Last night’s Westwood Village standoff began just as we were starting to write this story about the sentencing hearing Friday for someoone involved in another one there almost one year ago. So we’re reporting this a day later than planned.

(WSB photo, February 2021)

What happened in February 2021 was a different type of standoff: It started with two burglars breaking into shops in the heart of the center. Police arrived and arrested one of them relatively quickly; the other one was considered possibly armed, so the SWAT team was called, and a three-hour standoff ensued, ending with the second arrest. Back in September, we reported on the plea bargain of one of the burglars, Jerry Plute Jr., and noted that one was in the works for the other, Rafael Meyers.

On Friday, Meyers was sentenced for a plea bargain that included two other burglaries in which he’d been charged, May 2020 at the Peel & Press restaurant in Morgan Junction, and August 2019 at a business in Auburn. As part of the agreement, a fourth charge, for a September 2020 burglary at a KFC in Shoreline, was dismissed. For all three of the burglaries to which he pleaded guilty, Meyers got an alternative sentence from King County Superior Court Judge Josephine Wiggs-Martin, as recommended by prosecutors and defense – residential drug treatment for up to six months, as part of DOSA (Drug Offender Sentencing Alternative). He’ll also be on two years of probation (community custody) provided he stays out of trouble. His lawyer’s report to the judge said that Meyers, who is 35, has “struggled with an opioid addiction for many years (and) has recently come to terms with his need for treatment after a long period of resistance to acknowledging the depth of his chemical dependency.” His treatment was to begin immediately, with a progress hearing set in April. (Plute’s sentence, as ordered back in September, was a year in jail, suspended providing he stays out of trouble.)

Four notes in West Seattle Crime Watch:

MYSTERY STABBING: Shortly before 3 this morning, police say, they got a report of a stabbing victim in the Home Depot parking lot, and found the victim “a block away at a gas station” with a stab wound to his left arm. However, police add, the victim “would not. provide specific details about the incident,” and they couldn’t find evidence of a scene. The victim, they say, “stated reeatedly that he did not want to ‘press charges’.” Nor did he want SFD to take him to a hospital; according to the police summary, he “opted to self-transport to Harborview for treatment.”

CATALYTIC CONVERTER STOLEN: Via text: “Our catalytic converter was stolen in 1700 block Alki Ave SW. 2007 Hyundai Tucson. Between the 14th & today. (We don’t drive often).”

PACKAGE THEFT #1: From Ted:

I watched this woman park and scope out three of my neighbor’s porches on 46th off Admiral around 10:30 am. I confronted her when I saw her take a package. She initially said she lived in that house then admitted she didn’t but said she lived in the neighborhood. Then she dropped the package and ran. Sadly I didn’t get a good picture of her but did of the car.

Unfortunately she removed the license plate prior to the prowl.

PACKAGE THEFT #2: From Monte:

3:17 am Tuesday morning, thief left a half-eaten creamsicle in exchange for my package. Dark-skinned male, around 6 feet, average/slender build. Winter coat with a fur-lined collar, flat-brimmed ball cap with the sticker still on it.

The package contained replacement straws for a water bottle.

Recognize either of these?

WESTWOOD: Abandoned next to V‘s home:

FAUNTLEROY: Dumped in the driveway at M‘s home:

If either of these might be yours, email us and we’ll connect you to the finder:

From SPD Blotter, word that someone was shot in Highland Park last night. Usually a large SFD response follows shootings and that’s how we find out, but in this case, the victim showed up at a hospital, driven there by a friend, and police pieced together what happened. From their post:

Around 2 AM, the victim was reportedly standing near 8th Avenue SW and SW Cloverdale Street when he became involved in a brief altercation with two people.

The victim later got into his car and saw the suspects drive past him and open fire, striking the victim in the leg. …

Detectives are investigating. If you have any information about this incident, please contact the SPD Violent Crimes Tip Line at 206-233-5000.

For real-time 911 log watchers, the “scenes of violence” response for this is logged to the address for the VA Hospital on Beacon Hill – that’s where the victim was taken by his friend, and SFD then transferred him to Harborview.

Three incidents in West Seattle Crime Watch:

ROXBURY INCIDENT: This response is unfolding right now – it started with a report of an “aggressive man in the street,” then as police responded, the man is reported to have gone inside the gas-station mini-mart at 30th/Roxbury and started breaking glass and throwing things. Officers told dispatch they deployed a Taser and have the suspect in custody; we confirmed that on scene:

Medics were called to check out the suspect. This is King County Sheriff’s Office jurisdiction and they were reported to be on the way. (ADDED 9:31 PM) We’re not likely to get additional information until tomorrow, but we do have a short video clip from Ted Huetter, who was at the nearby stoplight when he noticed the police response:

ADDED WEDNESDAY: SPD’s preliminary summary adds details:

Officers responded to a 911 hazard call regarding a subject lying in the roadway in the 2100 block of SW Roxbury St. Officers arrived and located the subject walking in the roadway in the 3400 block of SW Roxbury St. Officers attempted to persuade the subject out of the roadway, but he refused. While officers waited for additional units to arrive for an emergent detention, the subject ran in the road several blocks before entering a nearby gas station, located in the 2800 block SW Roxbury St. The subject proceeded to damage and/or throw most items in the store, shatter a window, and threw items at officers. One officer was struck by flying glass but uninjured. The subject eventually exited the store and a taser was deployed … The subject was taken into custody and Seattle Fire was requested for his injuries. The subject was transported to Harborview Medical Center via SFD, and a hospital guard was established until the subject could be booked into King County Jail for investigation of Malicious Mischief and Assault 3. The amount of loss suffered by the gas station was undetermined due to the extent of the damage.

Also in Crime Watch, the next two incidents both happened Saturday at Admiral Safeway, according to police summaries:

SHOPLIFT TURNED ROBBERY: This was reported at 8:45 am – a man was “placing items inside his cart, backpack, and duffel bag.” The store manager, the summary continues, “approached the suspect and offered to assist the suspect with checking out all the items he was concealing. The suspect became agitated and pulled out a hypodermic needle, and aggressively held the needle in his hand as a weapon. The manager placed a shopping cart between him and the suspect. The suspect walked out of the store with the stolen items inside his backpack and duffel bag.” Police searched but did not find him; the summary does not include a description.

ARMED MAN THREATENS CUSTOMERS: This was reported at 11:22 pm, and it did result in an arrest. The summary says “multiple 911 calls” reported a man “armed with an axe and knife, threatening customers.” No injuries were reported. Police found the man hiding in a stairwell. He was booked into jail for investigation of felony harassment.

11:59 PM: Police are investigating gunfire near 47th/Charlestown. They’ve just told dispatch that they’ve found “a couple of shell casings.” No reports of any injuries, though. This happened in an area where gunfire has been investigated before, including twice in one week last October. According to what officers have told dispatchers, they’ve gotten various descriptions of possible vehicles involved – no description of the armed person(s) so far.

ADDED 3:43 PM TUESDAY: We’ve requested the full-report narrative but haven’t received it yet. Here’s the preliminary summary made public by SPD:

Neighbors in the 4700 block of SW Charlestown called to report shots fired from a vehicle after a loud argument. When officers arrived, they located evidence of a shooting in front of an apartment building in the area. A female in the building was contacted who reported a burglary and hinted that her boyfriend may have fired his weapon while confronting the suspects who were driving a Gold or Silver Subaru Forester with tinted windows. However, her story changed repeatedly, she admitted lying initially to officers, and her boyfriend had fled the scene in a White BMW prior to officers’ arrival.

Be on the lookout for Andrea‘s car:

Stolen from our garage last night:
License ANJ2559
2014 white Subaru Forester
With golden retriever decal on back

Stolen between 1am and 6am Monday the 17th on 36th Ave SW near SW Hanford.

If you see it, call 911.

Sent to us via text this weekend:

Just wanted our neighbors and community to know that our 2006 Toyota Highlander’s catalytic converter was stolen some time between last Sunday, Jan. 9th and Friday, Jan. 14th. We don’t use the car much as my son takes the Metro to school and I’m within walking distance to my job. We live within a few blocks of Lafayette Elementary.

Not sure what people can do to deter this from happening to their car. Nonetheless, I thought people might want and need to know to be a bit more aware.

Deterrence advice is on this National Insurance Crime Bureau webpage, along with national stats showing how catalytic-converter theft grew dramatically between 2019 and 2020.

Three reports in West Seattle Crime Watch:

BUILDING BURGLARY: Brandon reports another condo-building break-in, this time in the 3200 block of Harbor Avenue SW reporting that a man first broke a door to get into the building, then broke into a car in a secure garage, and tried to burglarize other areas of the building. Plus: “Around the same time, someone (perhaps the same person) attempted to break into an office suite that provides mental health therapy to the community in the same building. Brandon says there’s video from the break-in; we’ve requested an image and will add it if we get it. Police incident # is 22-010698.

CATALYTIC-CONVERTER THEFT: We just got word this week of one that happened December 29th. Paul reports, “The catalytic converter was sawed off my Honda Element on December 28th. I was parked outside the Chelan while eating lunch. I was one space from the bar door. … We sure could use some political action to stop buyers from abetting this crime.” We checked the Washington State Legislature database and so far for this year’s session, four bills have been introduced related to catalytic-converter theft, including one co-sponsored by West Seattle-residing State House Rep. Joe Fitzgibbon, HB1815, which would establish a “pilot project” and task force focusing on ways to make it easier to track stolen catalytic converters, including a free ID-etching program.

WARRANT ARREST: We got a tip Thursday afternoon about a large police presence at 24th/Holden. Police were gone when we arrived, but we learned today that it was a warrant arrest. 20-year-old Kevon J. Givens was arrested on warrants from two 2020 cases in which he had been charged, second-degree robbery in a backpack theft at a Kirkland youth-activities center, attempted first-degree robbery in a backpack theft in South Seattle. The jail roster shows he is also under investigation for an alleged firearms violation. Court documents from the 2020 cases list Givens as a Beacon Hill resident.

As noted in our update on last night’s cannabis-store robbery, police said on of the suspects matched the description of a West Seattle carjacking 20 minutes earlier. We’ve obtained the police-report narrative on that incident. Police say an Uber Eats driver told them he was picking up an order at a restaurant in the 6500 block of 35th SW around 7:50 pm when two men approached him “walking toward his vehicle very fast.” One pulled out a “black Glock-style handgun and held it at waist level, aiming it directly at” the victim and telling him “give me your keys.” The keys were already in the car, which was running, so the victim gave the robbers his money clip. They got into the car and drove away southbound on 35th SW. Three things missing in the information we obtained: The report does not identify the restaurant (Grillbird is the only one in that area). The report also does not describe the car – we heard it mentioned on police radio as a white Acura – nor the robbers, aside from the possible link to the store holdup 20 minutes later. If you have any tips, the police incident # to refer to is 22-009805.

Three cases in West Seattle Crime Watch tonight:

BREWERY PROWLER: From Best of Hands Barrelhouse proprietor Nicholas Marianetti:

Last night/this morning between 4 & 5 am we caught … a prowler on our outdoor cameras.

Looks to be white male in his 40s-50s. Blue Seahawks beanie, gray puffy coat, blue jeans, and tennis shoes. He broke parts of our fence in order to gain access to our back deck where our outdoor walk-in sits.

No further damage was caused as we believe he was deterred by the bar-lock on our walk-in. We’ve had our walkin broken into, and product stolen before. We’d like to ask our neighbors to help us in remaining vigilant.

If you have any tips – or new suspicious activity to report (Best of Hands is at 35th/Webster, in the building with a cow on the roof), you can refer to SDOT incident 22-900827.

BUSINESS-DISTRICT VANDALISM: Michelle sent the photos this morning after noticing this scene outside businesses on the east side of the 2300 block of California SW:

This was “mid-cleanup,” she explained, adding that she reported it to police and described it as including planters, trash, and excrement. One business in that block has reported a chronic problem with the latter. We don’t have a police report number on this but will add it if we get one.

CAR DAMAGED BY GUNFIRE: This is from a preliminary police summary: A car was damaged by gunfire while parked for a week in the 6300 block of 16th SW (the report doesn’t specify whether it was on the street or in a private driveway). The car was parked on January 2nd or 3rd; a friend of its owner reported seeing the damage on January 4th. The owner returned to her car late last night and reported the damage. The police summary says, “The vehicle sustained numerous bullet impacts to the driver-side rear passenger window and door.”

Heads up if you’re expecting a delivery. A resident in Belvidere emailed with porch-camera video of a package thief (frame-grab above): “This package was dropped off 30 minutes before it was stolen… 12:48 pm today.” Note the video also shows the getaway car.

Sent by Shawn a short time ago:

(Photo altered to blur out the tagging)

I saw these 2 clowns painting graffiti on the wall this evening at 11:10 pm. It is on 42nd Ave SW on the wall of the Jefferson square parking lot. I called them out and one ran, the other took off toward the QFC on skateboard. There has been a lot of graffiti in the area lately.

Call 911 if you see this or any other crime in progress.

A week and a half ago, we reported on the arrest of a 31-year-old man found in a damaged stolen Chevy Suburban partly blocking traffic at California/Fauntleroy. The suspect, Aaron E. McCord, is still in jail, and the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office has filed a felony charge of stolen-vehicle possession against him. He was already awaiting trial on another case with the same charge, involving an auto theft from a Ballard apartment complex; the stolen car in which he was found here was taken in Southeast Seattle. In both arrests, police say they found McCord in possession of “shaved keys” he’s believed to have used to start the cars. In this case, police say he claimed he had bought the car from someone; in the previous case, he is reported to have told officers he borrowed the stolen car from a friend. Court documents say he has one felony conviction, also on a charge related to auto theft. His bail is set at $5,000.

The case of the “Halloween shooter” remains unsolved, and the victim asked us to republish the photo in another attempt to see if someone can identify him:

We first reported on the case in early November. It happened on 34th SW in Sunrise Heights; the victim and a neighbor spotted the man prowling their street and called 911 while the man was walking away. An hour later, he was back again, this time with a gun in his hand. The victim yelled at him – then, he says, his wife opened the door of their home, thinking her husband was in trouble, and the man fired at her. Bullets were found lodged in their house, and a casing and unspent bullet outside their house.

The victim tells WSB, “We met with the detective researching the case just prior to Christmas and he thought it would be helpful to see if the story could be posted again since 1) the shooter has yet to be identified and 2) the original story did generate a lot of tips. Any tips should be sent to the detective at spd6864@seattle.gov and the incident number should be referenced — 21-290133.”