West Seattle, Washington
22 Friday
We’ve been watching for this link since seeing it on the late news last night. Now it’s online — videotaped fight at Alki, and worried neighbors.
In case you saw the same police activity at WV Barnes & Noble this morning (we were at the Museum of Flight) — four police cars, people in handcuffs, store briefly closed (or so one would-be customer was told) because of it — here’s what WSB reader Liz later heard from store staff: it started as a shoplifting investigation, then appeared to involve credit-card fraud, and there was concern one suspect was armed. Ended uneventfully with up to 3 arrests.
Story and video clip here. Meantime, this story says suspect Alfred Layton Jr. made a court appearance today, bail set at $250,000. King County Jail Lookup says he is still in jail; state court cases search says he has a record, three criminal “non-traffic” cases in 1999, one “civil harassment” case in 2001.
Just got home from Seafair Free Friday etc. (more on that later) and thanks to MargL out there in WSBland, didn’t even have to surf the news sites to find out the guy accused of kidnapping and attacking an Arbor Heights woman is now under arrest, caught in Cle Elum, where the victim was found yesterday. P-I article here. 8 PM UPDATE: This story says the suspect’s name is Alfred Layton (although the same story misspells the victim’s name, so take that into consideration). 10:55 PM UPDATE: According to the online King County Jail Inmate Lookup, Layton was booked into the county jail at 9:40 tonight for investigation of kidnapping and burglary.
Christopher Boffoli tells WSB that the first meeting of the new Junction Neighborhood Organization, JuNO, had a great turnout last night (especially considering the temptations of a warm summer night). He also passes on some updates about area crime, procured from a Seattle Police rep in attendance — click to read what Christopher reports about that:Read More
Found it in only one report, but for everyone who either wants to be on the lookout or has been wondering if it’s someone they have dealt with, here’s what that report says:
Police are now looking for the suspect’s vehicle, a maroon 1987 Dodge van with dark painted windows and Washington license plate: 425 LLV.
That’s according to this story (video clip included), including an interview with the husband of the victim, now identified as Terry Leffard. Still no additional info from other coverage or Seattle Police of exactly who the kidnapper/attacker is, except that he is described as a transient living in a van. One clarification — with verified address info (9800 block of 33rd SW), we know the area where this happened is Arbor Heights, not Westwood as we mentioned earlier.
The Times says she was found in Cle Elum because her kidnapper/attacker dropped her off at a clinic there. Still no ID or description of the “landscaper” who is suspected of having done this.
Seattle Police just told us the WS woman reported missing (previous post) has now been found, and officers are going to talk to her to find out what happened. This all unfolded in the Westwood area. At least, that’s where police say the victim lives; this update quotes family members as saying the victim was found in Cle Elum. We have asked Seattle Police to let us know if it turns out later there is a suspect we all need to be watching for.
Thanks to everybody who wrote to tell us about this while we were out on Blue Angels watch — the search for a missing woman in West Seattle. Will see what more we can find out from Seattle Police asap, including where this happened.
We wanted to make sure everyone saw this note added late last night as a comment on both of our recent posts about the Delridge shootings, since the event is tonight. (A reader had described it here as a “block watch” meeting but it’s much more.):
For those residing in North Delridge please come to the North Delridge Neighborhood Council monthly meeting … Wednesday August 1st, at the Delridge Library. Meeting starts at 6:30 and ends at 7:45. One of SPD’s finest, Community Police Team Officer Brian Ballew, will be present to fill in folks on the recent shootings.
Relentless citizen pressure is, and will continue to make a difference. Never hesitate to call 911, because if you think it looks strange, I will almost guarantee that it is strange.
Mike Dady Co-Chair – North Delridge Neighborhood Council
From the eyewitness who first told us all about Sunday morning’s shooting, second one in a short stretch of Delridge in two days:
I talked to my neighbor today and she said that an officer paid her a visit, as a follow up to Sunday’s shooting. The officer told her that apparently there is a turf war going on between gangs in White Center and West Seattle. There seems to be a house or apt. around the 5600 block of Delridge that is bringing them down here. As of yet they are not exactly sure what address or people.
The officer said that Sunday’s shooting was in retaliation for Thursday’s shooting. They encouraged her to call the police if you see groups of 2 or more around the 5600 Block late at night that appear to be doing anything like through gang signs or getting loud etc. they hope that if they can bother them enough they will move on.
Also of note there will be a block watch meeting at the Delridge library on Wednesday August 1, 2007 @ 6:30 pm. I encourage everyone in the neighborhood to attend. This is our neighborhood and we don’t have to put up with this cr*p!
The P-i has finally picked up on the one we reported here yesterday, with a story looking at whether the two recent shootings might be related.
This one doesn’t seem to have been covered by the “traditional media.” However, the online 911 logs verify an “assault with weapons” call in the area at the time the letterwriter mentions, about three blocks south of Thursday night’s shooting. Here’s the e-mail we received, verbatim:
There was another shooting just up the street on Delridge early this morning. At the intersection of Delridge way sw and sw Juneau st. There was a shooting at approx. 1:50 am July 29, 2007.
The incident started with a car stop in the northbound lane of Delridge just after the intersection there where 4 young black males verbally arguing in the street. The car then pulled over and parked and another young black man got out. The 3 from the car proceeded to get into a physical fight with 2 other men. The fight seemed to have broken up with the 3 running back to their car when one of those 3 fired 5 shots in the direction of the other group and hit one of them.
The car speed off northbound on Delridge. The victim was hit in the head with a grazing wound. There were several eyewitnesses to the event who gave statements to the police. Who responded very promptly, they arrived at the scene just after the car left and ran to help the victim. Soon there where 3 fire trucks and 7 police cars, the intersection was taped off and evidence collected. The police said that the young man should be fine.
The gang unit was out and the victims companion refused to give a statement. Which in my opinion supports this incident being gang related. This is the second shooting in a 5 block stretch of Delridge in 4 days. In addition the police mention a driveby earlier in the week. I was the eyewitness who saw everything and gave a statement.
Hope this helps others in the community to be aware and to call things in. It’s okay to make a non-emergency call to 911 to report suspicious activity.
The Times says the victim is a student at SSCC; both the Times and P-I updates say the gunshots may have followed some kind of squabble over a ring. No particular description of who they’re looking for, just that a red minivan might have been involved.
We saw the fire call online for “assault with weapons” at 5626 Delridge; the P-I’s Big Blog has a few details (near the bottom of this post) — one man shot, taken to Harborview Medical Center. FRIDAY 9 AM UPDATE: P-I has a few more details; so does KIRO tv, with a pic.
From Creighton Space (one of the 75-plus sites featured on our Other Blogs In WS page): A poster near his home promises a reward for solving an arson, but where was the fire? (We’ll check with our police contacts in the morning if no one solves this sooner.)
Tomorrow’s the deadline to sign up your block for a night of crime-fighting, community-building, street-closing fun: 
Night Out 2007 is Tuesday, August 7, 6-10 pm. Find out how to sign up for it here. If you’re in the “Weed & Seed” grant area of South Delridge/downtown White Center, you might be able to get a small grant for supplies (not food); click here to e-mail the folks responsible for that. If you’re in the Beach Drive area, BDB has been working to organize a get-together there. If you’re in Fairmount Springs (northeast of Morgan Junction), their invite is online. Pigeon Point has a location posted too. Wherever you are in WS, if you have a Night Out get-together, take a pic that night, send it to us, we would love to post it in our follow-ups.
Our blogland-trolling picked up this tale. (Wonder where exactly he meant by the “Delridge projects.”)
A Gatewood neighborhood e-mail list has been abuzz about word of an arrest in connection with one or more of the break-ins that have hit several WS neighborhoods (from Gatewood to The Junction and further north), and concern about whether this person will be appropriately charged. Seattle Police are able to confirm for us that one person is under arrest, and they are awaiting word on what charges will be filed by prosecutors — what happens after they make arrests is ultimately up to the prosecutor’s office, not the police department. They say they cannot go into any other details at this point.
We know you’re mad about crime and ready to tell the crooks “enough” — one way to make a stand is to organize a block party for National Night Out on August 7th. If you sign up with Seattle Police within the next few weeks (full info here), you get to close your block to traffic and dance (or whatever) in the streets.
According to the map and list accompanying this P-I article, one of the Lincoln Park lots has had the 5th-highest number of car break-ins reported citywide in the past 18 years. (Although the number cited during that span, 452, “only” equals out to roughly one every two weeks.)
According to this article (which includes a sketch of who police want to find), one particular guy has attacked one particular woman south of Admiral twice in the last seven months.
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