By Megan Sheppard
On the WSBeat, for West Seattle Blog

The WSBeat features summaries written from recent incident reports filed by Southwest Precinct officers – generally cases that (usually) have NOT already appeared here in breaking-news coverage or West Seattle Crime Watch reports; some are not crimes, but might at least answer a lingering question such as “what WERE all those police doing on my block?” Or on the bridge, or the beach, or …

*A group of people left a bowling alley on the 9th without paying their tab. An employee ran outside to persuade them to ante up. He reached them just as a driver from a car service pulled alongside. The employee advised the driver not to take the passengers, warning that if he did, his car’s license would be provided to police as “the getaway car.” The driver left; the employee was punched in the face twice and kicked in the head four times by two men in the group. A bystander who tried to help was also kicked in the head. The attackers fled eastbound on SW Oregon. One was described as a white man, about 6’2”, in his forties, with gray hair. He wore a black sweater with white stripes. The other was described as a Hispanic man in his forties, wearing a white button-up shirt and black slacks.

Ahead, seven more summaries, including a stopped shoplifter, a rental scam, and warrant arrests:

*On the afternoon of August 5th, a twenty-year-old Montana resident ran out of a Harbor Avenue convenience store with an armful of items and threw them into his car. To his dismay, he did this and pulled out of the parking lot just as an officer was pulling *into* it. He was booked into King County Jail for investigation of theft/shoplift.

*A local apartment manager reports that someone is running fraudulent Craigslist ads for an apartment rental in West Seattle. He or she pockets the funds, and when the would-be renters show up, they find that no apartment is available. Both CL and PayPal have been alerted.

*Acting on a request from Lakewood police, officers were able to track down and arrest a 27-year-old West Seattle resident wanted on a no-bail warrant for sexual assault of a child. He was booked into King County Jail on the 6th.

*When they saw a man shaking in what appeared to be physical distress, concerned officers pulled over near Avalon and SW Genesee on the 5th. The man claimed to be OK. But after a routine records check showed that he was wanted on a $7,500 warrant for property destruction, the 24-year-old was booked into King County Jail.

*On the 10th, officers followed and clocked a woman driving on Olson Place SW at nearly 50 mph in a 30-mph zone. When stopped, she explained that she was late for her mother’s birthday party. She also admitted she didn’t have a driver’s license. A records check showed she was wanted in SeaTac ($250) for driving without a license and in Renton ($1,100) for theft. She was arrested and booked into the SCORE jail in SeaTac for the warrants.

*A driver suspected of being high on heroin was involved in a four-car collision at 8th and SW Cloverdale on the 6th. Officers viewed syringes (one loaded with a brown liquid) in plain sight in his car; his pupils were pinpoints. He didn’t seem to be in pain. He provided an out of state driver’s license, and when asked for the registration he began looking in the glove box. Seconds later he asked, “What am I looking for again?” Medics began taking him to Highline but when the severity of his injuries (life-threatening) became evident, he was diverted to Harborview.

*On the 5th, in the 6900 block of Delridge Way SW, at least four citizens called 911 to report that one of their neighbors was intoxicated, pounding on doors, and yelling that residents were Muslims “who kill people.” He vowed he was going to “kill and destroy” the officers who responded to the scene. He also approached one with a lit cigarette and stated he was going to extinguish it in the officer’s eye. Officers de-escalated the situation enough that the suspect became willing to take a seat. Then one of the officers spotted a handgun near the suspect’s feet. When the officer tried to grab the gun, the suspect stood up, grabbed that officer by the shirt and then grabbed the other officer’s radio. They were able to remove his hands and place him into handcuffs. When other officers arrived to transport the suspect, they were greeted with mouthful of spit to their faces. His response when read his rights? “F*^& you, bitch.” He was booked into King County Jail for investigation of three counts of assault.

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EDITOR’S NOTES: Remember, the CRISIS CLINIC hotline is a resource for those in crisis, including thoughts or acts of self-harm, or trying to find help for someone in crisis: 206.461.3222 … Previous WSBeat roundups are archived here. We also publish crime reports when we get tips or otherwise hear about noteworthy incidents – they don’t all turn up on the scanner, so please don’t be shy about letting us know when you see/hear something happening = call or text 206-293-6302.