On the morning of Aug. 4, an elderly Ballard gentleman received a phone call from a young man who claimed to be his grandson. Sonny said that he was in Canada, had been drinking with friends, and got in a car accident. If “Grandpa” sent money for the car repairs, it would be a real help. Savvy Grandpa said, “Well, I don't have any money. It's all tied up. Why don't you ask your dad?” The caller mumbled something and the phone went, “click.”

About three in the morning on Aug. 4, a burglar sneaked through an unlocked window in a home in the 8000 block of 14th Avenue Northwest and stole $3,000 as well as full drawers from a china cabinet.

Late on July 30, a citizen interrupted a car prowl on her vehicle in the 100 block of Northwest 76th. The suspect was a white female in her late teens, with a slim build a strawberry or blond hair. She fled in a dark Oldsmobile sedan. The plate is registered to an address in eastern Washington.

Overnight on the Aug. 2, someone slashed all four tires on a car parked in the 900 block of Northwest 56th. $320 loss.

Meanwhile, in the 6300 block of 24th Avenue Northwest, someone slammed an unknown object on the hood of a car. The damaged area measures about two feet by two feet.

Three outgoing bills were stolen from a mailbox on a porch in the 800 block of Northwest 51st.

Overnight between Aug. 2 and 3, someone ripped two newly planted trees from a front yard in the 7300 block of 16th Northwest. One was thrown into the parking strip and the other against the front door of the home.

A caregiver at a local residence was required to make a report when a mentally disabled client claimed an attendant had “stung his tongue” in her mouth. The caregiver assured the officer that the claim wasn't true; in fact because of earlier allegations, the man being blamed had been reassigned and had not been anywhere near the home since February.

A representative of the Boeing Employee's Credit Union called a client living in Central Seattle and expressed concern over an unusual amount of activity that had taken place in the customer's account. It turns out that someone had accessed his funds through two Ballard ATM's as well as at a bank on Queen Anne, and had withdrawn over $3,000 in a matter of days. The account has since been closed.

Early on Aug. 4, a woman walked into the Walgreen's near Northwest Market Street. She tried to buy some cigarettes with a credit card, but it was repeatedly declined. In the middle of all of the hubbub over the card, she managed to sneak the smokes into her purse and walk out of the store. The store manager reports that the front of the woman's hands were “burnt from illegal drug use.”

Burglaries/break-ins/car prowls by block: 6000 NW Carkeek Park Rd., 4000 Fremont Ave. N, 100 NW 76th, 11500 Greenwood Ave. N, 9100 28th NW, 8000 14th NW, 800 NW 58th, 100 NW 136th, 7000 20th NW, 7700 34th NW, 11000 1st NW, 100 block of NW 76th