Watch out for the beige Suburban
Possibly linked, police have responded to three burglaries in the past weeks all related to a very similar looking beige Chevy Suburban with Arizona license plates as the getaway vehicle. In the most recent incident on March 4, a homeowner living on 31st Ave. S.W. returned home after picking his daughter up from school around 4 p.m. and saw the Suburban parked in his circular driveway. Suddenly, two suspects emerged from his home and ran to the waiting vehicle. Suspect #1 was described as a heavy-set, possibly Samoan male with a long pony tail and facial hair. A good description of the second suspect was not available. The burglars fled and the victim went inside to find jewelry missing. It appeared the suspects used a power drill to remove the entire lock mechanism from the back door to gain entry.

Same M.O., different results
An unknown person attempted to dismantle the front door of a small market on the 5900 block of California Ave. S.W. on March 3, but failed in their attempt. It appeared someone had removed metal trimming around a glass pane, but was unable to remove the pane itself. Sometime that same night, someone used the same technique to successfully remove a glass pane from a convenience store on the 4000 block of California Ave. S.W. Once the glass was gone, the unknown suspect was able to unlock the door and steal lottery tickets, a laptop, two iPhones and cigarettes. The cash register was untouched. A video of the burglary revealed an unknown race male wearing gloves and a mask committing the crime.

Robbing for a brand
On the afternoon of March 2, a man walked into a drug store on the 6300 block of California Ave S.W. The clerk noticed that man as someone who had stolen from them before and told him he couldn’t be in the store. The suspect ignored the new rule and walked behind the counter, headed straight for the cigarettes. The clerk knew he was going for smokes (that was his target in the past), so she blocked the wall of nicotine with her body and put her hand in front of the specific brand he goes for. The man forced her arm out of the way and stole seven packs of his preferred brand. Police were given a copy of the videotape and told the man may live in a nearby apartment complex.

New friend, missing items
A mother living on the 4100 block of Delridge Way S.W. called police on March 1 to report several items had turned up missing at their home ever since her 12 year old son started hanging out with a new friend. Her son reported missing video games and handheld video game consoles over the past few weeks, and the mother discovered her son’s house key was also missing. On March 1, she came home to find her door unlocked, the deadbolt disengaged like only a key could.

Crimes reported from March 4 to March 10:
Robberies by block: Corner of California Ave. S.W./Fauntleroy Way S.W., corner of 26th Ave. S.W./S.W. Trenton St.

Burglaries by block: 10600 31st Ave. S.W., 2400 S.W. Webster St., 2600 S.W. Barton St., 4500 42nd Ave. S.W., 7900 31st Ave. S.W., 9200 25th Ave. S.W., 3300 30th Ave. S.W., 1200 S.W. Cambridge St., 3800 40th Ave. S.W., 3600 46th Ave. S.W., 3200 S.W. Avalon Way, 8400 35th Ave. S.W.

Vehicle thefts by block: 4500 48th Ave. S.W., 2800 S.W. Barton St., 8100 8th Ave. S.W., 10200 California Ave. S.W., 3900 S.W. 102nd St., corner of S.W. Roxbury St./Kelsey Ln. S.W., 5200 23rd Ave. S.W., 4500 41st Ave. S.W., 4700 40th Ave. S.W., 9400 27th Ave. S.W., 9200 17th Ave. S.W., 4500 California Ave. S.W.

Car prowls by block: 1700 Alki Ave. S.W., 7700 20th Ave. S.W., 3900 S.W. Othello St., 7500 34th Ave. S.W., 3800 S.W. 106th St., 5400 17th Ave. S.W., 2600 S.W. Barton St.