When a car drove up to a barbershop on Summit Avenue in Union City last weekend and men jumped out with weapons, one witness said, people on the street ran from the scene screaming.
It was about 8 p.m. Saturday night.
“It started inside the barbershop,” said the witness, a man named Steve who works nearby. “They ran to the corner, and we thought that was the end of it. A few minutes passed [and] the next thing we knew, they came around in a car and jumped out.”
Steve said he could see the men were armed with machetes and bats.
“It was crazy,” he said. He added that he immediately called 911 and saw many other people out on the street making phone calls, probably also to 911.
“The scary thing was that it was prime time,” said Steve. He said he saw families walking together on the sidewalk and kids playing around the neighborhood.
“It scared everybody,” he said. “It was loud.” Luckily, police quickly arrived on the scene.
Union City police confirmed last week that there was an incident at that barbershop; however, no one could be identified and no one was arrested. Police did not give too many details.
“We only have limited information based on what we found at the scene after the event,” said Police Chief Charles Everett.
He said that a brick had been thrown through the glass window of the barbershop, but the individuals who had allegedly done it fled the scene before police could get there.
Witnesses gave police a description of the vehicle, and a vehicle of that description was apprehended nearby on Kennedy Boulevard, said Everett.
“The problem was that we had no direct link that could put that vehicle and those people to the scene,” said Everett. He said police had no choice but to let them go.
Back at the barbershop, he said, the owner of the establishment did not identify anybody responsible.
“The victims were not as cooperative as we would have liked,” said Everett. He said police are also investigating the legitimacy of the business.
“We are looking into whether or not the barbershop should be open because there was a question as to whether or not they have a certification of occupancy,” said Everett.
A phone number for the barbershop could not be ascertained.
Steve said that he was not surprised something happened at that barbershop, as he often sees groups of men hanging around outside.
“It’s not kids; it’s not minors,” said Steve. “That’s the thing that bugs me. They are adults, and if you are hanging out all night and all day, there is no time for work.”
He added that other people in the neighborhood have also complained, saying that they have seen alleged gambling and other questionable activities in the area.
“The situation is getting worse every day,” said Steve. “It is hurting me, and I am pretty sure it is affecting all the businesses.”
“People in the neighborhood know it’s gangs. Everybody in the neighborhood knows that, but it is hard to prove that.” – Steve
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“It’s obvious,” he said. “People in the neighborhood know it’s gangs. Everybody in the neighborhood knows that, but it is hard to prove that.”
Everett said he could not confirm whether gangs were responsible for the incident last Saturday, but he did say police have also seen problems at barbershops.
“We find that some of them are problematic because of the number of people that hang around them,” he said. He said that patrolling barbershops in the past has resulted in disorderly conduct and other charges being made.
Steve said that he could recall an incident similar to Saturday’s, a robbery that happened last year. He said that that occurrence resulted in increased police foot patrol that lasted about six months, and then it stopped.
“There was a time when there was a lot of foot patrol,” said Steve, “and I have noticed some of that is not happening anymore.”
Everett said that in recent years, the department has replaced some foot patrol officers with bicycle patrol officers, and that now, there is a mix.
“I don’t think that we are ever going to [completely] replace foot patrol with bicycle patrol,” he said. “I think we will be using them both.”