West Seattle, Washington
25 Monday
Have you seen Weston‘s trailer? It was stolen from 40th and Dawson between 2 am and 5 am today. Plate is 11756AE. Call 911 if you see it. (added) A few more details – it’s a 2018 KZ-IV Escape 140th Toy Hauler, with a burgundy and gray vinyl sticker stripe.
UPDATE: Weston says it was found in Burien.
One reader report tonight in West Seattle Crime Watch:
The photo is from a texter who says that happened to their pickup truck near 41st/Austin in Gatewood on Friday night. “Appears someone smashed the window and didn’t even go into the truck or take anything. Terrible and probably the 6th time this truck has been vandalized in the past year.”
Just keeping you updated on where catalytic-converter thieves are hitting – here’s the most-recent reader report we’ve received. From Kevin:
I live in a home around 60th and Admiral, Alki neighborhood. My Lexus SUV catalytic converter was stolen between 11:30 am and 5:30 pm (broad daylight) on Friday 9/4/21. It has been reported to police and insurance. Writing this so others keep a vigilant eye out for your neighbors or think about securing your catalytic converter.
Case # 2021-915725.
Photo of damage attached:
Missing your mailbox?
A texter sent that photo of mailboxes discovered dumped along the 45th SW/Marine View Drive stairway this morning.
Two reader reports in West Seattle Crime Watch:
CATALYTIC-CONVERTER THEFT: John reports:
I had my catalytic converter stolen off my 2007 Prius while it was in the driveway. I live up on 44th Ave. SW, just up the hill from Endolyne Joe’s. I did file a police reportl just wanted to get the word out for other people in the area to check their vehicles and keep a sharp eye out
WINDOW DAMAGE AND HARASSMENT: This happened in The Junction today, a reader reports:
At 9:50 am this morning, a very angry woman was seen throwing rocks at the windows of the Junction 47 apartments, some of which also hit Bishops Barbershop. The incident only lasted a few minutes, and she was seen heading across the street. The police were called by myself and a few others.
At 10:10 am the woman entered Bishops Barbershop and had a small confrontation with the receptionist, and refused to leave. The police were called again, but she left before they arrived, heading down 42nd Ave towards Alaska st.
I’ve attached a picture of the woman responsible.
Police incident # is 21-230289.
From Sarah:
Please be on the lookout for 2 bicycles stolen from our home, sometime overnight before 7 am on September 1. They were not visible from the street. One is a small women’s Ghost mountain bike with a drop seat, the color is called “Jade Blue” but more of a green-turquoise. The other is an Easy Rider silver mountain bike. A police report has been filed. Stolen from 25th Ave SW between Brandon and Findlay.
If you find one or both, let us know, and we’ll connect you.
Gatewood Elementary was vandalized overnight with what the principal described in email to families as “horrific racially-charged graffiti.” Principal Kyna Hogg wrote that, before students arrived for the day, “Our team took immediate action and covered the graffiti (until it can be permanently removed), we called 911, and informed the SPS Safety and Security team.”
(Added: WSB photo, part of the area where vandalism was covered up)
District spokesperson Tim Robinson tells WSB the work order for permanent removal is already in and work should happen soon. Gatewood has been hit with racist crime before; we reported earlier this year on the fourth theft of a Black Lives Matter banner from the school fence, The racists won’t win, Hogg assured families: “I believe it is important to continue to emphasize that Black Lives Matter at Gatewood Elementary School and throughout Seattle Public Schools.”
Three West Seattle Crime Watch reports:
STOLEN BICYCLE: Via email – the theft was discovered at 5:30 am today:
Stolen from Fauntleroy Way SW across from Fairmount Park Elementary. Please be on the lookout for a mountain bike “Ultra TreK,” mostly silver and blue with brand-new BMX tires and just metal handlebars. The seat is original and has a piece ripped out; it is yellow foam.
FOUND FIGURINES: Sent by Lisa:
I found this in front of my house and I’m assuming it’s been dumped? Looks brand new; happy to get it back to its owner. Call of Duty Ghosts toy figurines.
If it’s yours, contact us and we’ll connect you.
BURGLARY ARREST: Police report arresting a suspected burglar Wednesday after a break-in in the 1000 block of California Lane SW (west of Hamilton Viewpoint Park). They answered a 911 call around 5:30 pm about someone running through back yards; before they detained the suspect, a home had been broken into. The suspect was booked into jail for investigation of burglary as well as a warrant.
4:07 PM: Michelle says this happened at 1:30 pm today:
Truck stolen from Arbor Heights – (9800 block) 37th Ave SW – from inside our locked gate. It’s a 2001 F350 Ford truck, white. License C82519W
Call 911 if you see it.
5;46 PM: Same goes for this stolen car – the report is from Emily:
Our car was stolen early this morning. It is a red 1990 Miata. It was stolen at 4:53 AM; the person walked north on 46th Ave SW on the west side of the street between Hill and Holgate, walked right to our car and took it within 30 seconds. In North Admiral. License Plate is BZE4444
ORIGINAL TUESDAY REPORT: Summit Atlas, the charter middle/high school in Arbor Heights, was in lockdown for a little more than an hour this morning because of what was described in an email to parents as a “possible threat.” We called after a text from a reader; the school told us the lockdown was over and parents would get an explanation via email. One parent forwarded what was sent, in which the school said:
This morning, we responded to a report of a possible threat to our campus. When an incident occurs on our campus, we act quickly, we collaborate with the community and with local law enforcement, and we communicate with you promptly. The situation was resolved quickly, and all students are safe.
Our students’ safety is always our top priority and consistent with our safety protocols, our school building did go on lock down for approximately 70 minutes while the Seattle Police conducted a thorough investigation. …
Police say what information they have so far indicates the incident involved “an unfounded report of a weapon at the school.”
ADDED WEDNESDAY: The police summary that’s now available adds a few more details:
On 08-31-2021 at 0902 hours, officers responded to a school due to a student emailing a teacher about students bringing guns to the school. The school went into lockdown and units responded. The principal and officers spoke with the student about what they had heard. It became apparent quickly that the timeline of events given by the student was not possible. Officers did a check of the property for anything out of place. The school released from lockdown and thanked officers.
The city’s sharp rise in gunfire is in the spotlight today. First, a reader report on a West Seattle incident, from Anthony:
Just after 6:30 this morning, my wife and I were riding our bikes down Fairmount Ave and rounded the first corner just as the passenger in a stopped pickup truck fired three shots from a handgun (small caliber based on the sound) into the hillside at the first pullout on the right hand side. The truck, what looked like a mid-’90s white Chevy Silverado or GMC Sierra, took off down the hill towards Harbor Ave. Unfortunately I didn’t get a good look at the vehicle occupants or license plate. We immediately stopped, turned around, and went back to the top of Fairmount and called the police. Several officers responded quickly and I gave them the information I had.
This was just a few hours before Seattle Police Chief Adrian Diaz and two other city leaders held an online briefing/Q&A session for reporters to talk about the city’s ongoing wave of violence involving people using guns.
He said the incidents were happening at an “unrelenting pace.” Diaz said police are doing what they can, with dozens of gun-related arrests and 700 guns seized so far, but the overall numbers are daunting: Citywide, 380 incidents this year involving gunfire – that’s 100 more than this time last year, 150 more than this time in 2019. Of this year’s incidents, 104 involved injuries or deaths. The city has had 35 homicide victims so far this year – two of those “delayed” (from incidents in previous years), and three-quarters were shooting victims, the chief said. He repeated that the department is understaffed; there’s money to hire officers but hiring is not keeping up with the pace of attrition.
The City Council was represented at the event by Councilmember Alex Pedersen, who said he hopes his colleagues will support money for recruiting and hiring incentives; midyear budget decisions are coming up in two weeks. Also participating was Rex Brown, who leads the city Human Services Department’s Safe and Thriving Communities division; he talked about city investments in community-safety programs, saying they’re addressing “risk factors” at the “societal and community levels.” The chief, too, acknowledged it’s a many-faceted problem, saying that it’s not just an increase in gunfire involving youth violence but also mental-health issues, such as road rage. Regardless of staffing levels, he said, police need community support for the violence to stop: “Talk to your friends and family, (tell them) ‘guns are not the answer’.”
(SPD photo from last Tuesday, bullet-flattened tire)
Last Tuesday, we reported on what police described as a “road rage” confrontation that included gunfire at the 5-way intersection west of the low bridge. Police talked to everyone directly involved, including the people who fired their guns, who claimed they did it in self-defense. Though no one was arrested or cited at the time, detectives continue investigating to determine if charges should be recommended. While they’ve spoken with some witnesses, this happened during commute time at a busy intersection and police tell WSB the detective on the case would like to talk with others who saw what happened. If you can help, you are asked to call the SPD tip line, 206-233-5000.
Two reader reports in West Seattle Crime Watch:
GARAGE BURGLAR: From an Admiral resident:
Someone broke into our garage and our cars and stole a bunch of stuff. She couldn’t carry everything, having taken a bunch of stuff, and left a bag that she took from another West Seattle home in the alley (there was a mailing label in the bag and we found the owner). She hit our place at 7:30 am (Saturday) – we have her on Ring camera.
Our neighbor is fairly sure he saw her picture re some other theft or break-in earlier this year? There have been multiple police reports filed.
In all, neighbors believe this burglar hit at least four homes on 45th/46th near Admiral Way.
PARK VANDALISM: From Blair:
As we were taking a morning walk around the path on top of the reservoir at Westcrest Park this morning, we found that a picnic table, bench and part of a play structure had been unbolted and vandalized. A garbage can had also been rolled down the hill, and the “no motorized vehicles” sign at the 8th & Henderson entrance had been bent and removed from its post. I called it in to the Parks Department’s maintenance request line.
That’s 206-684-7250. (Find other key Parks numbers here.)
Police say one person was pistol-whipped and another narrowly missed by gunfire in the 1900 block of Harbor Avenue SW early today. They went to the area after a report of gunfire around 1:20 am; they found a 22-year-old man with a cut to the head. He wouldn’t talk to officers about what had happened but they say witnesses saw him pistol-whipped in a fight with someone who then fired multiple shots as the victim tried to run away. One bullet went through a parked van where a woman was asleep, just missing her. The pistol-whipping victim was taken to the hospital. Police are asking anyone with information to call their tip line at 206-233-5000.
Two cases of vandalism, both against symbols of the fight for racial justice:
DIVERSITY CENTER SIGN DEFACED: From Jean Iannelli Craciun at the Diversity Center of Washington in Morgan Junction:
I am sad to report that the Black Lives Matter sign we have had out front was marked with an X across the front and thrown down. Luckily the other side was not damaged and we could re-install it on that side. We were surprised to see this and it made us sad and angry….after all, this is West Seattle!!
MURAL VANDALIZED: On the south edge of West Seattle, Desmond Hansen‘s George Floyd signal-box mural has been vandalized again, this time with green paint splattered across it and someone then scrawling Black Lives Matter across the green blotch. This is not the only one of Hansen’s box murals to be defaced – his portrait of murdered hip-hop musician JuiceTheGod at 35th/Barton and the BLM-themed box at 42nd/Alaska have been hit too.
Haley sent the report:
I live on 35th between Henderson and Trenton. Someone stole my catalytic converter off my 2000 Honda Accord last night. It was parked in the alley in our off street parking spot. Car is low to the ground so they must have had to jack it up in order to access the catalytic converter. Police report filed, but wanted to let others in the area know.
According to the National Insurance Crime Bureau, catalytic-converter theft grew tenfold nationwide between 2018 and 2020.
What’s being stuffed into that car is a bicycle stolen moments earlier – around noon today – from outside the south end of Admiral Safeway. The thief cut the cable lock, according to (update) a friend of the bike owner’s mom, Kelly. The bicycle is a blue 2021 Kona Kahuna, 29″ wheels, bought from Alki Bike and Board (WSB sponsor). The thief’s car had an Oregon license plate, starting with 990; the image is from video taken by a bystander who followed him after the theft (we don’t have the clip in a playable size). No police-report # yet.
Two reader reports in West Seattle Crime Watch:
APARTMENT BURGLARY: Una says this happened while she was out of town:
I wanted to alert you and by extension the community that my apartment was broken into. I live in a secured access building near the Junction that was broken into around 3:30 am on August 23rd. The thieves hammered at the lock multiple times until it finally broke. My own security footage picked up sounds of door tampering on the 16th, 17th, and 20th as well. They appear to have known that apartment was empty. Items stolen include: phones, hard drive, fine jewelry, costume jewelry, perfumes, sunglasses, and dozens of pieces of personal affects (letters, cards, marathon medals).
Una says building management apparently has images of the burglar(s) but has not made them available.
ABANDONED TRICYCLE: From Jason:
This SmarTrike was likely stolen and dumped by my house. It is located on the north side of SW Genesee just west of 26th across from the golf course. It’s in excellent condition and probably new.
6:23 PM: No injuries this afternoon when someone in a car shot at someone in another car at or near the 5-way intersection just west of the low bridge. It’s taken a while to piece this together, but here’s what we have so far: The victim(s) called police and met them along Avalon; gunfire damage to their car was reported to include a flat tire. Then the suspect(s) called 911 and met up with officers in Riverside, near 17th/Marginal:
(WSB photo)
Meantime, officers went to the original scene at the Chelan/Marginal/Spokane/Delridge intersection and told dispatch they found three casings – from two different guns. We caught up with police at the Riverside scene, and they told us they’re investigating this as a case of “road rage” but they were still sorting it out and hadn’t arrested anyone yet.
7:46 PM: Just talked to SPD spokesperson Det. Valerie Carson. Here’s what she says police now have, after talking to people in both cars: This started on Highway 99 as a “merging issue” involving people in a Honda (car in the background of our photo above) and Subaru. As the two cars proceeded westward, they got close enough that some yelling ensued. Then after they both crossed the low bridge, they were stopped at the 5-way light, when two people in the Honda got out and came over to the Subaru, pounding on its windows, At one point, someone from the Honda allegedly punched someone from the Subaru; they claimed someone from the Subaru spat at them. The Subaru driver decided to drive away; both people from the Honda pulled guns and fired. They told police they did so in self-defense, feeling that the Subaru driver was going to run over them; the Subaru driver claimed they were already pulling away when the people from the Honda shot at them. Bullets hit a rear tire. No arrests as police continue to investigate; Det. Carson says they did confiscate the guns, and that both people in the Honda had valid concealed pistol licenses for them.
ADDED 11:49 AM: SPD Blotter has a post about this – same narrative as we added last night after talking with Det. Carson (spelling corrected), but with two photos added – first, the Subaru’s flat tire:
(SPD photo)
And the guns surrendered by the people in the Honda:
(SPD photo)
The post also notes that each car carried a woman and a man at the time of the incident.
That’s the spot in the Spruce (39th/Alaska) garage where a thief cut Casey‘s bicycle loose and took it. Casey is wondering if anybody saw the thief leaving the building with the bicycle, a North Rock model purchased about a month ago that looks like this. A police report has been filed online.
Two notes in West Seattle Crime Watch tonight:
STOLEN CAR DUMPED IN ARBOR HEIGHTS: A green Honda stolen in Leschi was abandoned “partly in the street” near 98th/California in Arbor Heights, neighbors report. Its windows were down, with a jacket and “several pieces of addressed and stamped envelopes” inside the car. Shortly after they emailed us about it, the owner showed up to claim the car. Neighbors reported hearing potentially related activity around 6 am today.
ROBBERY FOLLOWUPS: No arrests reported in either of the 35th SW mini-mart holdups last Friday/Saturday. Lucky 5 was robbed Friday afternoon, and the 35th/Barton 7-11 was robbed Saturday night. We obtained the report narratives on both from SPD today. At the Lucky 5, the clerk told police she had been through robberies before; she said the robber came into the store, walked behind the counter, pointed a gun at her, demanded cash, and got it. He then demanded her phone and took it before leaving. She called 911 using the phone of the next customer to walk in. Another customer found the clerk’s cell phone on the ground outside the store. The robbery at the 7-11 the next night proceeded similarly, according to the report narrative; the robber walked in, went behind the counter, pointed a gun at the clerk, demanded cash, got some, and left. In both cases, the reports say, police were able to access security-camera images, but those have not been made public.
Last time this car was stolen, a WSB reader found it. Maybe that’ll happen again this time. From Kitty:
Déjà vu! Dear Old Subie was stolen again today. Probably sometime this morning from North Admiral, 44th and Seattle Street. We have filed a report and are looking for her now, thinking she might have been taken for a joyride and dumped nearby. Please let us know if you’ve seen her? Almost 330,000 miles, Burgundy Red 1984 Subaru GL wagon 4WD, manual transmission. Washington plates 746KNY. Crystal Mountain and Alta stickers, extra roof rack, and, recent development, the hood looks slightly askew. We still love her…
Last time, in April 2019, it turned up in Morgan Junction. If you see it, call 911.
Police are investigating an armed robbery at the 35th/Barton 7-11. Few details but the robber has been described over emergency radio as Black, male, 6′ tall, in a black hat, black hoodie, and blue jeans, armed with a handgun. He was last seen running northbound on 35th. This comes just one day after the nearby Lucky 5 was held up at nid-afternoon Friday.
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