West Seattle, Washington
23 Tuesday
Just got word from leadership of the West Seattle Crime Prevention Council that they are NOT canceling tonight’s 7 pm meeting – during which, besides getting updates on local crime trends from Southwest Precinct police, they also are scheduled to hear from a representative of the Aggressive Driver Response Team. The meeting’s at the precinct, Delridge/Webster, all welcome (door’s on the west side of the building, by the public parking lot).
Meantime, we promised to follow up on the helicopter seen over Highland Park for a while last Saturday night. Took a while to get the answer because of the holiday weekend, but King County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Sgt. Cindi West says it was a search for two people who had stolen from a White Center store and ran across the city/county line into West Seattle. Full story on our partner site White Center Now.
Last but not least, another car break-in reported – this one by Kristina:
Not only was our car broken into, they knocked over our snowman and our trash can. A video camera and a parking pass were the only things stolen also the insert inside the console . No damage to vehicle either. We live in North Admiral.
From an Alki resident who didn’t want to be identified: Her son lost school-related items, including college textbooks, in a daylight car break-in on Saturday:Read More
It’s been quieter on the burglary front lately; we should hear the newest stats at the West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meeting on Tuesday. Meantime, an alert from a break-in victim near 29th and Raymond in High Point, who sent a note this afternoon:Read More
Police are investigating vandalism on the east lawn of Hiawatha Community Center. An officer arrived while we were there looking at the damage a neighbor had called to tell us about. One or more vehicles drove over the east lawn – in repeated circles/criss-crosses, tearing up the grass in the area used for so many community events:
The neighbor who called us said it happened overnight – he believes he heard the noise of whatever vehicle(s) did this, but didn’t realize at the time what it was. The tire tracks are on the north side of the east lawn too:
We did not see any equipment or building damage, though, and it wasn’t clear what direction the driver(s) came from – there is a driveway but the locked bollards were up. The site is owned by Seattle Parks, and we won’t be able to check with them till Tuesday because of the holiday.
MURDER SUSPECT IN COURT: On partner site White Center Now, we just added video to our courthouse coverage of this morning’s arraignment of Cu Van Truong, charged with murder in the shooting death of Jason Saechao at Seattle Roll Bakery last month. Truong pleaded not guilty and is scheudled to return to court in two weeks.
TWO READER REPORTS … for West Seattle Crime Watch this morning, both with photos. First, from Bill:
A sacred image was stolen from under the giant poplar at the end of my driveway at the west (21st Ave SW) entrance to the SW Graham Hill Climb sometime between about 9:00 p.m. Tuesday, January 10, and 7:00 a.m. Wednesday, January 11.
Big, old trees, especially, may be possessed of female tree spirits, which can be malevolent if not properly propitiated. Reward, no questions asked. Please contact Bill, 206.768.0170
And from Jamie:
I wanted to report a hit and run. Happened January 10th during the day sometime, on 21st ave SW.
(updated) In the 9400 block, Jamie adds.
Last but not least, as we were finishing this, we got word from Richard Miller of the West Seattle Crime Prevention Council that he has confirmed a guest speaker for next Tuesday’s meeting:
We have Officer William Witt from the Aggressive Driving Team. Officer Witt is unique in that he is also a DUI Officer as well as being part of the Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Team.
Want to know how the ADRT – subject of so many WSB discussions! – works? Perfect opportunity. 7 pm Tuesday, Southwest Precinct meeting room (Webster/Delridge), all welcome.
Out of the WSB inbox, from Mary, who tried a simple tactic to stop would-be thieves:
About 2:00 (Tuesday afternoon) I heard a vehicle stop in the alley next to my home, (in the Westwood neighborhood) and looked out to see 2 men taking something heavy from my neighbors’ yard and loading it into their pickup truck. Just as I got outside and to the alley, they were driving off, but stopped when I spoke to them. I asked if they had permission to take “that thing.”
Another case today of bad things happening to good people … seems the latest parked car to be hit-and-run in West Seattle belongs to Jim Winder of Helmstetler Family Christmas Spectacular light-show fame. Jim lives in the 3400 block of 37th SW (map) and says someone smashed into his truck and took off:
I did not notice it was hit when I got home at around 4:30 (though it could have been damaged then) as I ride my Harley to work.
My son did say he heard a big bang around 3:40…also neighbor said he did not notice it when he got home… so could have happened between 3:30 and 5:30… though I was home and did not hear anything… so if anyone notices any new damage to the passenger side bumper of any cars in the area….
When the Seattle City Council meets at 2 this afternoon, there will be changes, including committee chairs. Councilmember Tim Burgess, a former police officer, will no longer be chairing the Public Safety Committee (Bruce Harrell will). As Burgess leaves that role, he has published a 14-page “policy essay” with his thoughts on preventing crime. He introduces it on his website here. As he notes – and as is obvious in neighborhood-crime coverage – violent crime is not Seattle’s biggest problem, but rather what Burgess calls “persistent and extremely corrosive street crime and disorder.” His recommendations include focusing on the so-called “hot spots” where a disproportionate amount of crime happens, frequent offenders who are responsible for more than their share, and “problem-oriented policing,” proactive as well as reactive. The essay is linked from his website, or you can go directly to it here.
In West Seattle Crime Watch tonight – an update on the knifepoint robbery reported last night, plus a new report of street crime. First: Police went back today to the scene where a woman was held up at knifepoint last night by a robber who took her iPhone. They didn’t find the phone (a black iPhone 4S) but they did find the knife, described as a “dagger-style” weapon. We also have learned more about the arrest made in the case. After the victim reported the holdup in the 3400 block of SW 106th – where she was walking after getting off a Metro bus – Officer Scott Luckie (of “tweetalong” and burglary-arrests fame) was “working the area,” according to an SPD summary, and “spotted the suspect in the 9200 block of 35th … The suspect tried to hide from Officer Luckie, but Luckie was able to relocate him and detain him …” The summary identifies the suspect as a boy who turns 17 next month and is “on probation for robbery.” Since he is a juvenile, online records don’t show whether he is still in custody tonight, nor do they show full details of his record, but we did find partial information on a case in which he appears to have been charged with third-degree assault last August and pleaded guilty in late October.
Second – a robbery attempt last night in the Genesee area. The victim is a visitor from out of the country, and the people he’s staying with say it’s the second time he’s been victimized:Read More
(Taken at 17th/Cambridge. We have blurred the face of one person who did not appear to be SPD.)
Two cases tonight: We don’t have official details on the one that’s still happening, but in South Delridge, police are out right now dealing with a report that was described on the scanner as an armed robbery, apparently at a business, possibly on 17th SW. We checked out the scene and saw what appeared to be a search, but it wasn’t clear exactly where the investigation was centered, so we’ll be checking back with SPD later.
There also was some scanner traffic about a strong-arm street robbery earlier – and we have received a note from the victim, a longtime WSB’er who says she was held up at knifepoint in Arbor Heights around 5:30 pm by someone who stole her iPhone 4S. She says police made an arrest but did not find the phone, so she is asking people in the area to be on the lookout for it. (We have a followup question out to ask where in AH this happened.) She says the data on it “has been wiped,” but she has its serial number from its original packaging.
ADDED 12:14 AM: The victim says it happened near 35th/106th, and that the suspect was found around the 9700-9900 block of 35th. The missing phone is a black iPhone 4S, 32GB, “in a black Marware flip case at the time.”
“Concerned Neighbor” says a hit-run driver smacked into her car in the Admiral District last night, near California/Walker, leaving behind pieces like the one above. She’s telling her story in hopes you can help close the case:
I just wanted to write a note to share my unfortunate experience, I hope to maybe find the person who did this to me and hold them accountable for their actions and to make our neighborhood streets safer.
I’ve been a member of this community for nearly four years. I work at two local small businesses, and I own a small condo here. About eight months ago, I went to leave for work only to find that someone had attempted to steal my car, rendering it undrivable and valueless in the process. The car couldn’t be repaired and I couldn’t claim it on my insurance because due to numerous hit and run accidents over the years while my car was parked, I could no longer insure it for anything but liability. After a month of getting around without a vehicle, I withdrew my entire savings, secured a loan and purchased my first brand new car. A month later I was diagnosed with thyroid cancer.
Tonight we finally have details on the gunfire incident that brought Seattle Police SWAT officers to an Alki neighborhood in the early hours of New Year’s Day, as mentioned briefly here that night.
We’ve obtained the full police report; what follows is what SPD says happened, starting with multiple 911 calls reporting “shots fired” at 60th/Hinds (map) less than an hour into the New Year:Read More
A question came in last night about a police/fire sighting at Sanislo Elementary on New Year’s Day. Nothing on the logs when we looked – but now the answer is in, via SPD Blotter:
On 01-01-2012, just shortly before 3:00 p.m., officers responded with school security, to an alarm at a school in the 1800 block of SW Myrtle St. Officers set up containment and used Seattle Fire Department ladders to gain access to the rooftop, where the 2 suspects (men 27 and 19 years-old) were hiding. The suspects were taking into custody without incident. The suspects had two packs filled with items stolen from the school. They also had burglary tools. Both suspects were booked into King County Jail for Investigation of Burglary.
That wasn’t the only time local police called on SFD to help with an investigation this past week – we covered a ladder-to-the-roof effort early December 29th in The Junction.
We heard a lot about mail theft and package theft before Christmas. Here’s the first report we’ve had since then, from a West Seattleite who didn’t want her name published:
Between 6:45 pm on Dec. 31st and 10 am on Jan. 1st, mail from our house on 35th Ave SW just south of SW Alaska [map], was stolen! We have two mailboxes, and both were cleared out, along with a small package for our neighbor. Just a warning for people in the area, this may have been random, but it is something to think about when leaving mail on a front porch on a busy street! This was reported to the police but we haven’t heard anything from them regarding the incident.
The USPS has its own investigators to deal with mail theft, and you can file a report with them by going here. P.S. – After taking December off, the West Seattle Crime Prevention Council resumes monthly meetings in two weeks, on Tuesday, January 17th, 7 pm, Southwest Precinct meeting room; if you have neighborhood crime concerns, that’s one place to bring them to police attention, face to face. The West Seattle Blockwatch Captains Network is scheduled to meet again toward month’s end; keep an eye on their site.
We have just added details from court documents to our White Center Now report on the first-degree-murder charge filed this afternoon against the suspect in Wednesday morning’s deadly shooting, 25-year-old Cu Van Truong. According to court documents, the dispute started over a piece of jewelry. The full story is here.
Some new information in the deadly White Center shooting, after the first court appearance of the 25-year-old West Seattle man arrested less than 10 hours after it happened. We’ve just published the update on partner site White Center Now.
Two reader reports to share tonight – first, a stolen car resembling the one in the photo sent by Rob, who hopes his car will be found:
Stolen from my driveway near 37th and Alaska on Tuesday (12/27/2011) between 7:30 PM and 9:30 PM.
The car is a 1998 Subaru Legacy GT Sedan (not the ubiquitous wagon). It is a lovely dark-green color with some minor dents in the right-rear corner. It has Washington truck plates (so the license# begins with an “A” and ends with an “F”). It has a distinctive hood vent and a tasteful rear spoiler, as you can almost see in (the) photo. I have filed a report with the police.
Second, A shares the story of a car whose driver was taking an odd path early today:
Approximately 0530 Wednesday morning, my partner noticed a white Nissan with license plate number 200-Z(xx) pulling in and out of driveways along 35th avenue SW before the turn onto Marine View Drive SW. After being noticed, the car then drove back up 35th to 106th and made a right heading towards White Center. Police were notified, please be on the lookout and report further suspicious behavior.
New information just in from the King County Sheriff’s Office – a suspect is now in custody in this morning’s deadly shooting at Seattle Roll Bakery in White Center, and the motive was not robbery after all. Full details on White Center Now.
12:47 AM: We’ve been covering a post-midnight shooting on partner site White Center Now, but we’re also hearing that Seattle Police are helping search, since the suspect was last seen headed this way, so we wanted to make sure you knew that ongoing coverage is here.
2:21 AM: We’ve updated the WCN story with video of King County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Sgt. Cindi West confirming the victim was killed, and that it apparently happened during a robbery at Seattle Roll Bakery. No arrest so far, but there were witnesses, so Sgt. West is hopeful there will be a description to share later this morning.
5:30 AM: Once that new information is out, we’ll have updates here and on WCN. TV crews are live in WC for the morning newscasts, but the reports we’ve seen so far haven’t had anything more than what we all learned from Sgt. West three-plus hours ago.
Several WSB’ers reported decoration thefts this holiday season, but the one reported a week ago by Cyndi and Steve was an especially tough tale, as they’re in mourning and only put decorations out for the neighbors. Earlier this evening, they sent a happier postscript:
I just wanted to let everybody know that our Christmas decorations were returned to us this afternoon. They were found in a hedge in the Alki area and Bridget returned them to us after reading the blog. Once again the wonderful people of West Seattle came through to help their neighbors.
6:40 PM: Police and fire are responding to 32nd and Juneau in High Point, where a female victim – possibly a teenager – has reportedly been shot in the leg, possibly from a passing car, according to initial scanner traffic. More as we get it.
6:52 PM UPDATE: Police on the scene confirm to WSB that the victim is a girl “in her mid-teens” with a leg wound. They are still trying to sort out the circumstances. Meantime, scanner traffic from the medic unit crew describe the victim as 15 years old and quote her as saying “she only heard one shot.”
7:06 PM UPDATE: From the scanner – police are talking with some people and trying to find out if they were involved. Our crew at the scene is close to where this questioning is happening, about a block from the shooting scene. WSB archives show this is the first shooting investigated in West Seattle in 2 months, since the Admiral murder-suicide shootings.
7:53 PM UPDATE: Our crew says police have now handcuffed the male who was being questioned (caveat, that does not ALWAYS mean an official arrest, we will be working to confirm with police). Police also are impounding/towing a car in which a source tells us the victim and possible suspects all may have been (photo to come when our crew is back at HQ). We aren’t likely to get an official update on the victim’s condition, but the medic-unit radio exchange earlier indicated that her vital signs were good.
9:36 PM UPDATE: New information from Southwest Precinct Lt. Ron Smith, who says that two “young males” found near the shooting victim and claiming to be “bystanders” were “investigated further and revealed that it was an accidental discharge inside the car. The bullet was recovered from the floor of the car. Shooter and gun are outstanding. A possible second female victim, who was not located, had reportedly been grazed by the single shot also. It appears a group of young individuals were smoking drugs in the car handling the gun when it was discharged, striking 2 of the females.”
This year’s latest proof that “crime takes no holiday”: Burcu e-mailed late last night with word of a Christmas Eve crash (photos added 2:02 pm):
There was a hit and run late 12/24 (in the 4400 block of) 45th Ave SW. Two cars were hit by a Ford truck which we could see from the remains. We didn’t leave the house all day (Christmas) until 9 pm. There were 2 Priuses parked back to back … the left side of the back one was badly damaged and the back side of the car parked at the front was badly damaged. … Ford truck remains on the floor is all we have. There wasn’t any note left on any of the cars. The police is here writing reports now but if anyone has heard/seen please notify us at btunca@gmail.com. This is extremely rude, heartless and I can’t find words to describe how I exactly feel. What a gift on Christmas!
(UPDATED with Stella back home – see below)
ORIGINAL 1:50 AM REPORT: The dog on the left is Stella – and her people are without her this Christmas morning, after burglar/s stole her (and more) on Christmas Eve. Chris sent this report late Saturday night:
My in-laws in West Seattle, on 31st Avenue and SW Holden St, [map] in the High Point neighborhood were robbed tonight. Their names are Mark and Jodi … and they are some of the kindest people I know. They were gone for most of the afternoon and evening delivering presents to their family around the Puget Sound area.
The thieves took all their Christmas gifts, family heirloom Christmas decorations, their electronics (TV, computer, etc).
But the BIGGEST loss, is their dog. Stella, a 3 year old female spayed Boxer (usually with a pink rope-style collar) was stolen by these heartless thieves. If you can help us to find her, it would mean the world to us all. I attached a photo of Stella, she’s on the left in the picture.
Gifts and electronics can be replaced, and heirlooms are only to remind us of the memories we already have. Their wonderful, kind, dog however is not replaceable. We’re all completely heartbroken that she was taken; my in-laws loved her like a child, and my own puppy (on the right in the photo) loved her so much.
Chris says they hope getting the word out might bring Stella home. We’ve added her to the WSB Pets page, too.
10:22 AM UPDATE: Good news! Just in from Chris:
Just to update: apparently Stella came home this morning. Not sure if she was just accidentally released by the burglars or if they let her go. Still traumatic to have the robbery have occurred, but with the only items missing being Christmas presents, I know we’ll have a much better Christmas. I’m seeing her return as the best present we could have gotten, under the circumstances. Family and friends (including the 4-footed variety) is what the holidays are really about.
Apparently she just showed up at the door – not hurt, Chris says, but “very scared.”
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