West Seattle, Washington
29 Friday
(WSB photos by Christopher Boffoli)
12:48 PM: Thanks for the tips. Police are investigating a possible holdup/attempt at Washington Federal north of the Junction. More to come.
1:04 PM: WSB’s Christopher Boffoli reports that a K-9 unit is at the scene, searching for a suspect described as a white man around 40 years old, about 5’7″, dark curly hair that might have been a wig, wearing a Gap hoodie, armed with a handgun. The bank is currently closed.
ADDED TUESDAY NIGHT: At tonight’s West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meeting (separate report to come), we followed up with police. No arrest, but “lots of nice footage” of the suspect, we’re told. None of it public so far.
An incident this morning led to the principals of Chief Sealth International High School and Denny International Middle School sending this letter to families a short time ago. It was sent to us too:
We want to share with you information regarding an incident that was reported today involving one of our scholars as she exited a Metro bus on her way to school. At approximately 8:50 AM, a 9th grade female scholar reported that she was followed off the bus by a man when she disembarked at the corner of Delridge and Thistle. She stated that the man grabbed her wrist and asked her if she wanted to go with him. She was able to free herself from his hold and then she ran to school. She reported the incident to Chief Sealth staff, who notified the police. The Seattle Police Department is investigating the incident.
The safety of our scholars is our top priority. We will continue to collaborate with the Seattle Police Department and Seattle Public Schools Safety and Security to help monitor the surrounding area before and after school.
You can help your children stay safe by talking to them about personal safety. Tips to discuss are:
• Walking in pairs or groups and being aware of their surroundings at all times.
• Leaving for school at times where there are high levels of pedestrian traffic.
• Immediately reporting anything suspicious to trusted adults (school staff and family members).
• Keep earbuds off and expensive phones out of sight.
While a church youth group was having lunch in The Junction, somebody broke into their van. The report is from Emily, who says this happened around 3:30 pm Saturday afternoon. The group’s van was parked in the Junction lot off 42nd SW, south of Oregon, while they had lunch. Emily says, “The kids (high school) were coming back from a hike and left some of the gear, backpacks, camera in the van and someone (or many) broke in while they were eating in Lee’s Asian, and took most of their stuff. So sad and unnecessary. Not sure there’s any way to get the kids’ things back but would love to catch the thieves.” She says a screwdriver was used to break the van’s lock, and the stolen items included two gray backpacks, Swiss Army pocket knife, Sony A5100 camera, white hoodie, North Face rain jacket, iPod touch. We don’t have the incident number, but will add it if we get it.
We’ve heard from multiple people in the past hour who reported suspected gunfire east of Fairmount Park, near 36th/37th/Brandon. 911 is reported to have received multiple calls, and police were sent to investigate; we haven’t heard yet if they found evidence of gunfire – casings and/or property damage – but so far, no victims are reported. One person tells us a neighbor reported seeing gunfire exchanged between people in two cars.
We inquired with Seattle Police this morning about reports of possible gunfire in the Westwood area late last night – and this SPD Blotter report is the reply:
Officers arrested a 25-year-old man Wednesday after he fired a handgun in a West Seattle park.
Officer Stephanie Hemsley was patrolling near 29th Avenue SW and SW Barton Street at 11:30 pm when she heard gunshots near Roxhill Park. Officer Hemsley began searching the area and saw a man and woman running towards a parked gray Pontiac.
Officers stopped the vehicle and, saw a handgun sitting on the floor of the car under the driver’s seat, and found the man was carrying bullets in his pants pocket.
The man admitted to officers that he had fired multiple rounds inside the park.
Officers released the woman from the scene after determining that she had not discharged the firearm.
The man was booked into King County Jail for discharging a weapon within city limits and a concealed weapons violation.
We’re checking right now to find out more about the suspect. (Added 11:24 am) The suspect remains in jail but details on the citations aren’t available in the Municipal Court system yet, so we’ll have to check again later.
Another attempted early-morning burglary, interrupted by a resident. Bobby says this happened at an apartment in the 6000 block of California SW [map]:
On Monday morning at 4:00 AM, I woke up to a loud noise and went into my living room to discover a thief climbing through the window. I yelled loudly and he ran off. He only managed to break the outside screen before I caught him. Pretty startling to wake up to someone climbing through your window.
Bobby says SPD responded quickly and found a possible suspect; we’re checking on the status of the case.
P.S. Got questions about crime/safety? A member of the Southwest Precinct Community Police Team, Officer Jon Flores, is confirmed for tonight’s Admiral Neighborhood Association meeting, 7 pm at The Sanctuary at Admiral (42nd SW/SW Lander).
Two reader reports in West Seattle Crime Watch:
HIT-RUN DRIVER LEAVES BUMPER BEHIND: The photo and report are from Angela:
My family woke up this morning to our car totaled by a hit and run. We live on the increasingly dangerous street of 49th and Admiral. This is the SECOND TIME it has happened in 2 months! As much as we love paying $500 deductibles, this is getting ridiculous. The way people drive up Admiral from the beach and whip a right onto 49th is scary and reckless.
We have lived here for 6 years and have seen at least 7 or 8 hit and runs just on our block. I’ve reported it to the city before, but the fact that it’s a main arterial they said they can’t do anything about it?
We have called the police and are keeping an eye out for a Land Rover that has the front bumper gone this morning (photo above). … I would really love to catch this person!
We’ll add the SPD incident number when available. (ADDED 11:13 AM: 17-160911)
CAR PROWL: From Joe:
Our car was broken into during the early morning of 5/7 in the Gatewood area on SW Willow between 38th and 39th. No signs of forced entry. Various items including golf clubs were taken.
WSB crime coverage is archived here as well as on the Crime Watch page.
(WSB photos, added 8:08 pm)
7:22 PM: Thanks for the texts. The big police response in North Delridge (and beyond) has to do with a search for a suspect and at least one of two vehicles reported to be involved in some kind of incident at Delridge and Findlay. The vehicles were described as a blue SUV and a Mustang. This is from the scanner – we don’t know yet what started all this but at some point along the way, one of the drivers was reported to be trying to run over officers. More as we get it.
7:48 PM: The search for one suspect who reportedly bolted toward the Longfellow Creek greenbelt continues, with K-9. (Other areas are being searched too.) The Mustang is being towed from the gas station on Delridge north of Findlay.
We just talked with police, who say the suspect they’re seeking was associated with the Mustang and is being impounded because there might be a gun in it. And that, they tell us, is how this started – a gun-flashing incident involving a confrontation between people in the 2 cars. No gunfire or injuries reported.
King County Sheriff’s Office deputies are investigating a shooting that left one man dead along 16th SW south of SW 98th early today. The street remains closed between 98th and 100th. Our full report is on partner site White Center Now.
One reader report so far today, from Meredith:
Car window broken overnight on SW Austin St and 19th:
Broke my driver’s-side car window that was facing the street, sometime between 1 am and 11 am. No stolen property or other damage.
This is the second time this year. Neighbors across the street have had at least two car break-ins since August with stolen property but no vehicle damage.
(WSB photo, April 20th)
The driver in the crash that closed 35th/Morgan for four hours two weeks ago is charged wth vehicular assault, felony hit and run, and reckless endangerment. The charges filed against 27-year-old Treveon R. Smith were first reported by seattlepi.com; we just obtained the court documents, which summarize what investigators say happened as Smith drove his 2002 Dodge Intrepid northbound on 35th SW with “three acquaintances” inside on the afternoon of April 20th:
He was speeding at highway speeds on a 30 mph arterial. He lost control and crashed into a parked van and then spun into trees coming to an explosive uncontrolled stop. The defendant was ejected during the crash. Witnesses to the crash rushed to help the passengers exit from the car which caught on fire and began to burn. The defendant was seen “jogging” away from the scene wearing only a t-shirt and boxers, but was soon caught in an alley. He initially fought, but became more cooperative when it was pointed out that he had injuries and the firefighters were trying to help him. The defendant admitted he was the driver and admitted smoking PCP or methamphetamine and marijuana earlier.
One of Smith’s passengers, a 35-year-old woman, was described as still being hospitalized in critical condition as of the court filing last week. Another passenger suffered minor injuries, and the third was reported to have declined medical attention. The police report accompanying the charging documents says Smith, a South Seattle resident, was likely going at least 60 mph when he first crashed into a parked Seattle Housing Authority van before his car went on to stop in the 35th/Morgan intersection. He remains in the King County Jail, with bail set at $50,000.
Two reader reports and a followup:
STOLEN CAR: The car’s owner sent the photo above and reports, “My car was stolen early this morning on Juneau St. It’s a white ’91 Subaru Justy with a white circular Foo Fighters sticker on the trunk. (The windows are tinted now.) The license plate number is 988-YDT.” Call 911 if you see it; the SPD incident number is 17-154153.
PROWLER/INTRUDER: From a resident near Seacrest, who reports this happened on Monday:
I walked my dog right before I was about to leave my house, which is my usual routine. I noticed a strange man lurking around my building so after bringing the dog back inside, instead of going down the elevator and opening my garage door to leave, I sent the elevator down alone and then ran back to the front window. The man placed himself directly in front of the garage door exactly where I would be standing when it opened. He was unaware that I was watching him and I snapped his photo — the time in the photo is 9:12 am. When the door didn’t open the man conversed with a second man who appeared behind him and then they left. The police have the first man’s photo and will be circulating it, but his description is white male, about 6 ft tall, with muscular to stocky build. He was wearing a gray knit cap and black jacket with what we believe to be Marmot on it. He also had a very thick beard that frankly didn’t look real. The other man also had an elaborate beard, but I didn’t get his photo.
BURGLARY SUSPECT CHARGED: The suspect in the Saturday morning incident we covered in North Admiral has been charged with second-degree burglary. 35-year-old Joseph A. Salem was arrested after neighbors reported a prowler between the 2100 blocks of California SW and Ferry SW, and a car he was reported to have been seen in turned out to have been stolen from Pierce County.
(WSB photo, Saturday morning)
The charging papers allege he stole the car from Tacoma residents after breaking into their house and living there while they were out of town. He then “parked the stolen vehicle in West Seattle and appears to have been living out of the vehicle”; on Saturday morning, police say, he was seen trying the doors to two residences and then was found in a garage. They say he told them he was on duty for a security company, and that the car belonged to a friend. The security company confirmed he was an employee but said he was not on duty Saturday morning; the car’s owners told police said they did not know Salem, but that their home had been broken into and someone had taken their car. His bail remains set at $5,000.
Just found this in a routine check of online court files today: Five months after he was arrested and charged, 39-year-old Michael E. Maine has pleaded guilty in a plea agreement. At a hearing last Friday, court documents say, he pleaded guilty to three drug charges and one count of attempted unlawful second-degree firearm possession. He originally was charged with four drug charges, three of which alleged he provided heroin last November to undercover police at his family’s Junction bar, the Corner Pocket; as a result of the plea agreement, one of those charges was dropped. The firearms charge was related to a handgun found in a safe in Maine’s home; he is not allowed to legally possess a gun because of felony convictions in the mid-’90s.
Maine is scheduled to be sentenced by King County Superior Court Judge Barbara Mack on May 19th. Court documents say prosecutors will recommend a sentence under the Drug Offender Sentencing Alternative that would involve three to six months of residential treatment, plus two years of community custody (probation). The Corner Pocket, meantime, has been closed since the night of Maine’s arrest; the state Liquor and Cannabis Board was planning to pursue permanent revocation of its license, and we are checking on the status of that situation.
(Added: WSB photo)
10:46 AM: If you’re wondering about the police response along 32nd SW in south High Point – it’s a standoff with someone we are told is a suspect in a domestic-violence-related incident. No word of any injuries. But avoid 32nd for a few blocks south of Morgan until this is resolved. More to come.
11:01 AM: We’re trying to verify this, but it appears the situation is winding down. Our photographer saw one person taken into custody and officers subsequently went into the residence to be sure no one else was inside (and have already emerged).
11:09 AM: It’s over and the street’s reopening.
Three items in West Seattle Crime Watch:
ABOUT THE HELICOPTER: Thanks for all the tips about Guardian 1 circling in the 26th/Roxbury vicinity within the past half-hour or so. Nothing on the scanner, so we headed over to see if we could find any police activity on the ground. We found deputies near Roxbury Safeway; they told our photographer that they had been looking for a shoplifting suspect who fled. Guardian 1 just happened to be up and offered to help. No word of an arrest so far.
BURGLARY ATTEMPT: Just got a note from Greg that “someone tried to break into my house on SW Charlestown St this afternoon around 2:10 pm. Alarm went off and SPD took a look as I was driving back home. Only damage was broken glass on a French door, but there is glass all over the place.”
SATURDAY ARREST FOLLOWUP: Saturday morning, we reported on an arrest in North Admiral, and recovery of a stolen Subaru. Probable-cause documents obtained today through the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office confirm the details we heard via radio transmissions that morning – a neighbor called 911 about a prowler in the alley behind the 2100 block of Ferry SW, and told police the prowler was seen in a vehicle. That vehicle turned out to have been stolen in Tacoma, where the 35-year-old suspect lives. He was arrested and booked into jail. We’re waiting to see what bail amount was set this afternoon, and will also be watching later this week to see if he’s charged. (6:07 PM UPDATE: His bail is set at $5,000.)
In West Seattle Crime Watch tonight, a reader report and the first newsletter from the Southwest Precinct‘s new Crime Prevention Coordinator:
CAR PROWL: From Ian – “My family and I got our car broken into last night and misc items taken. We must have both accidentally left the car doors unlocked as no forced entry. We live on 37th and Genesee. [map] Please keep an eye out!”
CRIME PREVENTION COORDINATOR’S NEWSLETTER: Even if you haven’t met Jennifer Burbridge, the Southwest Precinct’s new crime-prevention coordinator, in person, you might feel like you know her through our recent reports – the announcement of her hiring, our subsequent interview, and her talk at last week’s West Seattle Block Watch Captains’ Network meeting. She told that group she’ll be writing a monthly newsletter; here’s the first edition:
(If it’s easier for you to read, here’s the PDF version.)
MISSED OUR CRIME WATCH COVERAGE FROM EARLIER THIS WEEKEND? See the links on the CW page.
South Delridge neighbors caught a tagger on camera in an alley in the 8800 block of 17th SW:
The tag left behind after the sighting on Friday was the anarchy symbol:
Now SPD has put out a citywide call to identify the tagger. Neighbors also shared these video clips with us:
If you know who this is, SPD says, call 911.
Three reports in West Seattle Crime Watch:
PROWLER CALL LEADS TO STOLEN CAR: What we have on this so far is via radio exchanges – we won’t be able to get the report before Monday: In North Admiral, someone called 911 around 7 am after reporting seeing a suspected prowler outside a neighbor’s home. Police arrived and, before too long, found the suspect. They also found, in a dead-end alley, a Subaru reported stolen in Pierce County (our photo above shows a tow truck taking it away). We’re watching the jail register to see if the identified suspect shows up there. (NOON UPDATE: He has, and it says he is being held for investigation of burglary and vehicle theft.)
CAR, PHONE, WALLET REPORTED TAKEN BY ROBBERS: After seeing an early-Friday-morning call classified “armed robbery” on the SPD Twitter log, we requested the report. It says a man called police around 2:45 am from the Junction 7-11, saying a man and woman had robbed him of his vehicle, phone, and wallet about 45 minutes earlier. The report says the man appeared “highly intoxicated” and told police he had come over the West Seattle Bridge but didn’t know the area well, so he pulled over to get out of his car to smoke a cigarette and figure out where he was and where he was going. A woman came up to ask for a cigarette, he told police, and then a man came up and knocked him unconscious; when he came to, his car was gone. He said it was a blue 1999 Pathfinder but he didn’t know the plate number because he’d acquired it recently from his aunt. Police tried some searches but couldn’t come up with a match. The victim declined medical assistance and said he’d make the stolen-vehicle report later (we’re not seeing a Pathfinder on @getyourcarback so far); police arranged a ride home for him.
PACKAGES TAKEN: Mark in Admiral shared these videos from 11:20 am Wednesday:
Mark reports, “A primer black Pontiac sedan pulled in front of our house in North Admiral. We had just had packages delivered and sitting on our front porch. One suspect got out of the passenger side, came up to our front porch and took the packages. He returned to the vehicle and they drove away. Suspect is white, about 5’9”, dark hair, wearing a black t-shirt, charcoal sweats, and sneakers.” The first clip shows the package removal; second clip shows the vehicle. Info? Let police know.
From Tara: “A white work van with a blue and orange CM Heating logo on the side was stolen from 40th and SW Thistle. License plate # B70402C. Last seen at 8:30 pm Thursday.” If you see it, call 911.
Just tweeted by Seattle Police: 44-year-old Paul D. Story, charged in last month’s boathouse-burglary case along the Duwamish River, is back in custody. 
It’s been two weeks since SPD circulated his photo, asking for help finding him; that in turn was one week after we reported he had been charged in connection with a break-in at a marina on the Duwamish River. That March 22nd incident drew more attention than most burglaries after Story jumped into the river and swam under the boathouse to try to evade police. He was taken to the hospital, then to jail, but released five days later because charges hadn’t been filed. SPD says they arrested him today in SODO after a tip; the arrest warrant that’s been out for him carries a bail amount of $100,000.
Stolen car to watch for: Sandy‘s 2005 silver Subaru Forester, stolen overnight Sunday, 4/23, in the northeast Admiral area, license plate AGF0410; Crime Watch reader report received today. Call 911 if you see it.
From last night’s West Seattle Block Watch Captains Network meeting at the Southwest Precinct:
NEW CRIME-PREVENTION COORDINATOR: Jennifer Burbridge was introduced at last month’s WSBWCN meeting as the precinct’s new Crime Prevention Coordinator, and last night, she got to elaborate on her new role and what’s in store. Read More
The latest West Seattle Crime Watch reader reports:
TIRE/WHEEL THEFT: The photo and report are from Matt in Alki:
I live on the corner of 59th Ave SW and Admiral. When I went out to my car this morning to leave for work I came upon this. Someone had jacked just one entire tire/wheel with bolts. Has anyone else in the area had this happen or did any of my neighbors notice anything unusual last night?
SHARED-CAR VANDALISM: Last night, somebody smashed the window of a car2go vehicle left parked outside Ben‘s house on 8th SW in Highland Park:
He says 911 told him he couldn’t file a report because he wasn’t the victim. After multiple tries, he reached car2go, which said they would report it and send someone over to clean up and get the car.
PACKAGE TAKEN: The video and report are from Isaac on Puget Ridge:
16th Ave right across from South Seattle College. Happened today 4/25 at 12:32 pm.
PACKAGES, MAIL TAKEN: From Adam in the 3000 block of SW Avalon Way:
We have had two packages stolen from our home, one on 4/10 @ 3:35 AM and also on this Saturday @ 02:11 by different people. Both are outgoing food delivery coolers to be picked up by FEDEX in the morning which is why we place them outside before we go to bed.
Also last week our mailboxes were ripped open and the mail stolen.
MEETING REMINDER: Neighborhood crime/safety concerns? The West Seattle Block Watch Captains Network meets at 6:30 pm at the precinct, with new Crime Prevention Coordinator Jennifer Burbridge as guest speaker. All welcome. (2300 SW Webster)
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