregan, who added that the department was “looking at ways to put more resources in that area.”

“We want a more aggressive presence,” he said.

Path users expressed dismay but not surprise Monday in hearing about the latest bout of violence in the area. Santa Rosa Junior College student Sydney Elmore Miller, 23, said uses the route a few times a week to get to class, but that she never rides at night, fearing who might be in the area.

Always vigilant, she said now she’ll be more so. “I’m always just a little nervous,” she said.

Sunday’s beating occurred at the same place as a gang-related shooting last Dec. 23. In that case a 17-year-old is accused firing a gun at two teen victims, wounding a 14-year-old but missing a 16-year-old. He is facing trial as an adult for attempted homicide. Police still are looking for a second suspect.

Two gang members have also been arrested in connection with a September attack on a 39-year-old man as he walked near the entrance bridge. The pair is suspected of attempted robbery while acting as gang members.

Cregan asked anyone who witnessed Sunday’s assault to call gang detectives at 707-543-3670.

Gang activity can be reported to police by calling 707-528-5222. Confidential and anonymous messages about gang activity can be left at 707-543-GANG (4264).

You can reach Staff Writer Randi Rossmann at 521-5412 or randi.rossmann@pressdemocrat.com or Twitter@rossmannreport.