Antioch: Man Arrested After Vehicle Pursuit, Faces Possession of Child Pornography Charges

On August 31 at 2:43 PM an Antioch Police Officer spotted a stolen vehicle passing the Antioch High School on W. 18th Street. The vehicle had been reported stolen on August 29, 2015 in Antioch. The officer got behind the vehicle and, as it was leaving the area of the schools, the officer initiated a traffic stop.

The vehicle fled in an attempt to evade officers, and a vehicle pursuit ensued. At one point the vehicle headed back toward Antioch High School, and the pursuit was terminated for safety as school was getting out. The stolen vehicle got caught up in gridlock traffic, attempted to make a U-turn, and collided with another vehicle occupied by a 29 year old female and her 2 month old daughter.

The driver of the stolen vehicle was blocked in by traffic at this point and had nowhere to go. APD Officers were there quickly and took the driver into custody. The female driver and baby in the other vehicle involved in the collision were uninjured, but were taken to an area hospital as a precaution.

Sonny Mitchell

The driver of the stolen vehicle was identified as Sonny Mitchell (41 yrs) from Richmond and was found to be on parole. A search of Mitchell’s phone discovered numerous images of child pornography that appear to have been downloaded from the internet by Mitchell.

Mitchell has an extensive criminal history. Mitchell was booked into the Contra Costa County Jail and, on September 2, 2015, the District Attorney’s Office filed felony charges on Mitchell for Auto Theft, Evading Police and Possession of Child Pornography.

This case is still under investigation. No further information will be released at this time.

Anybody having information related to this incident is encouraged to contact Det. Perkinson at (925) 779-6932. You may also text a tip to 274637 (CRIMES) using key word ANTIOCH