Man who punched mayor's guard has checkered past, court documents show

SAN JOSE, Calif. (KRON) — The man who punched San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan’s bodyguard during a news interview has a checkered past, according to court documents obtained by KRON4 on Tuesday.

Wesley David Pollard, 35, is currently out of jail on $0 bail and he is facing battery charges for the April 23 downtown incident. A KRON4 reporter was interviewing Mahan on-camera when Pollard punched an on-duty San Jose Police Department officer who was assigned to guard and protect the mayor.

Just before the physical altercation broke out, the officer had asked Pollard to move farther away from the mayor. Pollard told the officer that he worked nearby, that the officer should mind his own business, and “I’ll smack you right now b**ch. I will f**king smack you,” a SJPD police report states. The plainclothes officer showed his police badge and Pollard struck the officer in the head, the report states.

Pollard moved from Georgia to California two years ago, court records show.

Since then, he has been arrested in Mountain View and Sunnyvale for squatting in vacant apartments, hotel rooms, and an Adobe office building, according to court records.

On Oct. 29, 2023, Mountain View Police Department officers were contacted by a married couple that owns a vacant apartment building. The couple reported that a man was living in one of the apartments and refusing to leave. One of the landlords said when he found Pollard in the apartment, he was resting on a sofa, had dirty dishes in a sink, and groceries in the fridge. When the landlord asked Pollard to leave, he claimed he was renting the space through “AirBnB.” When police officers arrived, Pollard showed police a fake lease contract that he claimed he obtained through Craiglist, a MVPD police report states.

Officers suspected that Pollard printed out a generic template from the Internet and filled out the document with bogus information, the report states. MVPD arrested Pollard on suspicion of burglary for stealing more than $500 worth of utilities.

On Sept. 1, 2023, Pollard was arrested in Sunnyvale for squatting in a Grand Hotel room on El Camino Real, court records show. A hotel employee told police that she found the man sleeping in a room and he was not a guest of the hotel.

On Nov. 7, 2023, Pollard was smoking cigarettes and using his laptop in an Adobe office building in Mountain View, a police report states. When he was confronted by an Adobe employee, Pollard lied, claiming he worked for the company and he was there for a meeting, the report states. The Adobe employee called 911 to report that a trespasser was inside the building and refusing to leave.

When officers arrived, the employee told police that he “found Wesley Pollard inside the women’s restroom on a computer laptop. (The employee) exited the building because he was concerned for his safety,” according to the police report. Officers arrested Pollard for burglary and booked him into jail.

Pollard later pleaded guilty to trespassing in the hotel, and no contest to illegally entering the Mountain View apartment building, according to court records.

Pollard’s criminal history stretches back to Georgia, where he was charged with assault and resisting arrest with violence. He currently has an outstanding warrant in Georgia, SJPD said.

Last week, a Santa Clara County judge issued a two-year restraining order against Pollard that forbids him from being within 300 yards of Mayor Mahan. The judge ordered Pollard to return to court on July 11 to face charges connected to the April 23 incident. He has not entered a plea.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRON4.