Two reader reports in West Seattle Crime Watch:

BICYCLES STOLEN: The screenshot above is from this security video sent by Zach after 2 bicycles were stolen from his home near Admiral/59th last Thursday:

He reports, “Thieves came into our garage (we left it open for a few hours) and they took both our bikes off the rack and loaded them into a truck and sped away. My bike is an REI City 1.1 hybrid in teal color and my wife’s is a Novara Fiona beach cruiser style in teal/white. A police report has been filed and the bikes have been reported stolen on BikeIndex.com.” The SPD report # is 21-110902.

SAFETY ALERT: A reader wants to alert neighbors about a suspicious driver following her as she walked in north Morgan Junction last night, pushing her bicycle at first: “A black sedan pulled up next to me slowly and was slowly driving right next to me keeping pace with me as I walked. I looked over and noticed the windows were pitch black. You couldn’t see into them at all. For the first second or two I didn’t think anything nefarious was happening and was expecting them to maybe roll down a window and ask for directions or something like that. But the car just kept slowly driving next to me and all of the sudden I felt like I might be in a bad situation so I walked faster and they followed and then I hopped on my bike and took off really fast.” The driver did not follow from that point. No further description of the car; she just wanted to get this out there in case it had happened to anyone else.

Four notes in West Seattle Crime Watch today:

BUILDING BREAK-IN TURNED ROBBERY: This happened early today in the 2600 block of 42nd SW. The preliminary police summary says the victim, observing from their apartment, saw someone “walking from the storage area with the victim’s tools. Victim went out and confronted the suspect, who was carrying the victim’s tools that had been stored in a secured storage area. The suspect fled on foot and the suspect gave chase. As the victim caught up, the suspect turned on the victim and pointed a black semi-automatic handgun at the victim. The victim disengaged and the suspect continued fleeing on foot. The suspect was last seen westbound on the 4200 block of SW Lander St.”

BUILDING BREAK-IN WITH ARREST: Police are investigating whether that incident might be linked to this one a bit later in which they made an arrest. Their preliminary summary says, “The manager of the apartment complex heard crashing coming from the laundry room. They went to investigate and found the door had been forced open and they observed the (suspect) in the room among overturned machines and coins on the floor. The (suspect) claimed they had permission to be there, but the manager knew otherwise. The (suspect) rushed by the manager, who called out for help. Other residents heard and came out to see the (suspect) fleeing. The group of residents grabbed the (suspect) and held them down until police arrived. They also found a gun on the (suspect). It turned out to be a realistic-looking pellet gun. The (suspect) was arrested for burglary.”

DUMPED-LIKELY-STOLEN CASH DRAWER: Cameron found this atop a compost/yard-waste bin near Oregon/California – if you’re missing one, let us know:

HIT-RUN: From D, who took the photos outside Fauntleroy Church:

Erratic driver smashed into signs, lost a wheel, and continued up Brace Point. As we’re looking at the wreckage a bus driver stops long enough to say the car is just around the corner. We drove up to 35th but did not find it. How far can it get on 3 wheels?

Two reader reports and a followup tonight in West Seattle Crime Watch:

MAILBOX PROWLER: The video and report are from Justin in the Alki area:

Just wanted to share with the community that these is someone going around checking mailboxes in the middle of the night. This is the second time I’ve caught video of this person. The other time, he was on a BMX-style bike.

BUILDING BREAK-IN: The photo and report are from Jordan

I wanted to share a break-in incident we had here at the Broxton (5016 California Ave SW) to make the community aware. An intruder broke into our condo building on the evening of May 4th around 10 pm. They spent over 30 minutes inside the building, stealing at least 1 item and tampering with at least 1 vehicle in our parking garage. We would appreciate any/all feedback from the community on this person’s identity to add to our open police report.

We don’t have that report number yet but will add it here when we do.

BURGLARY SUSPECT CHARGED: Also on Tuesday night – as reported here Thursday – police arrested a 36-year-old man after a break-in at a Morgan Junction apartment building. Today, the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office filed two second-degree burglary charges against the suspect, Justin Goolsby. The charges cover the break-in in our report – one that left mailboxes, doors, and cars damaged at a building in the 6500 block of California SW – and another one earlier that night, in the 6900 block, around 10 pm. At that building, court documents allege, Goolsby “damaged several doors, discharged a fire extinguisher, stole the complex’s garage door opener, and rendered two elevator doors inoperable due to damage.” He has no felony convictions but is awaiting trial on three charges from Avalon Way building burglaries one night last November; he remains in King County Jail with bail set at $5,000.

Two more West Seattle Crime Watch notes tonight:

STOLEN BICYCLE: The photo and report are from Jake:

My wife’s bike was stolen from a shared garage in the 4700 block of 41st Ave SW around noon on May 4th. The thief slipped under the garage door behind a car that was exiting the building. The bike isn’t worth much money so it may have been dumped somewhere before leaving West Seattle. Please be on the lookout. Bike is posted to the Index and a Police report has been filed (#2021-110446)

FIRE-SETTING ARREST: A 51-year-old man is in jail tonight, bail set at $1,000, arrested for investigation of reckless burning. Police say that they responded to an area across from Westwood Village just after 8 pm last night, after a complaint that someone was “using lit newspaper to try to catch a wooden residential fence on fire.” The report adds, “The resident of the house pulled the lit newspaper out of the fence before the wood caught on fire.”

Three notes in Crime Watch this morning:

RYAN COX UPDATE: Since his post-prison-release arrest last week, we’ve been watching the case. This morning, the VINE system sent notification that he is out of custody. The SCORE jail roster shows him still there with “scheduled release” tonight, so we are working to clarify. Regarding last week’s arrest, Department of Corrections spokesperson Jacque Coe told WSB that he “was arrested on a DOC warrant for two alleged violations; a) failure to comply with approved prison release address, and b) absconding by failure to report. As a condition of his supervision, he was to report to a field office within one business day of his release where geographical conditions, if any, would be discussed with him at that time, in addition to other resources of support specific to his needs.”

BUILDING-BURGLARY ARREST: A 36-year-old man is in jail, accused of breaking into a Morgan Junction apartment building in the 6500 block of California SW late Tuesday night. Police were called when the break-in was seen on live security video, with the burglar using a hammer to damage mailboxes, according to the SPD report. Police were told the suspect was first caught in the building three hours earlier, told to leave, then came back. Not only were the mailboxes damaged, the report says, two building doors also had handle damage, and door locks on two tenants’ vehicles were damaged. Police reviewed recorded security video and noted a “garden hoe” being used to damage the mailboxes as well as a hammer; both were found and taken into evidence. The police report says the suspect told police he had just ingested drugs, including heroin, so he was taken to Harborview for evaluation before being booked into jail. Online records show the suspect is awaiting trial for charges in three building break-ins on SW Avalon Way last November. We’ll update after his expected bail hearing in this case later today.

WHITE CENTER VANDALISM: Local community advocates are circulating this link to a crowdfunding campaign to help more than half a dozen White Center businesses deal with the damage done by vandals in recent months, and asked us to share it with you. The cases are being investigated by the King County Sheriff’s Office; we hope to get an update during tonight’s North Highline Unincorporated Area Council meeting (7 pm, online).

In West Seattle Crime Watch:

Those photos are from the Southwest Precinct, accompanying this alert:

On 4/25/21 at (1:20 am), the two … pictured above forced entry into the front doors of a secured residential building in the 9000 block of 20th Ave SW using a power drill. The (burglars) proceeded to steal packages from the lobby area and prowl several cars in the parking garage. There are no good face shots of the (burglars), but their clothing may be recognizable or there may be similar crimes where the suspects may be wearing similar clothing.

If you have any information about who they are, contact Detective Topacio at 206-256-6821.

Two West Seattle Crime Watch reader reports today:

2 MORE CATALYTIC CONVERTER THEFTS: From Scott:

My much-loved Honda Element lost its catalytic converter to despicable thieves (Friday) night. As did my fellow Element owner the next block south. I’m in the 2600 block of Belvidere. It is an expensive problem, not just the cost of the replacement part itself but they cause collateral damage which also must be fixed. Found vehicles are lining up for these repairs at shops.

Though a variety of vehicles are vulnerable, Elements are among the most-popular targets these days, as we learned firsthand in February.

CAR PROWLS: From Karen in Hansen View:

One of our neighbors discovered this morning that car prowlers hit several vehicles in our neighborhood overnight. They broke out a streetside-facing window on two vehicles that were parked on SW Dawson where it dead-ends just west of 36th. They unlocked our older Subaru, rifled through the glove box, and left a large straightedge screwdriver behind. Another neighbor had his van prowled, but doesn’t think anything was taken. As neighbors here compare notes, what we know so far is that this happened around 2 o’clock this morning and that they were in the alley between 36th and 37th – both north and south of Dawson – the 5000-block and 5200-block.

Three incidents in West Seattle Crime Watch:

ROBBERY ATTEMPT WITH GUNFIRE: After a tip, we have obtained the preliminary police report about this incident that happened just after 7:30 last night in the 2100 block of Harbor Avenue SW. Police say:

The victim stated as he was traveling northbound, another vehicle was attempting to parallel park. As he drove past, he honked his horn at the suspect vehicle. The victim parked up the roadway and shortly after without warning the suspect entered the passenger side door of his vehicle. He demanded money; the victim stated he didn’t have any. As the suspect exited the vehicle, he fired one round into the passenger seat (unknown if intentional or accidental, according to the victim). The suspect then fled the scene with an unknown subject in a separate vehicle. Officers impounded the suspect vehicle …

The witness who tipped us about the incident says the vehicle that was parking was a black Tahoe, and the vehicle that the would-be robber left in was a dark silver Saturn. He described the would-be robber as white, male, 5’10”, bald, orange construction shirt, tan hat, and faded blue jeans. If you have any information, the case number is 2021-105563.

GARAGE BURGLARY: Ian reports this happened Friday afternoon at his building in the 1100 block of Alki Avenue SW:

A man broke into our building’s storage area and opened up about a dozen of the unit’s storage lockers. Ultimately he made away with two (stolen) suitcases (visible in the second photo) full of our property.

SPD case number is 2021-105338.

CAR BREAK-IN: Texted reader report:
Kblockquote>Car Prowler broke into our Ford truck on the corner of 41st Avenue Southwest and SW Austin Street. Car prowler is routinely hitting the Gatewood neighborhood. This is at least the 3rd time the truck has been broken into. They took everything in the truck (which wasn’t much and mainly old CD’s that don’t work). They made a mess inside, broke door parts, and muddy shoe prints all over the seats as if they were crawling everywhere inside. Please, we implore the Police to start patroling Gatewood for car prowlers.

We are following up for the case # on this one.

Two days ago, we reported on the release from prison of 43-year-old Ryan J. Cox, three and a half years after he stabbed a man in West Seattle, following a string of increasingly violent crimes over an eight-year span (detailed here). Early this morning, we updated our Tuesday report with news that Cox is back in jail for violating conditions of his release. Now we have additional information: Southwest Precinct police arrested him on a warrant issued because he did not report to his Department of Corrections officer as required post-release. That’s considered “escaping” from community custody (parole), under which Cox was to be supervised for 18 months post-prison. Police say the DOC contacted them last night to advise that a warrant was forthcoming. Police say they got confirmation of the warrant at 10:30 pm and arrested Cox 16 minutes later. The police report says that after his release from prison, he “immediately returned to the area (where) the original crime occurred,” and that’s exactly where he was arrested – in the 7100 block of California SW. Cox remains in the SCORE jail in Des Moines this morning. What happens now? We’re researching that as part of a followup inquiry we already had out to the DOC. State law classifies escaping from community custody as a felony. (DOC photo, July 2020)

Two West Seattle Crime Watch notes tonight:

GUNFIRE INVESTIGATION: Just after 10 pm last night, police were called to an apartment complex in the 5900 block of Delridge Way SW after a resident reported hearing a gunshot and seeing a bright flash of light. Officers told dispatch that they found.a shell casing, but the report says they found no victim and no suspect.

WOULD-BE CATALYTIC CONVERTER THIEF: Residents in the 3700 block of Beach Drive forwarded this alert circulated in their complex:

This past weekend (4/24-25), we encountered an incident of attempted property theft. At roughly 4:00 am on Sunday morning, an individual arrived on our property and checked for unlocked doors before proceeding to begin cutting off the catalytic converter(s) from a resident’s vehicle which was parked under the south carport. An alert resident heard the commotion and scared the would-be thief away from the safety of their deck.

Race: Caucasian or other light-complexion
Hair: Long brown hair with some gray, pulled into ponytail
Height: Between 6’0″ – 6’2″ tall
Weight: Unknown
Dress: Navy blue heavy jacket with a brown fur-lined hood, navy or black Adidas track pants, grey lace-less sneakers, blue bandana, and black skullcap.

The alert says police were called; we do not have the incident number, but if we get it we will add it.

According to the VINE service, as well as a notification message received by his victim, Ryan J. Cox is out of prison. He had been in custody since August 8, 2017, when he was arrested for stabbing a man in Gatewood. In January 2019, he pleaded guilty to second-degree assault, and the next month, he was given a five-year sentence. Cox had a history of high-profile West Seattle incidents going back to 2009, as detailed in this WSB report the day after the 2017 stabbing. So far we don’t have details about his whereabouts post-release, nor about his time in the state prison system, though the timing of his release indicates the sentence was reduced by “time off for good behavior.” We obtained the photo at right from the state Department of Corrections, which says it was taken last year. Cox is now 43 years old. His prison time was to be followed by 18 months of community custody, our state’s version of parole, which means that wherever he is, he will have to check in with a DOC officer regularly.

THURSDAY 2:48 AM: Few details yet but Cox is in jail, booked into the SCORE facility in Des Moines late Wednesday night. The docket description says “DOC violator,” which means he’s accused of violating terms of his release. We’ll be following up.

Two West Seattle Crime Watch reports this morning:

STORE ROBBERY: Two men held up the Junction 7-11 early today, according to a preliminary summary filed by police. It says the robbers entered, then “milled around the store momentarily and then went behind the counter, where they confronted the lone store clerk. One (robber) held a small black handgun to the clerk’s back while the other demanded that he open the cash registers. The clerk complied and both registers were then emptied. The (robbers) also took cigarettes and lighters and then fled on foot.” A K-9 team helped search but the track ended in the alley behind the store. The robbers were described as Black, in their 20s, all-black clothing, black masks, and gloves.

STOLEN VAN: Be on the lookout for this van:

It’s a pretty rare burgundy color 1997 Chevy Astro and even more rare with a 5” lift and Jeep Wrangler wheels. It had a full tank of gas so probably long gone but who knows. Stolen 4/21/21. License plate BQV2561. Since it went missing, it has been seen on 42nd near Thriftway and in the parking lot at Fairmount Park Elementary. Please keep an eye out and call 911 (then) email me. gershon@est.org

UPDATE: Found where two commenters spotted it! The big gray rooftop cargo box is still missing, though.

Two West Seattle Crime Watch reader reports:

STOLEN VEHICLE: Mike‘s white Chevrolet Trailblazer was stolen near California/Rosbury in northwest Arbor Heights early Tuesday. He says it was “loaded with all my carpenter tools.” His other vehicle was prowled, too. We don’t have the license # yet but if you see an abandoned white Trailblazer, it might be Mike’s. SPD incident # is 2021-96035. (Added: It’s a 2004 Trailblazer, plate BVK3796.)

STOLEN WHEELS: Noelle reports this happened Monday night or Tuesday morning in her apartment lot in the 7500 block of 35th SW:

I left my apartment to go to the bank … and discovered my wheels and tires were gone off the rear of my 2002 Honda civic. To put it mildly, I am in shock as it was up on concrete blocks. This is totally devastating for me as I don’t have the money to replace them at this time. Been laid off since the start of pandemic.

She has filed an online police report and sent this to alert neighbors.

The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office has filed charges today in three cases we’ve covered this past week:

MAIL THEFT: One day after 37-year-old Jason A. Turner‘s seventh arrest this year, he is charged with possession of stolen mail. Court documents say a 911 call brought officers to the 6500 block of 25th SW, where they saw Turner “carrying a large pile of mail” – until police arrived, when they saw him dumping it into a trash can, as well as pulling more mail out of his pants and throwing that away too. They found yet more in his pockets, as well as items of clothing that had been removed from packages, plus a folding knife. In all, the police report says they believe he was in possession of 70 pieces of mail that wasn’t his. (What they recovered, they took to the Westwood Village post office, the documents say.) This is the second felony case filed against Turner in two months; court documents say he has no felony convictions. Prosecutors asked for $5,000 bail, and that’s what a judge set.

Suspects are also now charged in two incidents we reported last Wednesday night:

STORE ROBBERY: 34-year-old Charles P. Lotaki is charged with first-degree robbery for a shoplift-turned-holdup incident at the Walgreens in South Delridge. Employees say they were familiar with him from previous incidents and he had been “trespassed” – ordered not to return to the store – previously. When they confronted him Wednesday night, the charging documents say, he pulled out a gun and threatened to shoot them. The store manager evacuated her employees; when Lotaki walked out of the store, police were there, and a 15-minute standoff ensued before they took him into custody. His weapon turned out to be a “realistic-looking” Airsoft gun. This is his fourth arrest in two months, with other felony and misdemeanor charges pending, including a non-West Seattle case filed today, in which he is accused of breaking into a downtown drugstore. His bail is at $76,000.

ID THEFT: The woman arrested after showing up Wednesday at the Westwood Village Bank of America and allegedly trying to use stolen cards is now charged with two counts of identity theft. 36-year-old Lidia Gutierrez-Vega is accused of trying to use cards, checks, and ID belonging to someone who was the victim of a burglary in Kent. After her arrest, the charging documents say, she claimed another person offered her $100 to impersonate the victim and try to make changes to her account. Gutierrez-Vega has.a felony theft conviction on her record as well as pending cases including two counts of being in possession of a stolen car; jail records show she was booked and released five days before this arrest for investigation of auto theft. Her bail is set at $2,500.

Theft can happen fast. Latest reminder of that is in this report from Dan in the 5900 block of Beach Drive:

Someone stole my bike out of our garage this morning around 6:30-6:45. The garage door was open as we were between trips putting out the garbage. The bike was hanging up on hooks in our garage.

Stolen bicycles – like cars – may be abandoned after thieves use them to get from Point A to Point B, so be on the lookout.