That video shows two shoplifters walking out the door at West Seattle Runner (WSB sponsor) on Saturday with jackets they didn’t pay for. They’re also suspected of vandalism nearby. From WSR co-proprietor Tim McConnell:

They came into the store and said they were just looking around.

I assumed they were looking for a gift or something, so we went back to helping other people and checking back in with them like we do for every customer. Then they started focusing on our waterproof coats, which are the most expensive apparel items we carry. They checked the men’s and then the women’s, which seemed a little odd, but whatever. But then they started acting a little weird, looking around and seeing where the staff was. I’ve seen shoplifters before, so I am aware of the signs, but I gave them the benefit of the doubt and kept helping the people I was with. Then we started getting busy again, so my attention got diverted for a moment. A few minutes later they left, and one of my staff said that one of the kids grabbed a jacket and walked out. I ran down the street after them, and I came up on a kid that hadn’t been in the store, but as soon as I passed him, he yelled “Run!”. I was about 20 feet behind the thieves, and they started running. I caught up to the smaller kid right in front of PCC and yelled at him to drop it. He turned and squared up, but realized I was much bigger than him, so he dropped it and ran. At that time, I was under the impression he was the only one who took anything, so I collected my item and went back to the store. After reviewing the security video, I realized both kids had grabbed jackets, so we are still out at least $200. The money is a concern, but the brazenness is the most alarming. I can almost understand an addict doing this, but a teenage kid acting with complete disregard is troubling. We hope that by sharing this the kids’ families will see this and deal with them appropriately. We need to make this community a better one, but these kids seem like they are headed down the wrong path.

Here’s a catalog image of the still-missing jacket (women’s large). Meantime, Westside Barber Shop proprietor Stormy, a few blocks south of WSR, sent this security image taken shortly before the WSR theft:

Those same kids were vandalizing my neighbor’s air unit. I had a verbal exchange with them that ended with the kid in the green hat threatening me with physical violence.

We’ll add a police report # when we get it.

The report and photo are from Mariel:

Our garage got broken into and our red Specialized Roubaix bike got stolen last night, most likely around 10:30 p.m.- 2:30 a.m. by 32nd/Myrtle. My contact information is 754-234-7093.

A police report has been filed – initial report number is T22031113.

Three West Seattle Crime Watch notes:

STOLEN MAIL TRUCK: We haven’t been able to scratch together further details on this – police reports won’t be available before Monday – so we’re just getting it on the record. Several readers tipped us about a photo posted on social media Friday afternoon with a USPS truck, unoccupied, at 36th/Dawson, and items strewn around. When we heard about this, we went over but it was gone. The police call to the area was coded “suspicious person or vehicle.” However, archived dispatch audio confirmed a USPS truck was indeed reported stolen from 36th/Snoqualmie around 1:45 pm, while the carrier was delivering mail, moments before the 36th/Dawson discovery. If you think your mail might have been stolen, here’s USPS advice on how to report it.

PACKAGE FOUND: Richard found an item it appears a package thief didn’t want:

I found this Amazon package yesterday (Fri 12/16) late afternoon on the side of the road, Fairmount Ave SW. The package was empty & they tore off the address label but the item appears unique that someone might benefit knowing it was likely stolen. The item is a Cherbie Wicked Ball SE (a smart pet ball). I’ll try to contact Amazon with what limited info I have but hopefully the buyer will receive a credit. This time of year it’s best to use Amazon lockers instead of having packages left on your doorstep.

SEASONAL CRIME-PREVENTION TIPS: Speaking of advice, the annual tips circulated by SPD are in this flyer sent by Southwest Precinct Crime Prevention Coordinator Jennifer Danner – package theft included. She also has officially announced the next community meeting at the precinct (West Seattle Crime Prevention Council) is scheduled for 7 pm Thursday, January 12th – with online and in-person attendance options.

Three items in West Seattle Crime Watch this afternoon:

(WSB photo, last Friday)

MURDER VICTIM IDENTIFIED: One week ago, a man was shot and killed in a vehicle in the Roxhill Park parking lot. No arrest so far, but the victim has been identified: 21-year-old Carlo D. Mazzaferro, according to the King County Medical Examiner’s Office, killed by “multiple gunshot wounds.” Mr. Mazzaferro’s obituary appeared online today, remembering him as “an unassuming standout, both physically and creatively, with dreams of one day becoming a designer” and noting that “addiction (was) an unwelcomed companion throughout his life” that he was fighting with the help of involvement at Victory Outreach Church of Seattle. That’s where a memorial service is planned Monday. Police have not released information about a suspected motive or other circumstances beyond what was reported on scene that night.

LOCAL ARREST LINKED TO FENTANYL-SWAP PROBE: On Thursday citywide media reported on SPD’s arrests in an investigation involving swapping fentanyl for EBT. These reports stemmed from an SPD Blotter post which reveals that an arrest covered here in September was a result of the early stages of this investigation. From the SPD post:

Early in their investigation, detectives learned of a man dealing narcotics out of an RV. On September 23rd, officers served a search warrant on the RV in the 3700 block of Southwest Marginal Place and arrested the occupant.

That was then-62-year-old Thomas B. Hull, who as we reported at the time was charged with drug and gun felonies. He had been released from jail the day after his arrest – even before the charges were filed – after a judge declined to follow prosecutors’ request for $100,000 bail and set it at $10,000 instead. Jail records show he was back in jail in connection with the same case from October 1st through 6th. His case continues proceeding through the system.

STOLEN CAR HOTSPOT: Stolen cars are found in neighborhoods all around the peninsula (and city) but there are a few known hotspots – Harbor Avenue, near the 1st Avenue South Bridge, under the west end of the West Seattle Bridge among them. Listening to police radio, another one has stood out these past two days – the 9400 block of Myers Way South, near the Seattle Fire Joint Training Facility. At least six stolen vehicles have been recovered there since Thursday morning. We don’t have details but did hear one described over the air today as a Honda Civic stolen in Pierce County.

The report and photo are from Brooke:

It’s a sad morning. Stolen vehicle – 1986 Chevrolet K10 pickup, red lifted long bed. On corner of 44th Ave SW and SW Lander St. stolen between the hours of 8 pm and 530 am, December 14th-15th. Collectors plate 8302D. It’s very loud!

We’ll add the police-report number when we get it.

SATURDAY AFTERNOON: Brooke says the truck’s been found and an arrest made.

Two reader reports in West Seattle Crime Watch:

STOLEN GOLD TOYOTA: Maybe you’ll find Sarah‘s car:

Our car was stolen today at 3:45 pm from in front of our carport located in the alley between 40th Ave SW and 41st Ave SW off SW Bradford,

2007 gold Toyota RAV-4
WA license plate BLN5548

(Stock photo)

Please report to police or contact me if you see it. Thank you. 206-486-2718

SPD incident # is 2022-331103.

CAR BREAK-IN INTERRUPTED: Richard reports that a neighbor stopped what was either going to be a break-in or a car-theft attempt:

My 2011 Hyundai Elantra had an attempted break-in tonight at about 8:30 pm. My driver rear window was busted out in an attempt to either steal the car or rummage around for anything valuable inside. One of my neighbors was outside and saw the suspects against the car and thought it was suspicious. As he walked up to get closer, a getaway car (Honda Civic or similar) drove up to pick them up and they all drove off together. I live in the Fauntleroy neighborhood near Wildwood Market. Was fortunate to have neighbors on alert that were able to spook the burglars away before they were able to do anything more than break my window.

ADDED MONDAY: The SPD incident # is 2022-926217.

Four West Seattle Crime Watch reports:

ANOTHER CRASH-AND-GRAB BURGLARY: Five days after the crash-and-grab at Westwood Village‘s Big 5 store, a similar burglary happened early today at the Arrowhead Gardens mini-market El Quetzal (9240 2nd SW). After a reader tip, we went over and found the scene shown in our photo above. A member of the family that owns the store told us the entrance was so heavily damaged, they hadn’t been able to get inside to figure out what was taken. Police told them it likely happened around 5 am; the SPD call log on Twitter shows an alarm call received by 911 around quarter till 5. The store is closed until further notice. The SPD incident number is 2022-329753.

We also have three reader reports received in the past day-plus:

CAR STOLEN, THEN FOUND: This report is from Ray:

We had our 2016 Hyundai stolen from outside our Highland Park house (parked on the street) between 8 pm-10 pm (12/8). We were awakened by police at 2 am who found the car in North Delridge (a neighbor called in the missing car parked in their alley). The back window had been broken by a screwdriver and the ignition had been pulled out to hotwire the car. Just a heads up for other drivers in the area to continue to be cautious of what’s happening in the community.

CATALYTIC-CONVERTER THEFT ATTEMPT: This report is from William:

We live in the Fairmount Park area just a block from the Elementary School. (Friday) morning at 6:15 a large dark-colored pickup backed up to my Honda Element, which was parked in the driveway with the occupants clearly intending to steal the catalytic converter (this would be try #2). Fortunately my wife was sitting at the kitchen table, saw what was happening, ran outside and yelled at the guys, the scum took off but we were pretty surprised at the brazenness of this attempted theft at a pretty late hour of the morning.

PACKAGE SUBSTITUTION: Sindy in Highland Park had two packages taken on Wednesday and trash – including a fast-food receipt and vaping-cartridge box – left behind in their place. “Has anyone else in Highland Park been having similar issues? These were all supposed to be Christmas gifts.”

(WSB photo, June 2020)

9:20 PM: Two and a half years ago, a police investigation along the West Seattle shore became national news, after it was revealed that teenagers had found body parts in a suitcase near Luna/Anchor Park and posted about their discovery on social media. The victims were eventually identified as 35-year-old Jessica Lewis and 27-year-old Austin Wenner, who had been renting a room at the Burien home of the man subsequently charged with their murder, Michael L. Dudley, now 64. He was charged with second-degree murder for allegedly shooting the victims to death and dumping their dismembered bodies in Elliott Bay and the Duwamish River. Dudley has been on trial in King County Superior Court, where this afternoon the jury announced their verdict: Guilty, according to the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. The verdict documents aren’t in the online files yet but we expect to get them tomorrow. Dudley has a felony record from the 1990s.

ADDED FRIDAY AFTERNOON: The charges were revised in September to four counts of second-degree murder, though there were two victims, Dudley was found guilty on all four counts, including the added circumstance of having used a gun. We asked KCPAO spokesperson Casey McNerthney about the four counts. He explains, “The four charges involved two different theories of murder. Those theories are intentional murder in the second degree and felony murder in the second degree. To make it easier to understand, prosecutors charged those in separate counts. Count 1 and 2 were charges of intentional murder in the second degree, one for each victim. Count 3 and 4 were charges of felony murder in the second degree, one for each victim.” But when Dudley is sentenced, he will be sentenced for two counts, McNerthney adds.

The photo and report are from Bradley:

My brother-in-law’s pickup was stolen from in front of our house last night in north Admiral. It is a lifted, white Ford F350 with rear window sticker on left side that says “existence” and right-side sticker says “rapid firearms.” Also has a yellow “CAT” sticker on the tailgate. Last seen on Delridge around 10am pulling an open cargo trailer with a spare tire. If you see it, please notify the police.

Plate number is C61282Y. We’ll add the police-report number when we get it. (Added: 2022-327908.)

12/18 UPDATE: Brad says the truck’s been found in Shoreline.

Seattle Police say the Admiral Way 7-11 was held up early this morning, and they believe the robbers are the same ones who hit the 35th/Barton 7-11 and a Burien gas station early Sunday. The report summary says the Admiral Way holdup happened arund quarter till 4 this morning, with the robbers traveling in a “white, smaller SUV” and parking in the alley east of the store. From there, the summary says: “Two (robbers) entered, one wearing a backpack and armed with a handgun, the other pulled a long gun from his pants. They went behind the counter and demanded the cash drawer be opened. They also took some thin cigars from behind the counter. The cashier had some difficultly opening the register. The third (robber) then opened the front door and pointed a handgun at the clerk from the door. The (robber) with the backpack then took the cash from the register and they all fled to the vehicle.” The summary also notes that an officer heading toward that scene subsequently spotted what’s believed to have been the same vehicle in an alley by the 35th/Avalon 7-11. As the officer approached, that vehicle “fled at a high rate of speed onto the West Seattle Bridge from Delridge Way SW.” Followup investigation revealed that it was a stolen car and that the robbers inside it were likely the same ones from the 35th/Barton 7-11 heist.

D‘s debit-card number was stolen even though the card itself was not. Here’s her story, with a message for you:

Somehow-someway, my debit card number has been compromised, likely at a business point of sale from somewhere in my neighborhood, Highland Park-White Center-Arbor Heights.

Yesterday someone was using my debit card numbers to drain my bank account at the Arbor Heights 7-11 ATM while my card and I were elsewhere.

My bank texted/called me around 3 PM yesterday with an alert that $120 was being withdrawn out of my account from the ATM at the 9200 35th Ave SW 7-11. I…was at Joann Fabrics in Tukwila with my card safely tucked in my pocket.

I responded to the bank fraud analyst immediately. They asked if I had withdrawn $$$ at 2:45 and then again at 2:46, then asked about all of the places I’d been in the last 2 days – including my grocery purchase at QFC the night before.

I’ve contacted the police and am headed to meet the 7-11 manager this morning to see about getting a video for the investigators.

It is a bit shocking but I guess not particularly surprising. I’m just thankful that I had my bank notification buttons set to contact me so quickly, and thankful I still have enough to pay bills. I will have to make a claim with the bank during business hours tomorrow and will likely get the money back.

I guess I’m just writing to you so you can let your readers know to be vigilant with their cards – or make sure that they have account notifications set on their card use at the very least.

D. has a temporary SPD report # so far – T22029992. Meantime, be aware there are many ways card-number theft can happen; in addition to signing up for notifications, here are ways to reduce the chance you’ll be hit.

12:58 AM: Police have converged on the 35th/Barton 7-11 after a report of an armed robbery a short time ago. So far they’re told the three robbers got away in a car described as (updated) a white ~2008 BMW 3-series, 2-door, right rear bumper damage, dealer plates, last seen southbound on 35th.

1:14 AM: Dispatch has told officers that King County Sheriff’s Deputies are investigating a gas-station holdup that “just happened” in Burien with a getaway car that sounds identical to this one.

ADDED MONDAY: Here’s the SPD summary:

At 0046 hours, two suspects entered a convenience store located in the 9200 block 35 AVE SW. One suspect brandished a handgun and the suspects made off with money from the register (containing $600-$700). Suspects got in a waiting white BMW 3 Series BMW coupe with a third subject and fled the area SB. About 20 minutes later, KCSO reported an armed robbery at the Shell station at 12653 Ambaum BLVD SW with matching suspect descriptions (KCSO case number 2022-25968). Area check was negative.

Two days ago we reported on the arrest of a man found half-naked in a stolen pickup truck near Highland Park Elementary. When police searched the truck, they found drugs an a gun. Now three felony charges are filed against 25-year-old Ezequiel A. Lopez-Ortiz of Tacoma: Unlawful gun possession, possession of a stolen vehicle, and possession of drugs with intent to distribute or manufacture. The truck, a 2020 Dodge Ram, had been stolen from the Port of Seattle, according to the charging documents, and partially spray-painted red. Prosecutors also say Lopez-Ortiz has 10 felony convictions in the past 10 years, including three for unlawful gun possession, and seven current warrants from three counties – King, Spokane, and Kittitas. The gun seized from under the driver’s seat in the stolen truck is described as a 9mm SIG Sauer P320 pistol “with fifteen rounds in the magazine and one round in the firing chamber, under the driver’s seat.” Police also found “a backpack behind the driver’s seat containing .45 caliber bullets and an AR15 style magazine with 5.56 caliber bullets.” The drugs described in the previous report are what the charging documents list – cocaine, meth in baggies, and more than 100 suspected “blues” (fentanyl pills). Prosecutors are asking that bail for Lopez-Ortiz be set at $50,000 but as of the filing, there hadn’t been a bail decision yet because Lopez-Ortiz had been refusing to appear in court.

That security-camera image is from charging documents in the case that the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office has filed against an alleged serial shoplifter, 25-year-old West Seattle resident Joseph E. Herdrich. It is described as showing Herdrich exiting the Marshall’s store at Westwood Village on October 5th with more than $850 in stolen merchandise. He wasn’t arrested that day, but just two weeks earlier, he had been arrested there in similar circumstances – here’s a security-camera image from that day, in which he is accused of stealing $700 worth of merchandise:

Three and a half days later, on September 24th, with no charges yet filed, he was released from jail. But he’s there now, two weeks after yet another arrest at Westwood Village, after allegedly shoplifting more than $500 in items from the QFC store on November 18th. In that case, store security confronted him and got the items back; he was still outside the store when police arrived and arrested him. Now the KCPAO has charged him with three counts of second-degree burglary for all three of the incidents we’ve mentioned, The charging documents say Herdrich had already been banned – “trespassed” – from both those stores and from other businesses in Westwood Village, but keeps going back to shoplift. An SPD detective wrote in a September report that Herdrich had been under investigation for months for thefts at both the same Marshall’s store and Delridge Home Depot and that he was “driven by his fentanyl addiction.” Herdrich’s arraignment is scheduled for December 7. His bail was set at just $250 by a judge who prosecutors say was unaware of his previous arrests; they argued for raising it to $5,000 given the added facts in the case, but the court docket says that motion was denied.

Two reader reports:

PACKAGE THEFT: Jessica reports this person stole a package Wednesday on 14th SW and her security cam got the thief and his getaway car:

Couldn’t make out a license plate #. Saw him drive away in person and it looked like the plate was covered with a yellow paper/advertisement.

CAR PROWLS: Libby sent this report:

Writing on behalf of two of us neighbors in the 5900 block of 38th Ave SW. We both left our cars unlocked and they were rummaged through (Tuesday) night sometime between 11 pm and 4 am. The thieves took miscellaneous items, vehicle registrations, and insurance cards. We have filed police reports. A good reminder to lock your vehicles!

(Seattle Police photos)

Seattle Police have arrested a man found in the stolen pickup shown above near Highland Park Elementary, passed out, partly unclothed, with drugs and a loaded gun. They say people at the school and in the neighborhood reported the man around 7:40 am for “lewd conduct” at 11th/Cloverdale. Officers found the 26-year-old man, a convicted felon, inside the pickup “which appeared to have been spray-painted white,” with his pants pulled down. His girlfriend was trying to wake him up. After learning the pickup was stolen, they arrested him, and a subsequent search turned up what SPD lists as “a 24-gram brick of cocaine, 115 grams of methamphetamine in individual baggies, a 55-gram rock of methamphetamine, 149 fentanyl pills, and ammunition.”

He’s currently in the King County Jail. Court records show he’s already awaiting trial on four King County charges from 2020 and 2021 – 2 cases of attempting to elude police, one of possessing a stolen car, one of possessing drugs.

The video and report are from Amy:

We live in a townhouse in the alley behind Juneau Street Market. Our neighbor’s mailbox was broken into on Monday night and his mail was stolen. (The thief also checked our mailboxes and checked out our neighbor’s house.) We have video of the thieves approaching and of the break-in. (above) … Our neighbor has reported the incident but we wanted the West Seattle community to be aware.

This is the framegrab with the clearest view of both faces:

We’ll add the incident # when we get it.