West Seattle Crime Watch: 2 stolen cars

9:17 AM: The morning began with two stolen-car reader reports. First, from Rebecca in Gatewood:

I just wanted to alert the neighborhood that our car was stolen (parked on the street in front of our house) during the late night/early morning of April 14-15th, between 10 pm-6 am. It is a 1995 red Subaru wagon with a bumper sticker ‘Art Saves Lives’. Lots of nicer, newer vehicles parked on the street, but ours was most likely easy to break into. If you see it, please contact the police. Another reminder to be on alert. Report any suspicious activity.

And from Pamela:

Sometime early this morning, our 2015 dark gray Mercedes SUV was stolen from our driveway on Beach Drive. 2 bikes were left at the top of our driveway, I assume from the thieves.

We’re checking back with both to get the license-plate numbers – although, as with the vehicle in this case last week, thieves can and do swap plates. Please call 911 if you see either of these stolen cars or a vehicle you suspect was stolen and dumped – they are often just used as transportation between crime scenes rather than as something to strip or sell for monetary value.

9:46 AM: Two updates – first, we’ve been alerted that Rebecca’s car has been spotted, not far from where it was taken. The finder has called police, and we’ve e-mailed Rebecca. Second, we have the plate and a little more description for Pamela’s stolen vehicle: 2015 Mercedes ML350, license plate AZE7438.

8 Replies to "West Seattle Crime Watch: 2 stolen cars"

  • waikikigirl April 15, 2016 (9:52 am)

     On the Mercedes how in the world do these thieves get into a car that’s only 1 year old…you would think that, that new of a car would have some kind thief deterrent on it. I’m not blaming the owner just wondering???

    • WSB April 15, 2016 (10:08 am)

      The insurance-industry car-crime expert who spoke to the West Seattle Crime Prevention Council recently confirmed that thieves have tech-defeating tools as well as the usual break-and-enter type things, so you can’t assume that any car is theft-proof.

  • katerrific4 April 15, 2016 (10:38 am)

     A couple months back, a radio frequency device was used by thieves to unlock my 2012 Fusion and gain access without breaking a thing or making a noise. 

    • Matt April 15, 2016 (4:40 pm)

      Yep, hate to be the bearer of bad news but newer technology is actually making it easier because they don’t take the time to make it secure.

  • katerrific4 April 15, 2016 (10:41 am)

    I should clarify that my vehicle was not left unlocked and there was nothing of value in my car to make them want to break into it.  They got away with nothing.  It was reported to police the next morning along with our video surveillance.

  • waikikigirl April 15, 2016 (11:10 am)

    WSB…well that sucks that no car is really theft-proof!

    AND  I wish they’d stop stealing, all it does is make my insurance rates go up and I don’t even have any claims or tickets…. sad face    

  • Westside45 April 15, 2016 (1:51 pm)

    Locks stop your friends, not the criminals.

  • MJ April 15, 2016 (7:51 pm)

    Someone takes my brand new Benz the police are the least of their worries. Hope another criminal takes care of the thief for you.

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