DUBLIN — Hiding from the police in a bush, a 20-year-old Dublin man began frantically texting his mother, police say.
“Go to my room, find anything in sight and hid it (sic), now, I’m f—ed, mom, please, wake up, I’m in a bush, now, mom, mom,” one text messages allegedly says.
“Ok, you need me to pick you up?” a Dublin woman responded, according to police. The response, allegedly written moments later by her son, was not good.
“No they have me surrounded, I fought off cop to run, I’m f—ed, they have perimeter, and are searching, hide everything. I’m f—ed, badly, please,” the incoming text said, according to court records.
“Don’t admit to anything,” his mother allegedly replied, the records show.
It turns out, according to Dublin police, 20-year-old Aidan Davis had a good reason to be worried.
For weeks he’d been allegedly building unregistered “ghost” guns at his home on Newfields Lane. Then, a little before 2 a.m. on March 4, Alameda County Sheriff’s Deputy Zachary DeSouza spotted Davis allegedly climbing a fence with a “no trespassing sign” near Fallon Road and Cydonia Court, and attempted to search a bag he was carrying, authorities said.
The situation quickly devolved. DeSouza thought he felt a gun, and would later write in a report that Davis physically resisted him. Within moments, the cop and the then-teenager were wrestling on the ground, in the dark, near the wildnerness line in Dublin. A probable cause statement, filed in court by Dublin police, describes what allegedly happened next.
“While on the ground, Davis ignored numerous lawful commands to ‘stop resisting’ and he continuously assaulted and punched Deputy DeSouza while attempting to access the cross-body bag. Davis was able to stand up and flee again on foot while reaching into the bag that was in his possession,” the statement says. “Despite fearing Davis was attempting to access a firearm with the intention of shooting Deputy DeSouza which could cause serious bodily injury and or death upon him, Deputy DeSouza continued to pursue Davis, at which time Davis threw the bag into a bush and continued running, ultimately eluding Deputy DeSouza.”
That’s how Davis ended up in a bush, surrounded by police, his arrest imminent. Inside the bag, police say they found body armor plates, an unserialized handgun and a silencer. Authorities would indeed take Davis into custody that day, but not until after he’d requested his mom to destroy evidence at his Dublin home, prosecutors allege.
A police raid on his home followed, where more evidence was collected, authorities said. Investigators also pored through the Instagram account @tubbs_osama_teddy, believed to belong to Davis.
Davis was released, but charged on May 22 with possessing and furnishing an assault weapon, resisting police, possessing a silencer and having metal knuckles, all felonies, as well as a misdemeanor charge of manufacturing a firearm.
Davis’ mom, Sheila Taylor, faces a felony charge of accessory after the fact, court records show. Neither one has made a court appearance. In addition to the texts between the two, police say they recovered texts between Taylor and another family member where she said she wanted to “smash the printer,” but he counseled her, “that’s tampering with evidence.”
In another text conversation, allegedly between Davis and Taylor, the two discuss how Davis “f—ing let one off and it went through the wall” and Davis needs materials to “fill the hole.” He later allegedly assured her, “it had the suppressor no one heard it.”
“OK, no problem,” Taylor allegedly told him. But then her tone became sterner, “You could have killed (other family members), ok.”
“I know. Mom, I’m freaking out,” Davis allegedly responded.
But the final shock of this case would come later in March after Davis was arrested. That’s when authorities say a young girl who’d learned of his arrest came forward and accused him of “continuous sexual abuse” starting when she was 9 years old. This news organization isn’t revealing how Davis and the girl know each other, to protect her identity.
On July 28, Alameda County prosecutors charged Davis with felony sex abuse of a child. When he failed to show up to a court appearance that same day, Judge Amy Sekany issued a $250,000 warrant for his arrest. It remains active, court records show.