Security guard stops attempted armed robbery of news crews

Two armed individuals tried to rob a television news crew while it was filming Monday afternoon at Oakland City Hall.

Oakland police said the robbery attempt occurred at 3:09 p.m., when two armed suspects approached the camera man and attempted to take his camera during an interview of Guillermo Cespedes, the city’s violence prevention director.

In the ensuing struggle, an armed security guard contracted by the news agency pulled his gun and directed the suspects to leave.

The incident occurred hours after Oakland Police Chief LeRonne Armstrong slammed the City Council’s plan to divert $18 million in the upcoming budget to the Department of Violence Prevention.

Police said the suspects left the scene immediately and that the case is under investigation. No injuries were reported, and no additional information was provided.

Nik Wojcik of SFBay contributed to this report.