Fremont Police Chief Addresses Homicides

FREMONT, CA — Two people were shot to death in separate incidents in Fremont on Saturday. A man was killed in the Niles area Saturday afternoon. That night, a woman was shot to death.

In response to the crimes, Fremont Police Chief Sean Washington wrote a letter to the community addressing the violence and the police department's commitment to keeping residents and visitors safe.

As a service to the community, Patch is reprinting the letter in its entirety —

Dear Fremont Community,

I write to you today with a heavy heart and sadness by recent loss of life as a result of senseless, criminal, violent acts in our community. On behalf of the entire City of Fremont organization, I offer our condolences, prayers, and support to the families impacted by these reprehensible acts.

Over the last nine days, our community has experienced three senseless acts of violence that have resulted in the tragic loss of life. On July 13, 2024, three-year-old Ellie was discovered murdered in the City of San Jose. Since the location of the murder is undetermined, protocol dictates that the San Jose Police Department lead the investigation to identify the cause and location of the homicide.

On Saturday, July 20, 2024, two people, in unrelated circumstances, were shot and killed in our community. While the most recent crimes continue to be investigated, we believe both homicides were committed by individuals who were not residents of our community. Although still active investigations, preliminary information leads officers to believe one incident appears to be a result of domestic violence. To date, our department has investigated four (4) confirmed homicides this year. In most of the homicide cases this year, investigators found a known relationship/association between the suspect(s) and victim.

We are humble in our service to our Fremont community. The members of Fremont PD respectfully work to ensure the community is safe. Through these challenging times, I am certainly proud of the men and women who continue to serve with professionalism and compassion. I am also confident in the detectives who have been working to solve these cases in an effort to bring justice to the victims our community has recently lost. These recent tragedies underscore the absolute necessity law enforcement has across the nation to continue to take action to end gun violence and all forms of senseless violence.

During difficult times, we understand that highly publicized violent incidents can cause angst and concern. I can assure you that our officers, dispatchers, and other members of our department are working hard, around the clock, to serve and protect our community. While these incidents may be shared and socialized on digital platforms, we remain committed to communicating and providing factual updates as these cases progress unless sharing information compromises the investigation or creates an officer or community safety concern.

Thanks to the extraordinary work and dedicated service of our public safety teams, along with continued support from our community, crime in Fremont has remained relatively stable. I appreciate City Manager Karena Shackelford and the Fremont City Council for continuing to support the Fremont Police Department with equipment acquisition, financial and staffing resources. This commitment allows us to remain proactive in our efforts to identify crime mitigation strategies, utilizing technology, and analyzing crime. The City of Fremont remains a safe community; however as I have said in the past, our work is never done. We stand with our community and will continue to do all we can to identify and hold accountable those in our society who cause pain, harm, and cruelty in our community.

Respectfully,

Sean Washington, Police Chief