In addition to the burglaries and break-in attempt featured in our West Seattle Crime Watch reader reports earlier today, we had an inquiry out to police about two other possible incidents heard on the scanner. In response to it all, Southwest Precinct commander Capt. Steve Paulsen confirms there’s a “notable increase” in home burglaries tracing back to last week – a surprise during a holiday week, he says – and shares these details on trends:
The neighborhoods that are being affected the most are:
· East of Delridge from Spokane St to about SW Holden St, West of the Duwamish.
· South of SW Morgan to the City boundary Line, West of 35th SW.Days and Time:
· Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday
· 7 am to 6 pmCurrent trends include 2-3 subjects in a large car (old-retired taxis have been used) in order to put large objects in the trunk or back seat area. The suspects are knocking on the front door, waiting for an answer. If no answer, they are forcing entry via a non-visible door/window.
Our West Seattle folks are doing a great job by calling 911 when they see suspicious circumstances in their neighborhoods. I would also like to remind our citizens to closely work with their neighbors, watching out for each other particularly during times when their homes are vacant during the day.
I don’t want to take the fun/joy out of the Holidays, but criminals will target homes for the gifts lying under the tree. Also, while shopping, please be aware of your personal surroundings as you walk to your car with gifts…It is not unusual for subjects to approach shoppers and forcibly take their packages as well as break into parked vehicles at shopping centers.
There’s more holiday crime-deterrence advice in the latest newsletter from SW Precinct Crime Prevention Coordinator Mark Solomon, published here a week ago.
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