Gang members arrested in 2021 shooting death of toddler Jasper Wu on I-880
OAKLAND -- More than 13 months after toddler Jasper Wu was killed in a freeway shooting in Oakland, authorities on Thursday announced three gang members had been arrested in the case.
Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O'Malley said Thursday that the November 6, 2021 shooting involved two rival gang members shooting it out on Interstate Highway 880 in the middle of the day.
"How could this horrific tragedy have happened? It happened because two rival gangs were having a rolling gun battle on Highway 880 ... across the freeway at 2 o'clock in the afternoon," said O'Malley.
The three suspects were identified as Trevor Green, 22, of Richmond; Ivory Bivins, 24, of Vallejo; and Johnny Jackson, 28, of Richmond. Each has been charged with murder, shooting at an occupied vehicle, and being a felon in possession of a firearm. O'Malley said Bivins and Green were also charged with conspiracy to commit a crime and criminal street gang conspiracy.
O'Malley made the announcement Thursday afternoon at a press conference at the Rene C. Davidson Courthouse in Oakland, along with California Highway Patrol Assistant Chief Jason Reardon. Members of the Wu family were also in attendance.
"Trevor Green, Ivory Bivins were members of the Chopper City criminal street gang out of San Francisco. They were driving a dark Infiniti G35" O'Malley said. "The individuals were shooting at a Nissan Altima occupied by Johnny Jackson and Keison Lee, members of the Eddy Rock criminal street gang, also a San Francisco street gang."
O'Malley said Lee, the driver of the Altima, was shot and injured in the exchange. He was killed in an unrelated shooting last month, also attributed to gang violence.
"Lee went to the hospital that afternoon in San Francisco and through the great work of the California Highway Patrol, they recovered the Altima with bullet holes near the hospital," O'Malley said. "That car was riddled with bullet holes including an exit hole and a spent .45 caliber carriage casing. While being treated in San Francisco, Lee's hands were tested for gunpowder residue which turned out to be positive. He was interviewed and admitted to being shot on the freeway."
The 23-month-old toddler was hit by a stray bullet as he rode in a third, uninvolved passing vehicle. The victim's aunt said the mother was driving in a white Lexus sedan in the southbound direction of I-880 from San Francisco back home to Fremont that afternoon. Other relatives were also in the car, including three kids sitting in the back.
The deadly shooting had some community leaders demanding more police patrols and the introduction of freeway cameras.
During Thursday's press conference, O'Malley said CHP investigators were able to recover eight bullet casings on I-880 and match them to the bullet that killed Wu.
"The San Francisco Police Department also located the Infiniti G35 which is owned by defendant Ivory Bivins," said O'Malley. "While it had no bullet holes, it was tested and tested positive for gunshot residue in the left back area which was the shooting zone."
The DA's office said Green and Bivins were arrested on warrants for a separate incident in Contra Costa County in March. The two will be transferred to Alameda County to face charges. Jackson was arrested on Wednesday and was expected to be arraigned on Friday morning at the Wiley W. Manuel Courthouse in Oakland.
The arrest brought some closure to the Wu family but the case rocked some drivers' sense of security on Bay Area roadways.
"I don't feel 100 percent safe -- even on the highway, I always pay attention to the surrounding cars. If some suspicious cars are speeding up or chasing each other, I try to get away from that type of traffic," a driver who identified himself as Simon told KPIX.
Carl Chan, a community advocate was at the news conference to translate for the Wu family.
"They were very happy and excited about this press conference to talk about their case but, at the same time, they feel that they are bringing back the memory of day one of what happened on the freeway," Chan said. "The one wish that they have: they wish that no family -- no one -- will go through what they have gone through."
KPIX correspondent Andrea Nakano contributed to this report