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Oakland Film Crew Describes Terrifying Armed Robbery On The Set

OAKLAND (CBS SF) -- A film crew working inside a west Oakland home was robbed at gunpoint, with the robbers even threatening a pregnant woman.

The robbery was one of two robberies of film crews in the city last month.

The crew of 15 people was filming an LGBT series called 'Dyke Central' when three men stormed into the home and pointed guns at them.

"It's a semi-automatic handgun," said sound artist Winson Tam. "I'm staring at the barrel of the gun."

"As soon as I saw the gun, I went onto the floor," said director Florencia Manovil.

The robbers took all the camera gear and almost all of the audio equipment except for one wireless mic hidden under someone's shirt. That mic was recording and some of the audio captured the incident.

"Cut."

"What?"

"Oh my God. Everybody get down."

"We want all the laptops and cameras. All the laptops and cameras."

 At one point, Manovil asked one of the robbers not to hurt a pregnant actor who was lying down on the ground, an exchange also heard on the audio recording.

"She's pregnant."

"I'm going to kick the s--t out of you, b---h!"

The robbers ended up not touching her, but they grabbed just about everything from the crew.

Everything, everybody, wallets right now."

The robbery took just a couple of minutes, but it left a lasting impact.

"I'm traumatized now," said actor Mahasin Munir. "Because everytime I hear something loud, I get a little bit on edge."

"It was definitely very disruptive and very painful," said Manovil.

The loss from the robbery was estimated at about $30,000.

Two days later, another film crew was robbed in West Oakland. Police say it's a crime of opportunity and not a pattern.

However, the victims believe it is a pattern and are now hiring armed guards while filming in Oakland.

 

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