U.S. California to deploy 120 more state officers to Oakland, East Bay

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 6 (Xinhua) -- Gavin Newsom, governor of the U.S. state of California, on Tuesday announced the plan to send 120 additional California Highway Patrol (CHP) officers to Oakland and the East Bay of San Francisco Bay Area to fight crimes such as carjacking, retail theft and violence.

The added officers will represent a nine-fold increase in the number of state police patrolling the region, according to Newsom's office. The officers will mainly get deployed in Oakland, where violent crime has surged.

"As crime rates across California decrease - including right across the Bay in San Francisco - Oakland is seeing the opposite trend," Newsom said in a statement. "What's happening in this beautiful city and surrounding area is alarming and unacceptable."

"The surge of crime and violence that we are seeing in our streets is completely unacceptable," said Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao. "As we work to improve public safety, I'm grateful for Governor Newsom for providing these critical law enforcement resources that are a game-changer in helping us hold more criminals accountable and make Oakland safer."

Last year, reports of violent incidents in Oakland rose 21 percent compared with 2022. Robberies increased 38 percent and burglaries rose 23 percent, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.