West Seattle, Washington
24 Wednesday
Early heads-up – two weeks from tonight, the West Seattle Block Watch Captains Network will take on a crime problem that’s repeatedly plagued several local neighborhoods: Mail theft. WSBWCN just announced that U.S. Postal Inspectors will be on hand to talk about it at their February 26th meeting, 6:30 pm, Southwest Precinct (Delridge/Webster) – and no, you do NOT have to be a Block Watch captain, or even part of a BW, to attend.
This afternoon’s West Seattle Crime Watch roundup starts with word of an arrest in the carjacking two weeks ago. From this SPD Blotter report:
A 29-year-old suspect is in custody for a carjacking that occurred last month near the West Seattle Golf Course.
During the course of the investigation, robbery detectives developed information on the possible identity of the suspect. A wanted bulletin was sent out to officers. On February 10th, detectives received information that the suspect had been arrested by King County Sheriff’s deputies on an unrelated charge. The next day, the suspect was brought into the Robbery office where he was interviewed by detectives. After the interview, the suspect was re-booked into the King County Jail for Investigation of Robbery.
Now on to WSB reader reports: From 44th/Spokane, Melanie was the victim of a car prowl:
Someone got into my car last night, parked on the street, I thought it was locked but must not have been. They ransacked it (glove box, console, etc.) obviously looking for something more specific of value than they found. Some things of value were left – Bob stroller, sunglasses, empty laptop bag…. I don’t think anything was taken – that I can tell. Also it appears someone sat in the driver seat because some of my gages were turned on/off etc.
Also about two weeks ago, some broke the window of a car on my street, owned by a guest staying with us. They stole a camera. He filed a report with the police.
We also received a quick report from Shannon – who came back from church last Sunday to discover that her home near Myrtle Reservoir Park had been broken into.
After the jump, a possible casing, followed by a bike theft with a scooter left behind:
Read More
Two reader reports in West Seattle Crime Watch tonight – a burglary in which the victim lost keepsakes from family photos to her wedding ring – and what appears to have been a case of casing – details after the jump:Read More
Out of the WSB inbox, from DC:
We live on the 3800 block of 17th Ave SW. There were several cars on our street broken into last night around 3:30 am. They went up and down our street and smashed passenger side windows and opened unlocked doors.
Our neighbor’s dog was barking and woke their owners up, which made them spring into action and call the police. They caught a glimpse of the prowlers and yelled out to them, which prompted them to flee.
The police arrived here around 3:45 a.m, and left their business card with an incident number on our front seats. Our cars had minimal damage, broken window’s, and open glove compartments, they rummaged through papers and stuff.
We just thought our West Seattle neighbors should be aware and be safe.
P.S. Not related, but if you wondered about a helicopter just east of West Seattle last night – it was a search in South Park; we have the story on partner site The South Park News.
11:42 AM: Police initially tweeted there was a report of a robbery at West Seattle Coins at California/Oregon. However, the manager told us at the scene that they were NOT robbed – they had to deal with a disruptive person in the store. The store is open for business.
11:58 AM: We also reconfirmed with Seattle Police public affairs that further investigation revealed *no* robbery.
Even one crime is too many … but as we watch trends, that screengrab of the SPD crime map, just showing auto-theft reports, is actually “good” news, relatively speaking. It represents seven auto thefts reported in the past week (the top marker represents three, the bottom marker represents two), a big drop from one week earlier. When we showed you the same screengrab nine days ago, 19 vehicle thefts had been reported in the preceding week.
We looked up the latest stats after getting a direct reader report of one theft that is among the seven on the map, and Justin is offering a reward:
I would like to let you know that I have a 26-foot U-Haul that was stolen from the corner of 38th and Genesee Tuesday morning. It was halfway full of furniture and personal belongings. It had an Arizona license plate number.
It was reported to the police on 2/5/13 @ 9:30 am. General offense # 13-040818. Officer Spadoni badge @1968 was responding on case. There is a $1000 reward for return of property.
If there’s a house for sale near yours – keep an extra-close watch, advises B, who reports a break-in:
Our neighborhood block watch is very active and folks have been keeping an eye out on the property. However, even with all of these eyes keeping watch, these punks were still around somewhere.
Hate for someone else to have the same experience. Thanks to SPD SW folks for their professionalism and effort. Whole new level of respect for their work and effort to keep us safe. Just wish folks like those we encountered yesterday didn’t make it so hard.
Highland Park and other residents near the city/county line might be interested in tomorrow (Thursday) night’s North Highline Unincorporated Area Council public-safety forum, since crime knows no borders – it’s at 7 pm at the Boys and Girls Club at Greenbridge (9800 8th SW), details on our partner site White Center Now.
(Thursday photo by Mike Scharer)
Five days after last Thursday’s estate-sale robbery in the Belvidere neighborhood (WSB coverage here), Seattle Police are showing photos of what they believe to have been the getaway car:
Last Friday, you might recall, we published a detective’s call for images from any surveillance camera along the possible getaway route. Today, the images you see above are part of an update by Jonah Spangenthal-Lee just published on SPD Blotter:
… After the robbery, police were able to track down footage captured by privately-owned surveillance cameras, and detectives now believe the suspect fled the scene in a blue two-door 2007 or 2008 Chevy Cobalt. Witnesses described the suspect as a white male in his late 20′s to early 30′s, 5’9 to 5’10, with a large build and dark hair. He was dressed in a black ski mask, black jacket, and black pants, and was armed with a semi-automatic pistol.
Follow the link to SPD Blotter to see photos of some of the jewelry. Spangenthal-Lee writes that part of the estate sale’s proceeds were to benefit Woodland Park Zoo, per the will of the home’s former owner. Meantime, the full report on the robbery is also now available; it says the robber entered the home where the sale was under way at mid-afternoon last Thursday and yelled, “This is a robbery, get down!” forcing everyone present to get down on the floor, and ordering them not to look at him. According to the report, he had trouble getting into the case where the jewelry was displayed, and banged on it, trying to break the glass, until someone told him – worried he would become more violent – that it wasn’t locked. The report says he got away with $5,000 in jewelry and $4,000 in cash.
As first reported here and on partner site White Center Now (plus this update) in the past week, a serial robber has been at work in the White Center area – and further north, with last Wednesday’s holdup at the 30th/Roxbury 76 station. Today, the King County Sheriff’s Office has just released surveillance photos, with this information:
SUSPECT DESCRIPTION:
*Black, 35- 40 years of age, 5’11” – 6’0”, medium build
*Had darker black patch of skin under left eye
*Long, narrow face, Deep voiceThe above-pictured suspect robbed four mini marts between January 11 and February 1, 2013.
His MO is to display a black semi-automatic handgun, possibly a Glock, and demand cash from the register. If you have information regarding the possible identity of the suspect, please contact the King County Sheriff’s Office at 206-296-3311.
We are checking with KCSO to see if the photos are available in any higher resolution/size.
ORIGINAL REPORT, 12:43 PM: Relatively quiet weekend so far in West Seattle Crime Watch – not just in reader reports, but also via the other ways we monitor police responses (thanks to those who have texted/e-mailed about various sightings of multiple police cars – nothing that has turned out so far to be anything of major note, but we continue to watch for reports). We do have a bicycle-theft report this morning: David says the photo above is a bicycle similar to the one stolen from the porch of his home near 32nd and Trenton overnight, between 10 pm and 4:30 am, “a Magna “Grand Ledge” mountain bike, w/ broken left hand gear cable and round bell on right side handlebar.” The same household was hit by bike thieves a few years back, and a WSB reader spotted the stolen bike, so the victims are hopeful that might happen again. (In many cases, police explain, criminals steal bikes as transportation to another crime scene – so you might find a stolen bike in an area where one or more cars were prowled/stolen.)
11:38 PM UPDATE: Bike’s back, David writes in the comment section, thanks to Guy, who spotted it near California/Admiral tonight. Another reminder that our peninsula is one big neighborhood – so something that is stolen or lost might turn up miles away *(5, in this case) – report it to police, tell your Block Watch, but then let us know too so the word can get out peninsula-wide.
Seattle Police Detective Mike Magan says he has never seen anything quite like Thursday afternoon’s Belvidere estate-sale robbery (WSB coverage here) 
in his 26-year career – and he and his colleagues are working hard to catch the robber. They are hoping someone who lives nearby might have security-camera video or photos that will help them find him, and Detective Magan asked if we would put out that request. He says police combed the area thoroughly and as a result of their search (which included the K-9 team in our photo at right), they think that anyone in the area with camera(s) running 3:15 pm-4:15 pm yesterday might have something that will help, particularly along what they believe was the robber’s escape route:
*Westbound on Hinds from Belvidere
*Southbound on 38th to Manning
*Eastbound on Manning to 35th
*Southbound on 35th
He says they believe the robber eventually got away in a car, likely parked near 38th and Hinds. If you have any kind of imagery from that time frame on Thursday, you can get it to police and remain “completely anonymous,” he says. Det. Magan can be reached at 206-684-5540 or 206-786-4744.
(If you live in this area, please help get this word out – you can use the “Share This” link below to share this update via Facebook, Twitter, e-mail, dozens of other ways.)
When the Belvidere armed robbery happened on Thursday – no updates so far today – that coverage postponed our semi-daily West Seattle Crime Watch reader-report roundup. Here’s what was in queue:
Victims and police are trying to identify that bicycle thief caught in the act on a private security camera at an East Alki condo building. He is believed to have stolen one bike on January 18th while also trying to break into storage units; the image is from an early-morning return on January 27th. Call police if you have any tips on his identity.
Meantime, be on the lookout for this motorcycle:
It was stolen this week from a yard near 20th/Barton; its owner says the thief “left a Novarra mountain bike in exchange.” The motorcycle didn’t even have fuel in the tank, so it was rolled away, down an alley. If you see it, let police know.
One car-prowl reader report: Katherine says it happened Wednesday night in the 8000 block of 36th Ave SW: “Primary object stolen was a Champion Generator. If you have any information regarding this theft please contact the Seattle Police Department.”
Meantime, Chris tells us his neighbor’s stolen pickup – reported here Wednesday – has been found, “near the Tug Inn” by Delridge/Orchard.
(Added: Photos by Mike Scharer)
3:51 PM: A police search is under way right now in the Admiral area after a report of a “takeover-style” robbery inside a home – with masked robber/s ordering people to get on the ground, and then fleeing on foot. A K-9 team is on the way. We have a crew headed to the area.
3:56 PM: The suspect description just broadcast is “white male, 20s, 5’10”, husky build, black handgun,” dressed in dark clothing, including a ski mask. This is unfolding in the Belvidere area – the scene is near Belvidere and Hinds (map).
4:12 PM: Co-publisher Patrick Sand has talked to police in the area; they confirm nobody hurt, a K-9 team is searching the area so if you’re in that vicinity, stay off the sidewalk/street to avoid possibly interrupting the trail.
4:26 PM: If you’re seeing/hearing a helicopter, it’s TV. Police are still very actively searching and following on a couple of leads – but there is no one in custody yet. According to multiple reports (including Diane in comments), the house where this happened has been having an estate sale.
4:33 PM: We do NOT have confirmation that this is the suspect – but per scanner, police have pulled over a car that was seen in the area with someone resembling the description, and they have one person in custody. More to come – still avoid the area as it will be up to police to determine if they have the person they’ve been seeking.
4:41 PM: Apparently that was NOT the person they were seeking. Search continues.
4:53 PM: Adding photos by Mike Scharer, taken as police made their initial guns-drawn entry to the robbery scene and started searching the area. The search, with the help of K-9, is still under way. That indicates there is a strong possibility they believe the robber is in the area – so please call 911 if you see ANYTHING suspicious.
5:20 PM: Still no luck finding the robber. There are indications that people who have been kept from their homes will be allowed back in shortly.
5:35 PM: A couple notes from the SPD Blotter report about this – “jewelry and cash” was taken from victims who were at the estate sale when this happened, plus it’s a confirmation of one robber.
11:21 PM NOTE: Just in case you’re wondering, yes, we’re still tracking this, but there’s no word of an arrest.
Thanks to everybody who has texted about the King County Sheriff’s Office deputies at the 30th/Roxbury 76 station. They are investigating a reported armed robbery, according to a bulletin that also was shared with Seattle Police (whose jurisdiction ends at the city/county boundary down the middle of Roxbury in that area). No other details so far.
11:02 PM NOTE: Might not be able to get more details before morning. But as the first commenter reminds us, this area has had other robberies lately – it’s only a few blocks from the 35th/Roxbury strip mall where the beverage/tobacco shop was held up a week and a half ago, and also barely a block from Roxhill Park, scene of the much-reported recent robberies targeting teens.
10 AM UPDATE: KCSO Sgt. Patrick McCurdy says this might be linked to other robberies in the county: They believe the same robber hit the Texaco and Zip Mart (in White Center) “within the last week to week and a half.” They think he got away in a car but don’t have a description of it yet. He is described as a black man in his late 30s to early 40s, medium build, 5’10”, 190 pounds, and Sgt. McCurdy adds, “In all of the circumstances, the suspect had his face covered, probably with a bandana. One of the robberies occurred in the early morning hours (around 4:00 am or so), and the other two occurred close to 10:00 PM. In all robberies, the suspect displayed a small black semi-automatic handgun.”
ORIGINAL REPORT, 3:35 PM: Since so many stolen vehicles are found relatively close to the theft location, we offer the chance in West Seattle Crime Watch reports to get the word out around the peninsula, in addition to the police bulletins over the radio and via Twitter. Today, two thefts to report – just blocks apart. First one comes from someone whose neighbor’s truck was stolen from her garage Saturday night near 39th and Andover:
The truck is a white ’92 Nissan pick-up with red interior. There is a silver, metal knob on the steering wheel that is often referred to as a “suicide knob” or a “granny knob.” The license plate number is B12695R. If you see the vehicle, please contact the police or e-mail livelife1286@gmail.com.
Just blocks away, a car theft late last night or early today, reported by Bob:
10:00 PM and 9:00 AM this morning. Car was an ’89 red Subaru Legacy with Ore plates. Stolen from 44th Ave SW between Dakota & Andover.
ADDED 6 PM: Got word of another one, from Chris:
My neighbor’s truck was stolen sometime this morning around 7:30 am. it is a 1980 Toyota truck with a white canopy w/ rack. Lic # B30651H stolen from 23rd ave sw and sw Barton st. If found, please call 763-4027. Thank you.
Two reports in West Seattle Crime Watch this morning. First, from SPD Blotter, an early-morning carjacking:
Just before 2:00 am, officers responded to the the area of 28th Avenue SW and SW Nevada Street for a report of an armed carjacking/robbery. Officers contacted the victim who told them that he was parking his 1993 Ford F150 truck on the west side of 28th, just north of SW Nevada.
He stated that he had just parked his truck and was walking away when he was approached by an unknown suspect. The suspect was armed with a silver handgun and pointed it at the victim, demanding that he hand over his personal property.
The suspect took the victim’s wallet, cell phone and truck keys. He then took the victim’s truck, last seen driving eastbound on SW Nevada. Officers conducted an area search, as well as alerting King County Sheriff’s Office and Washington State Patrol. Despite the area search, the truck or suspect was not located.
The victim’s truck is described as a silver 1993 Ford F150 pickup truck with extended cab. The suspect is described as a white male, 30′s, 5’8″ tall, wearing a black t-shirt and a black knit cap. The victim was not injured …
First carjacking we recall hearing about around here in quite some time. Also this morning, a stolen car to watch for. From Jeffrey:
My car was stolen last night … 1997 Subaru Legacy Outback – White – 912-VQE. Stolen from 41XX SW Edmunds Street between 10 PM 1/28 and 7 AM 1/29.
That’s only about a block from where Cari‘s car, also a Subaru, was stolen last Thursday night. A spot check of the SPD crime map suggests it’s been a busy week for car thieves – here’s a screengrab of that map:
This represents 19 car thefts in West Seattle in the past week. At this zoom level, the map shows 15 – we moused over each one on the SPD website and three each represent two, plus it does not appear Jeffrey’s report is on the map (which is time-lagged) yet. That’s more than double the rate in November, the most recent month for which stats are available online (scroll to the last page for SW Precinct stats). Here’s SPD advice on car-theft prevention.
Some followup information on a weekend incident we covered, thanks to help from WSBeat reporter Megan Sheppard (look for her next roundup soon):
(Saturday night photo by WSB editor Tracy Record)
On Saturday night, we showed you the scene outside White Center Taco Time, where what Seattle Police described as a stolen car first spotted in West Seattle had crashed into a pole. No injuries; we saw police making one arrest.
Thanks to Megan’s research, we now know there were four people in the car; one fled, one was released at the scene, and two men were arrested and booked into jail. One, an Auburn resident, is being held in connection with a $5,000 warrant for failing to appear at a court hearing related to a South King County burglary case from 2010 and also, according to the jail register, for investigation of vehicle theft, with bail set at $100,000. The other is an Everett resident who had just gotten out of jail two and a half weeks ago in connection with another case involving a stolen car from Bellevue and a hit-run crash in Kent. This time, his bail is set at $125,000 for investigation of auto theft, and he’s also facing drug charges, after police say they found him in possession of meth on Saturday night. (The prior case has added $45,000 to that suspect’s bail, for a total of $170,000.) The report says the car that crashed Saturday night was stolen from unincorporated King County, but police had caught sight of it near 24th and Roxbury. We will check with the County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office tomorrow to see if charges are filed against either or both of these suspects.
(Photo taken about a block from shooting scene while police searched)
2:26 PM: Big police response in the area of 32nd and Othello (map), where neighbors tell us a home was shot at this afternoon. No one is reported to have been hit or hurt.
2:31 PM: Police on the scene have confirmed that shots were fired into a house and say they have recovered some “evidence.” Again, no injuries. No motive reported at this point – police believe it was random.
5:36 PM: From the update published late today on SPD Blotter:
… At about 1:15 pm today a blue Chevy Blazer or similar type SUV drove by a residence at 32nd Avenue SW and SW Othello. The suspect(s) inside the SUV fired shots at the house, striking a fence post, a tree branch, the front door and living room window, before driving away southbound. The bullets that hit the door and window ended up inside the house. An adult man and woman were inside the house at the time, but there were no injuries.
Southwest Precinct officers responded quickly and conducted an area search, but the suspect vehicle was not located. Evidence was collected at the scene, and officers are continuing to investigate.
Nothing new yet on the Roxhill Park investigation from this afternoon – but here’s what else came in today:
ADMIRAL ASSAULT: The victim does not want to be named, but wonders if anybody knows the suspect (do NOT post the info in comments if you do – contact the police, with the number you’ll see in a few paragraphs):
Last night at the Yen Wor, right after last call, I was assaulted by a man outside of the bar. He followed me across the street where my car was parked and basically beat me at a boxing match (I stink at boxing). The punches were well-targeted and strong, and I have several stitches under my left eye where my glasses broke and cut into my skin and both eyes are black and blue.
The assailant is a white military-looking guy in his mid to late 20’s, in muscular shape and standing about 5′ 7″. He was wearing a black long-sleeved shirt with red “NRA” lettering on the front and some kind of patriotic/flag/eagle on the back and a black Marine-style stove pipe hat with a pin on the front. He has close cropped hair, again very much looking like he’s fresh out of, or wishing he still was in, the military. There’s really no better way to describe him, he looks like he’s on leave from the Marines.
Again, the assault happened on the north side of College, in the parking lot behind the Blockbuster. … I gave chase north on Admiral and called 911, but he’s way faster than me and he had something to run from. If you know who this is, please share his name/location with Southwest Precinct. The police report is 2013-027975.
STOLEN CARS: Two to report:
*For the second time in six months, Cari‘s been hit by car theft near 40th and Edmunds on the east side of The Junction. This time, green ’96 Subaru Legacy wagon, WA plate AIU7166. Another Subaru was stolen from her there last year and found on Capitol Hill three days later. The car stolen overnight has gray bumpers/fenders, a Luna Park sticker on the right sun visor, and “lots of old 80s/90s rock cassettes inside.” Any sightings, call 911.
*From Gloria – a car stolen AND a car found. First, this 1996 Honda was stolen from the 8100 block of 13th SW on Wednesday:
Then, she says, it was found Thursday in the 4100 block of 20th SW on Pigeon Point, “stripped of front-rear bumpers, front fenders, hood, middle console. Obviously it was stripped very quickly, recovered less than 24 hours after having been stolen. And somewhere nearby. There has to be a neighbor that is noticing suspicious behavior in a garage in their area.”
Minutes after Gloria sent us that report, she found out that a family friend was hit by auto theft last night in the 9000 block of 5th SW – the missing vehicle is a green ’98 Honda Civic, license plate 767 JEN.
Finally, two reports of prowling and other suspicious activity, plus car prowlers – after the jump:Read More
4:10 PM: Thanks for the tips about the helicopter. The only thing working in the area right now is that police are investigating a suspicious vehicle and one possible suspect in the Roxhill Park area. NO new robberies or other crimes – and they’re not saying exactly what was suspicious about this car. At one point, they were checking out three cars and eight people – but Det. Jeff Kappel tells us only one vehicle and one 18-year-old remain under investigation. More as we get it. We had already been to the scene to check it out before the helicopter(s) turned up – have added a photo from that stop – and have since gone back to see if there’s anything new.
4:40 PM: The helicopter departed; the vehicle was being towed from the park.
Story and photos by Katie Meyer
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
A high-interest topic led to a well-attended meeting of the West Seattle Block Watch Captains Network this week – first meeting of 2013.
In addition to BW captains, Tuesday night’s meeting at the Southwest Precinct drew more than a few others, some saying they were there specifically to learn about “these surveillance cameras” – the announced main topic. One person later mentioned that during a break in at her home, the professional security alarm company that they used “called our house saying “we are not calling the authorities at this time,” loud and clear on the answering machine,” as it wasn’t able to verify if it was a false alarm trip or not. She believed that “If we’d had cameras and home system, we would have had pictures of guy carrying our TV out the door!”)
Seattle Police’s Community Police Team Officer Jon Kiehn and Detective Scotty Bach led the talks/presentations and Q/A.
Following up on the two Roxhill Park-area armed robberies in the past week in which the victims were reported to be local middle-schoolers: Last night, Denny International Middle School principal Jeff Clark shared a letter he had sent to his school community, and said one for a wider area would be forthcoming from the district. We have just obtained that one – read on:
Two incidents in this afternoon’s West Seattle Crime Watch report: Fawn from Kinetic Physical Therapy is looking for information related to the vandalism attack against her storefront (which also houses other wellness professionals) in the 4800 block of California SW early today: “Someone threw a large rock at the window this morning at 3:15 am, according to an upstairs tenant who heard the sound. Any information if anyone saw this would be helpful.”
Second, though SPD doesn’t include locations on its auto-theft tweets, a friend of the victim in this theft of a purple Honda tells WSB it happened in Delridge:
COLOR: PURPLEYR: 1997 MAKE: HONDA MODEL: ACCORD BODY: 4 DRLIC: 050YBLST: WA***DO NOT MAKE CONTACT CALL 911***
— Seattle Police(@getyourcarback) January 24, 2013
Let police know if you have any more information.
Finally, another recently stolen Honda has been found – the tipster in this theft three weeks ago e-mailed to say it was found last week “about 5 blocks north of where it was stolen, on SW Orchard between 12th & 16th. … The car was fine but everything in the trunk and glove box was stolen; they even took the rubber floor mats.”
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