Crime Prevention Group to Focus on Egbert Souse's

Crime near Egbert Souse's, a bar at 3758 Piedmont Ave., Oakland, where customers have been shot after leaving the tavern on two successive weekends, will be a major focus of the area's Neighborhood Crime Prevention Council (NCPC) when it meets next week.

Capt. Anthony Toribio, who heads the Oakland Police Department's Area 2 where the bar is located, said in an email that he plans to attend the NCPC meeting.

"The City wants to work with the owners of the bar to implement some measures to reduce the likelihood of gun violence and other nuisance activity," he said.

Toribio said the victim of the most recent shooting, early on the morning of Saturday, Nov. 2, is expected to live. The man was shot in the 3700 block of Piedmont Avenue when he left the tavern shortly after midnight.

The previous week, on Saturday, Oct. 26, a man was also shot and wounded as he left Egbert Souse's. A nearby car was also hit by gunfire in that incident.

A member of the Yoo family, which owns the bar through its Berkeley ESL Exchange Inc. corporation, told KTVU-TV this week that he believes the bar has become a scapegoat for neighborhood problems.

Edward Yoo said the owners have installed security cameras and hired guards since they took over the business four years ago. Customers under age 25 are not allowed in the bar on weekend nights, he said.

You may see the KTVU report here.

At a meeting with Oakland police and city officials in August, neighborhood residents complained that gunshots, loud arguments and suspected drug dealing are frequent problems outside Egbert Souse's.

The NCPC meeting for OPD police beat 9X, which includes Piedmont Avenue, is scheduled for Wednesday, Nov. 13, at 7:30 p.m. It is tentatively scheduled to be held on the 11th floor of Piedmont Gardens, 110 - 41st St., Oalkand, although the meeting place may change, NCPC officials said.

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