South San Francisco, CA July 8, 2016
We received a few reports of South San Francisco Police in the downtown area around noon on Tuesday July 6th sharing concern of an officer with his firearm drawn. We appreciate our department’s prompt response alerting us that an alarm had been set off in one of our businesses indicating a robbery was in progress. By definition, a robbery is the commission of a theft by force or fear, not just a mere break-in. Therefore, the situation dictates that officers approach the scene prepared to deal with a violent / potentially armed suspect. The tactics they use are designed to resolve the situation in the safest manner possible for all parties involved, including the officers, the suspects and any citizens in the surrounding area.
While fortunately this incident resulted in a false alarm, some misinformation has been generated in our community via social media. We hope this information can help quell speculation and result in continued support of our police officers who are tasked with a very difficult job at a very difficult time in our Country’s history.