UNUSUAL BURGLARY LOOT: A request from Southwest Precinct Det. Shane St. John: As part of an ongoing investigation of burglaries, police have recovered “a large amount of foreign-coin currency.” They suspect it’s loot but don’t have a record of anyone reporting the theft of such currency. If you know who might have had such currency stolen (or if it might be yours), contact him: 206-233-7871.

SEARCH AT SWAC: If you were on Trenton between the Southwest Athletic Complex and Westwood Village around noontime, you might have seen this sizable police response:

SPD media-relations Det. Renée Witt said it had started with a report of several people allegedly drinking and using drugs on the north side of the sports complex. While officers investigated, she said, it somehow became somewhat chaotic – one suspect took off running, and somewhere along the line, officers found bullets, leading them to think a gun might have been in the vicinity, and a K-9 team was being brought in to look. That’s where our information trail ends; we have a followup question out and will add anything else we find out. (Added Tuesday afternoon – SPD Blotter now has details on this case.)

SATURDAY CAR PROWL: A neighbor at 21st/Roxbury reports catching an apparent car prowler in the act on Saturday morning, spotting his neighbor’s car door slightly open and someone ducking down. The watchful neighbor says the victims later reported that police found the suspect with items including stolen property.

ANOTHER CAR PROWL: John says someone went through his car, parked in his driveway at 39th and Dakota, last Thursday night: “The only thing they seemed to have stolen was a really old MP3 player (worth about $5 at most), but must have been in a hurry since they missed other things that I would have though they would have taken.” He suspects he might have left his door unlocked.

HIT-RUN NEAR THE PARK: Another reader named John is looking for anyone who might have seen the hit-run that damaged his car at his home near Ercolini Park between 11 am and noon Sunday:

My neighbor heard the noise, and looked out to see a white larger late model pickup truck backing away from our car and continuing on its way.

I was hoping you might be willing to post this note in case any other people at the park witnessed the event and might have more information on who damaged our car.

If you saw it, contact police.

Just in from Justin, word of a burglary this afternoon just west of The Junction:

My neighbors’ house was just broken into at about 3:15 pm today. Several officers responded but didn’t find the guy. He also broke into a lady’s house a few blocks north.

My neighbor has a security camera so got a good description. The police would like help spotting the guy; he can’t be far.

Black male, both large and tall, wearing baggy pants, white tennis shoes, grayish hoodie, was wearing a black knit cap, had a “very overstuffed” backpack.

This happened on the 4700 block of 46th Ave SW. Thank you, let’s get this guy!

Call 911 with tips.

Thursday’s West Seattle Crime Watch reader reports, starting with one we just received from Preston:

We were driving home tonight and passed in front of Caffe Ladro on SW California at 9:45. The passenger rear window exploded as someone threw a fist sized rock at us.

Three witnesses at Caffe Ladro said a man on a dark maroon bicycle wearing a long-sleeved shirt with white on it was standing on the side of the cafe drinking beer. He was in and out and came in through the back of the cafe. He then stood in the breezeway between the adjacent buildings. We stopped at the end of the block and he got on his bike and rode north down California. Police were called and they are sweeping the area. The dark maroon bike has a flashing light on the back and the suspect was wearing a blue shirt with white and a backpack.

If anyone has any clue as to who this may be – someone that would be at Caffe Ladro at 9:45 at night drinking beer and on a bicycle – please call the police.

(The coffee shop, it should be noted, does not serve alcohol.)

A home on Charlestown Hill was burglarized this morning – while somebody was at home. Marty reports:

My ex-husband’s house was broken into around 6:30 this morning. The back door was kicked in and our dog was found by a neighbor around 7 a.m. Our 17 year old daughter was in the house alone (dad had already gone to work), sleeping downstairs in the basement as this was happening. A neighbor found the dog, called my number which is on her tag. I live in Queen Anne, so called my daughter and woke her up to go get the dog. She heard a lot of noise upstairs and in her sleepy state, assumed it was her dad still at home. As she approached the stairway and called out for him, the person upstairs left out the front door. The only items taken were about 40 CDs from the living room. A very scary situation, which could have ended badly but fortunately did not.

Burglary, by the way, is the topic announced for the next West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meeting – Seattle Police burglary detective Jill Vanskike “will go over some of the factors that attract burglars to specific homes, common points and methods of entry, target hardening and the protective devices most effective at preventing burglaries. Also, tips on measures you can take to aid in the recovery of stolen property …” The meeting is at 7 pm Tuesday, May 21st, at the Southwest Precinct.

Back to Crime Watch – Gretchen reports an overnight theft:

We had one of our wine-barrel planters stolen off our berm (Wednesday) night. Took either one very strong person to tip the dirt out or two people. Those suckers are heavy! Happened between 10 pm and 4:30 am. We live near 17th and Thistle.

And a reader who doesn’t want to be identified found what looks like discarded crime loot in the Fairmount Springs area:

A duffel bag full of a boy’s baseball equipment turned up in our alley this morning, with some of the contents strewn about our yard. There is no name or phone # anywhere in the bag. I would like to get it back to the owner–looks like a lot of valuable equipment.

You can e-mail the finder at dgmob@outlook.com.

First of 2 West Seattle Crime Watch notes: If you’ve had a bicycle stolen lately, in addition to checking with police, keep checking our WSCW reports, because more keep coming in. We mentioned a few in this WSCW report over the weekend; then this morning, Anne e-mailed to say that TWO mountain bikes have turned up on her out-of-the-way street (steep slope of SW Lander), likely left by thieves. She says both are “men’s mountain bikes. One is a medium blue and one is red.” She has reported them to police but would like to get them back to their owners.

(added) If you’re missing a bike that might be one of those two – e-mail Anne at phastphood@hotmail.com.

Second, Chris says a hit-run crash on Saturday left these marks on his car:

My car was backed into (Saturday) morning in the West Seattle Trader Joe’s parking lot. I was parked next to the spot that’s not a spy on the north side of the parking lot. An older model navy blue SUV was parked in that spot and I believe it was this car that backed into me. I am looking for whoever did this or anyone who might have seen something. A photo of my back quarter panel with the offending back bumper mark across it is attached.

Third, just received as we were about to publish this, Annlee reports a car prowl at Lincoln Park:

I was enjoying a beautiful sunny day at Lincoln Park (Sunday) with my sister and kids. We got back to my car and noticed the doors were unlocked. I had only left my window opened a crack but it was enough for the thief to use someone’s broken-off antenna to hook and unlock my doors. My purse and my sister’s purse were stolen out of the trunk with everything inside them. Even my daughter’s sleeping bag was stolen and she was absolutely devastated. Please keep an eye out while visiting Lincoln Park. If you happen to see any gray purses or black wallets with IDs in them, please turn them in. If you happen to see anyone suspicious wandering around the parking lot with a pink princess sleeping bag, please call the police!

This West Seattle Crime Watch roundup begins with a vandalism spree in Gatewood – two people have contacted us to report more than half a dozen cars’ tires were slashed sometime overnight near the California/Webster intersection.

In North Delridge, Angela found what seemed to be dumped loot:

She says it wasn’t even all from West Seattle (she’s already spoken with one victim who says her car was broken into yesterday at the Arboretum!):

This morning I found a pile of stuff on the side of the road that appeared to be dumped after a theft. Possibly multiple thefts, as my very minimal poking around turned up at least four different possible owners based on business cards (multiple of the same card), insurance card, registration, and other papers. I didn’t dig very deep; only looked at what was visible & on top when I found it.

About an hour after she reported it to police, who she says “indicated that they’d pick it up and place it into evidence,” it was gone.

Also found: this bicycle. Scott from Seattle Parks sent the photo:

He says, “This bike was found hidden in the shrubs at Hiawatha Playfield. We have it stored at SW Parks District Shop at Lincoln Park; hopefully the owner can get this expensive bike back. Our office phone is 684-7457.”

In case you are missing a bike and haven’t seen two notices posted within the past few days in the WSB Forums – here’s one for a yellow 10-speed, and another one for a blue girls’ bike.

Last but not least, James reports a double theft of 2-wheelers: his “2007 CRF450 motorcycle and Specialized Allez bicycle. These were stolen from my garage on (56th & Dakota) earlier this week.” His report came in via the WSB Facebook page – check out the “posts by others” section there for his photos.

Topping this West Seattle Crime Watch roundup: We’ve just confirmed another case of athletic-field wire theft. A tipster just e-mailed to say that a wiring theft took out the outfield lights at the Southwest Athletic Complex baseball field, which affected the start of last night’s Seattle Lutheran High School game. SWAC is owned by Seattle Public Schools; spokesperson Teresa Wippel confirms the theft, telling WSB, “we did receive a report of additional wire theft from 10 light poles … (4 softball infield and 6 baseball outfield poles). I’m told ‘a come-along’ was used to extract the wires from the poles and some of the wiring was also pulled out of the ground.” No arrests yet in last month’s Delridge Playfield case, by the way.

Also in Crime Watch: A stolen car was found relatively quickly this morning – just after 6 am, Ridge sent a note that his green Honda Civic had been stolen near 35th and 100th in Arbor Heights. Before we even got a chance to publish an alert, a note came in from a resident near 32nd and 108th reporting that someone abandoned a car in her neighborhood – a green Honda Civic. Car and owner have since been reunited.

And a reunion of sorts is what Julie is hoping for, regarding keepsakes stolen in a Puget Ridge burglary on Wednesday:

The only things stolen were a blue cardboard box of irreplaceable old pictures and a decorative tin box full of a lifetime of memorabilia, like concert ticket stubs, postcards and political buttons, etc. I’m hoping they’ll dump it somewhere and maybe it will be found. I live in the 65XX block of 18th Ave SW. They smashed my sliding glass door in the back to gain entry.

Notify police if you find any of those items – or anything else that might have been stolen from someone (the non-emergency number is 206-625-5011).

We start tonight’s West Seattle Crime Watch with a found bicycle that seems to have been abandoned in much the way previously stolen bicycles have been:

Tim says the red Schwinn BMX bike turned up in their West Seattle yard last Sunday (April 21), adding, “These are some things (markings, etc.) on the bike that we can ask any respondents to help make sure it really is theirs.” Call 206-218-7886.

Meantime, another bike has just been stolen – from an Arbor Heights resident who doesn’t want to be identified, but found a purse, possibly left by the thief/thieves:

Arbor Heights, 10600 block of 32nd Ave SW: Sad to say, after a neighbor’s car was stolen from their driveway Thursday night, yesterday/night our bicycle was stolen from our (fenced/gated) carport. The bike couldn’t be seen from the yard or the street, and the person(s) would have had to walk up the driveway to the chest-high chain-link fence gate (complete with privacy slats) and open the gate to find the bike, so clearly someone had been scoping out the area. Icky. They even closed the gate upon leaving, likely so as not to be looked for right away. Yes, the police were notified. The officer even took the little purse that appeared when the bike was stolen. Possibly a coincidence, but since nobody here has a purse, nor do the neighbors (it was left between our two houses), one would think that it was perhaps left behind when the bike was leaving.

The bike is a 2013 black (“black/white” according to the manufacturer) Specialized RockHopper Comp, with 29″ wheels and a 19″ frame. Yeah, for a long-legged person! I’m hoping that, since this is not an average size, someone will spot it on craigslist or such, and it can come home. There is a lock on its crossbar.

Did they take the bike with a flat tire or the rickety lawnmower? Nooooo, they took the nifty, new, specialty bike. Turkeys, go save up for years and get your own bike like we did!

Here is a pic of the purse; officer looked in it, but it was empty:

If you’re missing one like this, please contact the Southwest Precinct– the officer has put the purse into evidence. Sigh, it seems like the turkeys are starting to win.

P.S.: Next crime-prevention meeting in our area is in White Center, but city residents might find the information helpful too – guests include King County Sheriff John Urquhart. The North Highline Unincorporated Area Council is presenting it as one in a series of public-safety forums – 7 pm Thursday, May 2nd, at North Highline Fire District HQ, 1243 SW 112th (flyer here).

We start with a followup: Last night’s West Seattle Crime Watch roundup included a reader report from Ignacio, whose bicycle had been stolen from his Admiral District apartment building’s garage. Shortly after we published the report, he obtained the surveillance video, published it to YouTube, and we added it to the story. Today, we got a message from a Seattle Parks staffer that Ignacio’s bike had turned up at Lincoln Park and was awaiting him in a safe storage place there, and he’s making plans to get it back.

Second, an arrest: Our first word of this bike-theft story came in a tweet from Cheryl, who rides the West Seattle Water Taxi, asking about a big police presence near Seacrest yesterday. Nothing hit our radar at the time; when the call turned up on the police map later, it was labeled as “bicycle theft.” Wondering how that turned into a big response, we sought out the full report today, and here’s what we found out:

Read More

Three reader reports in West Seattle Crime Watch tonight – first, from Beth, who wanted her neighbors to know about mail thieves at work:

This morning while I was out for a run, I noticed a bunch of mail in some bushes. It turns out it belonged to two of my neighbors. Most of it was fliers but there was one envelope that had been opened and discarded. We live on 37th between Andover and Dakota.

In the Admiral area, someone stole Ignacio‘s bike early Tuesday morning:

Element 42’s lower gated parking garage was cut open, thief pressed the interior button to open the garage door. He cut the bike lock cable with bolt cutters and stole my bike. It looks very similar to this bike. My apartment complex has the video. … It’s not the most expensive bike but it was a lot of money to me. (Police) reviewed the video and got a good look at the guy so I’m hopeful they’ll find a serial bike thief.

We told Ignacio we could add the video if it clearly shows the crime being committed – waiting to hear back.

Added 10:49 pm – here’s the video:

(The thief enters toward the start, then leaves at about 3:25.)

(Back to original report) And in Fauntleroy, Todd reports a car prowl in the 4500 block of SW Hemlock Way:

Sometime early Sunday 4/21 morning, someone went through my car, which I had stupidly left unlocked. They took a gym bag with a pair of shorts and gym shoes. They also took a black “laptop” style bag that is embroidered with “Kinect For Windows” in purple thread. I point this out because I work at Microsoft with the Kinect Team, so I would personally know anyone that had that particular bag. And my bowling shoes were in it, and I really liked them. The crook was apparently not the brightest, as he/she/it didn’t take the CD Box set of Frank Sinatra, which would have been easy cash, and way easier to pawn than size 11 Asic running shoes and bowling shoes. The other two cars in my driveway were locked, and untouched. So, make sure to lock up.

Two West Seattle Crime Watch reports to share this morning, plus a followup with some good news, and a chance to get educated about crime prevention. First, a burglary reported by Sharon:

There was a break-in on the 6300 block of 50th Av SW (Thursday). A dark green or dark blue car that looks like a older-model Toyota Camry was seen canvassing the neighborhood earlier in the week and (Thursday) morning. The same description of a vehicle was seen in Arbor Heights the day a recent (burglary) took place. Please ask neighbors to make sure to lock their doors, windows, & remove belongings from their cars. And, importantly, to note the license plate number of any suspicious vehicles hanging around their street.

Next, a car prowl reported by Michael:

Just want to give my neighbors a heads-up: I’m in the 50xx block of Waite Street and sometime between Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, my Honda Odyssey minivan was broken into. The car was parked directly in front of my house and there were no signs of forced entry. My fear is that I left the doors unlocked. Not sure what they were looking for, but they made off with a few music cd’s, video dvd’s, a set of Rosetta Stone Italian Language disks, and the car’s owners manual folder. This last item is the most concerning as I had my car insurance and registration forms inside that folder too. They were discerning thieves though. I found a few of the dvd’s they didn’t want to keep thrown in my bushes a few yards away. I assume they don’t have children, because they didn’t keep the Magic School Bus or Saigwa dvd’s.

And we have some good news – Miranda and her husband have their moped back, and want to say a big public THANK YOU to the person who found it in the Alki area, not far from where it was stolen (as reported here Tuesday); after the finder matched it to the photo published here, a moped reunion ensued.

P.S. Want to find out simple ways to prevent/reduce crime around your home/apartment? Come to the West Seattle Block Watch Captains Network meeting next Tuesday (April 23rd), 6:30 pm at the Southwest Precinct meeting room (off Webster just west of Delridge) to see Officer Jon Kiehn‘s renowned presentation on CPTED (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design). Here’s more info on the WSBWCN website.

(April 1 photo by Christopher Boffoli for WSB)
Two and a half weeks after two people shot each other during what police described as a robbery attempt, we’ve learned that the victim is out of the hospital. 27-year-old Rick Powell is the town-car driver found on Charlestown just off Avalon with life-threatening gunshot wounds late the night of April 1st; the man police say shot him during a robbery attempt, 19-year-old Juan Garcia-Mendez, was found with less-serious wounds about a mile away. In King County Superior Court today, Garcia-Mendez pleaded not guilty to first-degree assault; he remains jailed in lieu of $1 million bail, with another hearing set for early June. Meantime, this online update says Powell was released from the hospital last Friday; as you can see on the right side of that page, friends are still raising money to help with his medical expenses. They also have set up a web page at rickrighteous.com – after his stage name as a musician – as a reference page for benefits, both one-time and ongoing.

(Photos by Nick Adams for WSB)
9:07 PM: For the second time today, police are investigating a stabbing – this time, near Delridge/Thistle, with a female victim who is reported to have multiple stab wounds. Police are looking for a suspect who is reported to be someone she knows. They will be searching with a K-9. More to come.

9:15 PM: Radio exchanges indicate the victim was stabbed at least twice. Medics are taking care of her and will take her to Harborview Medical Center.

9:50 PM: No word of an arrest so far.

1:06 AM UPDATE: Southwest Precinct Lt. Alan Williams now confirms a man has been arrested and booked into the King County Jail; no word on the victim’s condition.

9:59 AM UPDATE: SPD Blotter reports on the incident this morning, with some additional information: The suspect is described as the woman’s ex-boyfriend; two children were in the apartment where it happened but were not injured.

Another car to be on the lookout for, reported by Katy:

I just wanted to warn others/inform loyal blog readers that my car was stolen from SW Lander St & 42 Ave SW by the Admiral Safeway, near the tennis courts, between 10:30 pm (4/9) and 8 am (4/10). The car stolen was a gold ’91 Lincoln Town Car with gold seats. The license plate is 879-WJD. There is also a USC sticker on the back windshield along with a few bumper stickers and a QA magnet on the back trunk. The car may also have a disabled placard up (it was in the car at the time of the theft) as the vehicle had belonged to my mother, a longterm Alki resident.