By Brian Anderson
Valley Times

June 8, 2000

OAKLAND -- A roughneck band of Oakland police officers known as the "Riders" beat people bloody, planted crack cocaine on suspects and forced confessions while patrolling a tough part of the city, a former co-worker said Thursday.

Keith Batt, now a Pleasanton police officer and the star witness in the case against three Oakland officers facing a court hearing and accused of misconduct, said he was told shortly after joining the department to forget "all that (expletive) you learned in the academy."

Dressed in his Pleasanton police uniform, Batt, 24, smiled slightly at times and glanced out of the corner of his eyes at his former colleagues, recalling under questioning the group's violent run-ins with men in West Oakland.

"'I emptied a whole can of pepper spray into his mouth,'" Batt said Officer Francisco Vazquez uttered after the beating of Delphine Allen last June. "'Jude, you're going to have to peel his cornea off your elbow.'"

Vazquez, who remains a fugitive; Jude Siapno; Clarence "Chuck" Mabanag; and Matthew Hornung are charged collectively with 60 felony and misdemeanor counts that include kidnapping, assault, filing false reports and conspiracy. A preliminary hearing to determine whether enough evidence exists to hold them over for trial began May 30 in Alameda County Superior Court in Oakland.

During his daylong testimony, Batt recalled his short time with the Oakland Police Department. He said his partner, Mabanag, and the other officers who were later charged made it clear from the beginning that being a beat officer in West Oakland meant following certain rules.

"He said, 'If you're a coward, I'll fire you,'" Batt said Thursday, remembering a conversation he said he had with Vazquez. "'If you're a snitch, I'll beat you. If you're a criminal, I'll arrest you and take you to jail myself.'"

For two weeks, Batt testified he watched the officers add statements to reports that suspects had already signed, pummel people with fists and feet, and illegally snatch others they thought were drug dealers.

When drugs were not found, they were planted, he said. When suspects complained, they were beaten, he added. And all was to be kept under wraps.

"(Mabanag) told me what goes on in the car, stays in the car," Batt said of the training officer's words to him early on.

Prosecutor David Hollister said after the proceedings that Batt's testimony was key to the case.

"He's a very compelling witness, and he's an important piece of the puzzle. We look forward to the end of this hearing, when we can look back and see how the evidence fits together."

Mabanag's attorney Michael Rains said the testimony was not a shock.

"I think the testimony in there was very serious, and we know that," Rains said. "But as I say, there's a second half, and we haven't seen that yet."

Batt will again take the stand today.