The following are selected reports from the Seattle Police Department’s West Precinct. They represent the officers’ accounts of the events described.
Easy Target
Just before 11:30 a.m. on Oct. 5, nurses at Harborview Medical Center called 911 to report the victim of a robbery was admitted as a patient at the hospital, and was now making homicidal comments about the suspects who robbed him. The victim said he’d been robbed in the 2100 block of Queen Anne Avenue North. The nurses told police the victim was admitted the previous night, and was ready to be discharged, but was extremely intoxicated and they were waiting for his blood alcohol levels to go down. They also said the victim claimed to be an ex-marine and said he would shoot the suspects when he found them. Police spoke to the victim, who said he’d been sitting on the sidewalk playing a guitar for money when the suspects approached him and began attacking him, kicking him in the forehead and beating him up. They took his guitar and ran away. He said the guitar was black with white trim, and was a rare left-handed guitar. He estimated the guitar to be worth about $1,000. He told police he was going to try to find the suspects himself. Police advised him to call 911 if he saw the suspects. They also asked him if he had a gun, and he said no.
Cash Theft
Just before 8 p.m. on Oct. 8, a woman living in the 3200 block of Conkling Place West called 911 to report her house had been broken into. She said she’d been gone since about 1 p.m. that day. When she came home, she noticed her office door was open and her back door was unlocked. Both doors were closed and the back door was locked when she left. When officers arrived they checked the whole house and ensured the burglars were gone. They went around back and found that the burglar had likely come into the back yard through an unlocked fence and moved a patio chair under the main-floor kitchen window. The burglar was able to get into the house through the unlocked window. The suspect first rummaged through drawers in the office, taking nothing, and then through drawers in the bedroom, where they found $200 in a dresser drawer. The cash was the only thing taken during the burglary. The burglar then exited through the back door. The responding officer had responded to a 911 call reporting a prowler up the block from the burglarized house about five minutes before the victim called 911.
Picky Burglar
At 7 a.m. on Oct. 8, police responded to a reported burglary at a house in the 2700 block of West Raye Street. The victims said the burglary was discovered the previous evening when the wife returned home from work. The burglary occurred sometime between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. the evening before. The victims reported that the burglar entered the house through the kitchen window, which had been closed but not latched properly. The burglar went from room to room, opening drawers and cabinets. All that they took was a piggy bank containing about $50 in coins and a bowl of Halloween candy. Responding officers found some fingerprints left on a planter in the back yard that had been moved by the burglar.
Failed Moped Theft
Just after 3:30 p.m. on Oct. 6, police responded to an attempted moped theft at an apartment building on West Crockett Street. The suspect had caused about $500 in damage to the victim’s moped by trying to force the ignition, then removing a panel and cutting and splicing several wires. There was a second moped parked next to the victim’s that had similar damage. Police processed both vehicles for fingerprints, and located latent prints on both. The apartment building’s manager said he had security video of the suspects, which he gave to police.
No One Home
At approximately 10:30 p.m. on Oct. 4, police responded to a 911 call from an alarm company reporting an alarm trip at a residence in the 2000 block of 36th Avenue West. Responding police found a back door standing ajar. The door had a large glass window, which was shattered. There was a rock on the ground inside the door. The closets and drawers in the master bedroom were open and clothes were strewn about on the floor in the bedroom. Both the alarm company and police tried to get a hold of the residents, but were unsuccessful. A neighbor informed officers that the homeowner was out of town, but would be back in a few days. Without the homeowner being present, police couldn’t determine what, if anything was stolen. They found two firearms in the house, so police seized them to be held until the homeowner could claim them. They did this because the house could not be totally secured.
Empty House
At approximately 2:45 p.m. on Oct. 8, police responded to a reported burglary at an unoccupied house in the 3700 block of West Tilden Street. The owner said the burglary took place between 6 p.m. on Oct. 4, and noon that day. A rear window was pried open and multiple drawers throughout the house were rummaged through. The burglar only took about $10 in change from a dish.