EXCLUSIVE: Former Bay Area gang member arrested after threatening to kill Asians online
DUBLIN, Calif. -- A man from Berkeley, who threatened to kill Asians ahead of the Lunar New Year is now in custody thanks in part to social media users, the Oakland Police Department, the Alameda District Attorney's Office and the Alameda County Probation Office.
The posts made on Twitter and Instagram by Reginald Jackson were alarming and included references to beating up, robbing and blowing up Asians.
The now deleted and private posts are being used in an Oakland police investigation and were sent to our sister station KGO's anchor Dion Lim by dozens of concerned people in the Asian American community.
Using these images, law enforcement quickly identified the person behind this account as a felon with lengthy rap sheet including attempted robbery as a minor and later weapons charges including being in possession of an AR-15 assault rifle. On one of Jackson's social media profile pages, he clearly poses with a firearm.
Berkeley police told ABC7 he's been flagged as a gang member in previous investigations.
Increase in attacks on Asian-Americans seen as Chinese New Year approaches
Jackson was out on post release community supervision until Monday.
Due to COVID restrictions, ABC7 was not allowed access into the Dublin courtroom where Jackson had a court appearance. Instead, his appearance was broadcast on a livestream.
Just after 2 p.m., after reading a list of Jackson's previous charges, the judge said he had "incredible concern" over the frequency of his cases and set bail at $190,000.
Little did Jackson know Oakland police worked with the Alameda District Attorney's office were already inside and took Jackson into custody. His next court appearance is Tuesday morning.
