‘No Empathy’: Former California Cop Who Traded Racist Texts, Messages About His Excessive Abuse as an Officer Gets Jail Time, But It’s a Sweetheart Deal
The final California police officer who was embroiled in a wide-ranging corruption case that involved two Bay Area police departments, as well as a heinous racist text scandal, has been sentenced for his crimes.
Eric Allen Rombough, 46, was one of 10 former cops employed by the Antioch and Pittsburgh Police Departments who were charged in 2023 with numerous crimes, including fraud, use of excessive force and conspiracy to distribute anabolic steroids.
In January 2025, Rombough pleaded guilty to conspiracy against rights and two counts of deprivation of rights under color of law and agreed to work with the government, a release from the Justice Department reads.
Prosecutors say Rombough and two other officers, Morteza Amiri and Devon Christopher Wenger, discussed various ways in which they would use force, including specific violent acts against citizens in and around Antioch.
They carried out actions that constituted excessive force, such as police dog bites, as “punishment” to individuals beyond any punishment appropriately imposed by the criminal justice system.
They even went as far as collecting physical and photographic “trophies” after launching these violent encounters. Then, they exchanged photos of their trophies via text and bragged about their use of force in their group chats.
“(Rombough, Amiri, and Wenger) also authored reports that contained false or misleading statements to suggest that the force used was necessary or justifiable, when in truth and in fact, they willfully used excessive force,” federal prosecutors wrote.
Rombough also exchanged racist, homophobic, and xenophobic messages with many other officers, including high-ranking police officials, which forced the Antioch police agency to place more than forty percent of their department on leave after the texts were discovered.
Rombough was described as the “ringleader” and “the worst of the worst” in the texting scandal. Many texts were leaked to the public and show officers using several racial slurs and epithets while referring to Black Americans.
Rombough’s texts show him calling Black people “gorillas.” He also wrote in one text, “Gotta stop kicking n—–s in their head.”
Last year, Rombough’s partners were convicted at trial for charges connected with the incidents.
Last March, Amiri was found guilty after an eight-day trial and sentenced to seven years in prison.
In September 2025, a jury convicted Wenger after a week-long trial. He was sentenced to seven years and six months in prison.
According to KGO, prosecutors wanted the judge presiding over Rombough’s case to sentence Rombough to 10 years behind bars. Rombough’s defense argued for three years. The judge sentenced the ex-cop to four years and two months in prison for violating civil rights.
The mother of one of Rombough’s victims said the sentence isn’t long enough to answer for the pain the officers caused her son.
“There is no sympathy, there is no empathy for what they did. This is pain that we victims have to live with for the rest of our lives,” said Kathryn Wade.
“We entrust law enforcement with vast power, and when they abuse it, they not only betray the oath they took and the community they serve, but they also undermine the public’s trust in our criminal justice system,” said United States Attorney Craig H. Missakian. “Eric Rombough’s sentencing is an important milestone in our successful, multi-year effort to root out corruption within the Antioch and Pittsburg police departments and we will continue to hold accountable anyone who violates federal law, regardless of their position.”
Nearly two dozen people sued the Antioch Police Department, alleging numerous civil rights violations, abuse of power, and excessive force.
Last year, the Antioch Police Department agreed to settle the lawsuit by instituting a thorough reform, including improved training, stricter oversight, and quicker investigations into officer complaints. The department also agreed to conduct regular use-of-force audits, expand the use of body-worn cameras, and implement an early warning system to identify officers at risk of misconduct.