The following are selected reports from the Seattle Police Department's West Precinct. They represent the officer's accounts of the events described.
Defensive Shoplifter
At 12:30 p.m. on Aug. 1, a security officer at a store in the 1900 block of Queen Anne Avenue North called 911 after being assaulted by a shoplifter. The officer said they had watched the suspect conceal seven packs of razors in a backpack before grabbing a can of spray deodorant and heading towards the door. When the security officer tried to stop the suspect at the door, the officer was sprayed and then hit in the face with the can, resulting in a cut to their lip. The officer picked up the can of deodorant and followed the suspect outside, throwing the can back at the suspect. When the can hit the suspect, they turned around and chased the officer back into the store. Once inside, the suspect left the scene. The security officer gave police security footage of the incident.
Vigilant Neighbors
Just before 8:30 p.m. on Aug. 3, a neighbor to a vacant house in the 2000 block of 26th Avenue West called 911 to report a burglary in progress. The neighbor, who lives behind the burglarized home, said they heard loud noises coming from the vacant house and when they went to investigate, saw a man on the west side of the house apparently trying to get in. Police found pry marks on the door on the west side of the house, but no evidence that the suspect had been successful. They found another unlocked door and searched the inside of the house, finding no one. Another neighbor told police they had seen the suspects walking around the house before getting into a Honda Civic and driving away. That neighbor had taken some photos of the men in the car, and he sent them to police. Responding officers got in touch with the homeowners and informed them of the incident.
Squatters
Just before 9:15 p.m. on Aug. 6, a person living in the 4000 block of Burton Place West called 911 to report they had returned to the house they were renting, and heard people inside. The tenant wanted police to come and arrest them. The person said they hadn’t been home for a while, and were informed by neighbors that there were possibly people squatting in their house. The resident had come by that evening and heard people inside the house. Multiple police units responded to the house and officers went to the front and back of the house, but before police went to enter the house the basement door flew open and one of the suspects was standing in the doorway. Police detained the suspect while a second suspect could be heard running up the stairs and out the back door. He ran right into the police officers that were waiting in the back yard. The victim told police all of his belongings were gone. He said the items were of sentimental value, not monetary. The victim told police he hadn’t been to the house in about two months. The suspects were arrested and booked into King County Jail for burglary.
Stolen Bikes
Just after 3 p.m. on July 31, the resident of an apartment in the 3600 block of 14th Avenue West called 911 to report that their bikes had been stolen. The resident said the bikes were stolen sometime between 8:30 p.m. on July 29 and 3 p.m. that afternoon. After getting into the secured building, the burglars pried open the door to the bike storage room and took two of the victim’s bikes. Responding police told the victim to create a Google alert and keep checking Craigslist for his bikes.
Unlucky Burglar
Just before 10 a.m. on July 29, police responded to a 911 call from the resident of a house in the 900 block of West Emerson Street reporting she had just caught a man trying to climb into the house through her roommate’s open bedroom window. She said she’d been walking down the hallway when she heard the man, and when she looked into the room she saw him halfway in the window, which is about eight feet off the ground. As soon as he saw her, he scrambled back out of the window and scampered off. The victim told police she’d caught the same suspect trying to break into the house on July 23. She’d called 911 and filed a police report after the previous incident as well.
Ransacked Home
Just before 6 p.m. on July 29, the cat sitter for a family living in the 1300 block of Willard Avenue West called 911 to report the house had been broken into. The family had been out of town since 1 p.m. the previous day. The burglar broke the ground floor laundry room window to gain access to the house. The master bedroom and bathroom had been ransacked, with drawers pulled out and jewelry boxes emptied. Because the family was still out of town, police weren’t sure what all was taken during the burglary.
Fast Thief
Just before 9:30 a.m. on July 27, a resident in the 1900 block of Eighth Avenue West called 911 to report they had been bringing groceries into their home through a garage and, while they were inside, an unknown suspect had come into the open garage and taken his bike and a power drill.