Hate to have to remind you, but if you’re driving somewhere to watch fireworks tonight … don’t leave anything in your car. Not even while it’s just parked in front of your house. If you still haven’t gotten that message, we have two more car prowl reports:

FROM FAUNTLEROY: “Seattle Sparkle” posted this in the WSB Forums – a break-in last night in the 9100 block of 45th SW [map], and “they took a quilt gifted to us by a friend and our granddaughter’s favorite Hello Kitty sequin jacket. If you see either of these things tossed please contact me.- the tag on the blanket said Sew Sew Ginger and my granddaughter’s jacket was a 3T. They also took prescription glasses, a Peek 2-4 year green hoodie, a butterfly umbrella, a dry cleaning receipt, and a Boots London canvas bag (presumably to carry everything in). Keep your belongings out of your car and stay safe!”

FROM EAST ADMIRAL: Early Sunday, writes a texter from the 3700 block of Belvidere [map], “there were numerous cars and people enjoying the holiday and the beautiful outside weather. Amongst the noise, around 1 am, we heard a car door opening. Unbeknownst to us, it was our car door and someone was going through our things. Later that morning on our way out, we saw all the items typically in the middle console, haphazardly thrown throughout the car. We accidentally left our car door open, and a very opportunistic criminal went through our car. Please let everyone know to be careful.” The “only thing of value” they’re missing is a checkbook.

WSB crime coverage is archived here. We also keep a link list under the aggregated local Tweets by Beat on our Crime Watch page.

Three West Seattle Crime Watch notes with warnings about theft:

WESTCREST PARK: Via scanner this afternoon, a report of car prowlers on the loose again – someone broke a car window, grabbed a purse, took off in a car with no plates. (That’s all the description we heard.)

LINCOLN PARK: Greg sent this report about what he saw last Sunday, thinking it might help you understand how car prowlers work. We missed it until a mailbox review today, but still enlightening:

When I was driving down Fauntleroy from the ferry dock direction toward Morgan Junction, I saw a woman breaking into a car in the first parking lot directly after the dock.

This woman was mid-40s? or slightly older but it was difficult to tell her age because she looked like a longtime drug addict/meth head. She had very bright burgundy red dyed hair and was dressed like a jogger, with maroon stretch pants and a white sleeveless stretch top. She drives a white Scion xb, the box like looking car a 2004-2007 model (the front ends are different), and the car was clean and would not stand out in any way.

As I was stuck driving behind a bus we were waiting on Fauntleroy and out of the corner of my eye I noticed this woman get out of the passenger side of her vehicle and then suddenly push her body against the car parked next to her and start jerking her hands up and down, it took me a moment to realize that she was using a slim jim and trying to pop the lock on the car, while she looked around making sure nobody was watching. What surprised me is that there were a ton of people getting in and out of cars, but no one was paying this woman any attention as she was dressed like any other park goer and was parked close enough to the other car to attend to her business without being seen.

I wound down my window to get a better look and this is when the woman turned and saw me staring right at her, so she then proceeded to do a bunch of exaggerated stretching like she was going for a run while I was staring at her. This part was comical as this woman although dressed like the average park going runner, looked like she had never exercised a day in her life and the haggard look of her face screamed drug abuse and I could clearly see the slim jim in her hand the entire time she was pantomiming being a jogger getting ready for her run.

I was on the way to drop off my 3 year old daughter or I would have jumped out of my car and at least gotten some pictures, but I dialed 911 and informed them what I was witnessing and then went and dropped off my kid about 5 minutes away.

On the way back to Arbor Heights, the parking lots of Lincoln park had at least two cop cars in each lot, way to go WS Police for the quick reaction, so I parked and spoke to one of the officers and pointed out that although the woman was not currently in sight her car was still in the lot. When I left they were leaving an officer stationed down the road to wait for the woman to return to her car.

Did they find her? We don’t know but will be looking for an incident number so we can try to find out.

WARNING FOR SALE HOSTS: From Kristi:

My tenant (in Upper Alki) was having a moving sale and her purse with her house and car keys, money, and credit cards was stolen from an off-limits bathroom whose door was closed and it was in the middle of the house, not in a back corner. The police were called and we changed all the locks.

P.S. Both the West Seattle Crime Prevention Council and Block Watch Captains Network are on meeting hiatus for the next two months but there’s another opportunity to talk about neighborhood crime/safety – the focus groups that researcher Jennifer Burbridge is hosting – check this recent WSB story for the list.

Two reader reports:

STOLEN BIKE: Rachelle‘s Schwinn Hornet was stolen sometime overnight Tuesday night/Wednesday morning: “It was stolen from my place at 54th and Alki. It’s a black and white beach cruiser style bike, with a black and white seat.”

STOLEN SHOES? Cass just e-mailed to say, “We found a bag of shoes dumped in our front yard near 35th SW & SW Roxbury this morning. I wanted to let you know in case they were stolen and someone is looking to get them back … We’ll keep the shoes for a couple days.”

If you have info on either of the above, please comment below (or e-mail us).

(UPDATED 3 PM MONDAY 6/27 with police-report details on home invasion)

ORIGINAL REPORT, 10:56 PM SUNDAY: Three West Seattle Crime Watch reports:

HOME INVASION ROBBERY: This happened near 18th SW/SW Elmgrove [map] on Monday afternoon; the first we heard about it was when the victim e-mailed us days later, and the police-report details aren’t available online. But the victim wants to be sure the neighborhood knows about it:

It happened Monday afternoon at 2 pm. I was in my bathroom in the basement when he came in with a gun. He immediately asked me to FIND THE DOPE.

He had already been in the house when I was in the shower but he wasn’t finding what he thought i had. He led me to another room and told me again and again to find the DOPE.

I was shaking and begging him not to hurt me and somehow I found a backpack and that made him happy so he told me to lie on the floor and be quiet for 10 mins. … He took all my jewelry and electronics including phones etc. They took everything.

A neighbor told the victim about seeing a white truck in the alley and “watched 3 men in hoodies enter (the victim’s) yard.” That’s all the description information we have at this point; we’ll pursue the full police report tomorrow.

ADDED 3 PM MONDAY: Added details from the police-report narrative – The report says the robber was described as a black man, about 30, “dark baseball hat, satin-like green jacket that looked like a Sonics jacket.” No vehicle was mentioned. The victim’s husband was reported to have been home and asleep, and the robber might have entered through an unlocked door or window.

(back to original Sunday night report) LICENSE-PLATE THEFT: From Ross:

Last night (or possibly earlier), our license plates were stolen from our Honda CR-V that we rarely drive. It was parked on 37th between Juneau and Findlay. We’ve reported the theft to the police, but wanted to get the word out. A Washington D.C. license plate was swapped onto the back of our car.

MAIL THEFT: It happened to Sarah south of Westwood, and she has some helpful advice to share about reporting cases like hers:

A neighbor found my empty package on 26th Ave SW just south of Roxbury. Inside my rifled package was another empty envelope that belonged to someone who lives just off 26th on 106th Ave. I left their empty envelope on their doorstep with a note attached. My package was supposed to contain a scarf I ordered from Scotland. The other empty envelope looked like the person had attempted to use their own mailbox to mail a check or something worth stealing. I didn’t file a police report but did call the USPS Inspection Service on Saturday afternoon. After a brief phone tree, a lady answered and took my statement and said a file had been created for my case. She also said to alert other neighbors that reporting mail theft to them is a really good idea because the more complaints they receive, the more likely they are to open an investigation for our zip code, 98106. If anyone wishes to file a complaint they are encouraged to call Postal Inspectors at 877-876-2455 (press 3). Here is the webpage I used.

THANKS ... for sharing Crime Watch information. If it’s happening NOW – call 911! Then let us know, when you can. Our 24-hour tipline is 206-293-6302, text or voice. If it’s not happening now, e-mail is the next best thing, editor@westseattleblog.com – thanks!

One more abandoned-likely-after-being-stolen bicycle: The finder says, “This bike was apparently hidden behind a big shrub on my Alki property several weeks ago (neighbor thinks about six weeks). She just told me about it (this week). I don’t want to take it out yet as I don’t have a safe place for it. I plan to also contact the police.” So if this looks like one stolen from you – check with SPD and refer to the case number from when you reported it.

P.S. If you missed it – this Crime Watch roundup earlier this week included photos of three bicycles found around West Seattle.

Charges are now filed against both suspects arrested in West Seattle Tuesday night for allegedly breaking into a car on Alki and then waving guns and other items in two incidents including the car prowl’s aftermath. (Our original report is here; our first followup is here.)

25-year-old Jory L. Preston and 19-year-old Justin M. Hoyt are both charged with second-degree vehicle prowl and second-degree theft. Preston also is charged with second-degree unlawful-firearm possession, as he is a convicted felon and not allowed to have a gun. The incident that led to the conviction, for domestic-violence assault, was covered here five years ago – Preston turned himself in at the Southwest Precinct after police, eventually including SWAT team members, sought him at a Delridge apartment building. He originally was charged with two counts of assault for a situation involving a former girlfriend, and struck a plea bargain, pleading guilty to one count, sentenced in September 2011 to the month and a half he had served by the time of the hearing. )

The charging papers filed today tell the same story detailed in our report last night on their bail hearing, with a few additional details – the amount of property they are accused of stealing is listed as more than $1600; also, police say Hoyt, despite having a Glock .380 semi-automatic handgun in his front pants pocket, did not have a concealed-pistol license. The charging papers say that while Hoyt has no felony record, he has convictions for being a minor intoxicated in public in 2013 and for hit and run in 2014. And while his bail was set at $100,000 in this new case, the jail register says he is being held without bail for a Cowlitz County warrant alleging failure to appear in a case of driving with suspended license. Preston’s bail remains at $100,000. Both will face arraignment next – no date on the docket yet, but likely week after next.

ORIGINAL REPORT, 10:54 PM THURSDAY: The two men arrested two nights ago for alleged car-prowling and gun-brandishing remain in jail tonight, hours after a judge set bail for each at $100,000.

Court documents from this afternoon’s hearing tell us more about the allegations against the two men, ages 25 and 19, both of whom are listed as living at Admiral District addresses.

The narrative says police were first called to Bonair and Alki around 11:40 pm on Monday night. A man told them he was walking along Alki Avenue when he heard the sound of glass breaking and saw what he described as two males hit a side mirror of a black Dodge Ram truck and then break one of its windows, taking items out of it, then getting into a white Ford F-150 pickup truck (described as having a white sticker on the back window) and leaving. The pickup’s owner and three friends were in the area and the witness was telling them what he saw when, the report continues:

… the driver of the F-150 drove north on Alki Ave. SW; as they passed the Ram, both occupants of the F-150 waved pistols at the group. Approximately three blocks east on Alki Ave SW, the truck did a U-turn and began traveling back toward the Ram and group of individuals. As the F-150 approached the group of individuals, the driver turned the headlights off and stopped next to the Ram. The passenger held a small black “Glock subcompact” pistol out the door and was banging it on the outside passenger door of the F-150, while the driver held up another black pistol. The group of individuals feared they were going to be shot so they all ran and ducked behind the Ram. The F-150 left west on Alki.

As I did an area check for the F-150, a road-rage call was aired, stating a vehicle was being followed by a white Ford F-150 with a sticker on the back window in the vicinity of 50th Ave. SW/SW Charlestown.

The officer went to that area but didn’t find the F-150. The officer talked to the victims, a man and woman, around 12:15 am, and this is what they reported:

They were parked on the north side of Madison Middle School talking in the car when a white Ford F-150 pulled up behind them and turned its headlights off. The passenger of the truck got out with a golf club in his hands and approached the passenger side of the vehicle (the two victims) were in. The driver of the F-150 approached the driver’s side with an unknown “metal” object in his hand, which may have been a large wrench. The passenger held the golf club up like a baseball bat and yelled for the two to get off their block. In fear of being assaulted, (the victims) drove off and the F-150 followed.

The woman told police she recognized the passenger but not the driver. Less than 10 minutes later, another officer noticed a white Ford F-150 at the California/Charlestown 7-11, matching the description that had been circulated among police. The report says the driver was standing by the truck, while the passenger was walking out of the store toward it. Police took them into custody; the 19-year-old suspect was reported to have had a Glock 42 in his left front pants pocket, with “4 rounds in the magazine (but none) in the chamber.”

The report continues, “There was a Glock 10mm pistol lying on the dashboard of the truck, golf clubs in the back seat, and miscellaneous tools in plain view throughout the vehicle.” Victims from both incidents came to the scene and, the probable-cause documents say, identified both men as the pickup driver and passenger involved in the earlier incidents. Both are under investigation for harassment and theft; the older suspect is under investigation for unlawful firearm possession, as he is a convicted felon, while the younger is also being held on a warrant from southwest Washington for driving with a suspended license. Both are due back in court tomorrow, and we’ll find out if prosecutors will charge them or whether they’ll be released with charges possible later.

FRIDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE: Charges are now filed against the two suspects, 25-year-old Jory Preston and 19-year-old Justin Hoyt. We’ll have a separate followup later tonight with full details.

9:04 AM: Bicycle thieves seem to have been particularly prolific lately. Earlier this week, we featured four bicycles – three “found” (check the photos if you’re missing one), one stolen, and here’s another theft report, from Peter:

Would like to report a stolen bicycle from alongside my residence (5900 block of Beach Drive SW), sometime between 4 pm Monday, June 20, and 2 pm Tuesday, June 21. Bike is a Black 2005 Marin Muirwoods commuter bike, 24 speed, serial number C145GSB003. (I saw the abandoned bike postings from this afternoon, but none of them are mine.) The thief had to come onto private property to take the bike from alongside my house. Stock photo of bike (here).

A police report has been filed, and the bike is also registered on BikeIndex.org, and has been reported stolen to them.

ADDED 9:18 AM: This photo and report just came in from Melissa:

We live at 50th and SW Waite and someone went through our neighbor’s car last night, though they didn’t take anything. Our cars weren’t touched but we did find this on the sidewalk by our house – confirmed that it is not our neighbor’s- but maybe someone else is missing this from another prowling? It appears to be full of dog toys and pet care items.

What started as an Alki car-prowl report and continued with alleged brandishing of “guns and golf clubs” resulted in two arrests late last night, according to SPD Blotter.

On June 21st, at about 11:40 pm, officers responded to a report of a car prowl near Bonair Drive SW and Alki Avenue SW. A victim reported one of the suspects in the break-in had flashed a gun at the victim and his friends before fleeing in a white Ford pickup truck.

The victim told police he and his friends had returned to their parked vehicle and found the driver’s side window was broken. A bystander pointed out the suspects to the victim just before the two men rolled past them in a pickup truck. As the suspects drove by, the driver and passenger reportedly flashed handguns at the group. The truck then made a U-turn and came back toward the group, and the two suspects began shouting threats.

The victims ducked behind a parked car and the suspects drove off.

Officers took statements from the victims and photographed the prowled vehicle. As the officers were processing the scene, police received another report that two men in a white Ford truck had just brandished golf clubs in another incident near SW Charlestown and 50th Avenue SW. The original responding officers went with other officers to the new call in an attempt to locate the suspects.

Officers found the suspect’s truck parked at a 7-11 in the 3800 block of California Avenue SW and soon spotted the two suspects, ages 19 and 25, walking out of the store. Police discovered the 19-year-old was carrying a handgun in his front pocket, and also found a handgun, golf club and metal pipes inside the pickup truck.

Both suspects were arrested and booked into the King County Jail for felony harassment and theft. The 25-year-old, who is a convicted felon and unable to lawfully possess firearms, was also booked for unlawful possession of the firearm.

The two men remain in jail, according to the register; we’re checking on whether they’ll appear for bail hearings today or tomorrow.

5:06 PM: After multiple secondhand reports about this, we haven’t been able to track down the police report yet, but a warning seems to be in order about a robbery/theft reported in the West Seattle Trader Joe’s parking lot this afternoon. The first person to contact us said she is a friend of the victim: “My friend was robbed at approximately 1:20. She screamed for help and no one responded. Police later notified. Robbery: Man took her money, phone, credit cards, etc, while she was unpacking groceries, then another guy drove him away.” We have a followup message out to that friend asking about suspect and vehicle description, etc. Another friend says the victim posted on social media that the thief/robber was driven up, got out of that vehicle, grabbed the purse, and then got into another car to get away (but still no descriptive details). If we don’t get more info sooner, we’ll pursue it at tonight’s West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meeting.

6:43 PM UPDATE: We just spoke with the victim by phone. She says it happened in the center of the main lot, where she was parked not far from the exit onto Fauntleroy. The thief was a passenger in a dark-red or maroon older Ford Bronco/Explorer-type “smaller, older SUV with a squared-off back, 4 doors” that drove up next to her car. He got out, walked toward her “mumbling” – she’s a nurse so she says she wondered if he was OK – then suddenly, she says, as she was reaching for her last bag of groceries, he lunged into the back of her car, which was open, grabbed her purse, got back in his vehicle, and it left.

She describes him as “probably 5’5″, 5’6″, stocky, pale complexion, round face, stubbly,” wearing some type of hat, but she cannot recall anything about his clothing. The “strange mumbling” was his most distinctive feature, she says, adding that police told her the description and MO matched an incident elsewhere in the area within the past week.

Also, regarding the report that no one answered her calls for help after the theft, she said a woman did eventually come over and ask what she could do and offered her phone for the 911 call. The theft victim did talk with the store manager and staffers who she said came out, but she was told there are no cameras outside the store.

We’re heading to the Crime Prevention Council meeting now and if someone doesn’t bring it up, we’ll follow up with precinct leadership about the report that this was a repeat incident.

Four bicycles – stolen or abandoned/”found” – start off this West Seattle Crime Watch report:

VINTAGE BIKE STOLEN FROM SHED: From Marcella:

We live on the 6000 block of California Ave. Last week someone went through our cars in the middle of the night – didn’t get anything of value, mostly just looked through everything.

(Monday) morning, our shed has been broken into. The only think stolen was my bike – a vintage red/white/blue Huffy from the ’50s that my dad had refurbished. It is probably too small for anyone to ride or worth much money, but it was very meaningful to me. Please let me know if anyone sees it.

Now, three bicycles that have turned up, apparently abandoned, which tends to mean “stolen and dumped”:

FOUND NEAR A DUMPSTER: Connie says this bicycle turned up near a trash bin along Harbor Avenue:

FOUND ON 48TH SW: That’s where Erin found the next bike, “a Novara Forza, size small,” on Monday morning. Recognize it?

FOUND BY A BUSINESS: Rick says this bicycle has been near his West Seattle business for more than a week:

If any of those bicycles might be yours, let us know and we’ll connect you.

We also have one non-bicycle-related Crime Watch reader report:

‘BAD NEWS AND GOOD NEWS’ … is how Russ slugged this:

Bad news: someone prowled one of our cars on Saturday night in the 10200 block of 39th Ave. SW. (Shame on us for apparently leaving it unlocked.) Several items were missing, although nothing of particular economic or sentimental value.

Good news: a gentleman who lives of 31st Ave. SW appeared at our door after finding the stolen items dumped in his yard. Kudos to you, sir — although we regret we didn’t ask your name!

It appears that the thief (thieves?) decided that our possessions weren’t worth keeping; everything taken from our car was recovered.

However, there was one item that was not ours: a small black coin purse. (Update: See the photo in this WSB comment.) It’s completely empty, but someone out there may want it back. If so, they can e-mail me: rdy5591@gmail.com

And we’ll mention it one more time – TONIGHT is the monthly West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meeting, best place to bring your neighborhood concerns/questions directly to Southwest Precinct leadership. WSCPC president Richard Miller also has booked SPD’s Chief Operating Officer Brian Maxey as the special guest, with a plan to discuss 911 operations. 7 pm, SW Precinct, 2300 SW Webster.

In West Seattle Crime Watch tonight, a painful reminder that even the trunk isn’t a safe place to leave valuables in your vehicle. Gabriel reports: “My wife’s car was broken into around 11 am at the larger Lincoln Park parking lot. They shattered the driver’s window and stole items from the trunk (purse, credit cards, etc.). There were a lot of people around, but if anyone saw anything, they ignored it. … Small black leather purse, small black wallet were taken. Credit cards and a birth certificate were the main items of value (out of town traveler) taken. Several charges in West Seattle (Big 5, gas station, Home Depot) were made before the theft was discovered.” Police have said that car prowlers in parking lots can move quickly and stealthily without others nearby realizing what’s going on.

P.S. Another reminder that your monthly chance to bring crime/safety concerns to local police is this Tuesday (June 21st), the West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meeting, 7 pm at the Southwest Precinct (Delridge/Webster). SPD’s chief operating officer Brian Maxey is the scheduled guest, focusing on SPD’s 911 system.