West Seattle Crime Watch: Storage unit, cars broken into

| Crime | West Seattle news

Two break-in reports this afternoon. First, from longtime WSBer Pelicans:

Got a call yesterday afternoon from Public Storage on Avalon. My unit and at least about 29 others were broken into overnight on Tuesday/Wednesday. From the info I received, the theives got into the building by breaking through an outside door and into a stairwell. The went up the 4th floor and started jimmy-ing storage unit doors. In many of them, including mine, nothing was taken. The police told the managers it was as if they were looking for something. There were boxes labeled ‘clothes’, so that was probably not what they wanted.

We are checking with police on that one; Pelicans says the culprits were reportedly caught on camera. Meantime, a note from the south end of Beach Drive:

My cars were broken into last night. Unusual for my location. I live on Beach Drive SW, north of Lincoln Park. Nothing valuable stolen (except my treasured flashlight)

ADDED 6:03 PM: Thanks to the WSBers who let us know about police activity in Seaview this afternoon, around 45th and Raymond (map). It cleared out before we got there to check it out but this evening police say it was a reported residential burglary – nobody in custody so far.

ADDED 6:12 PM: And word of more car break-ins – this report from Gary Dawson in Fauntleroy:

Someone got into two different cars of two different addresses on SW Henderson between Fauntleroy Way SW and 45th Ave SW last night. Classic homeowner mistake, neither had locked the car doors. Two cars that we know of so far. We are talking to the neighbors. A Garmin portable GPS was taken from one of the cars, which is parked in a driveway next to the house with a very bright motion activated light over it. Nothing taken from the other as far as is known. Reported to SPD.

alywest March 13, 2009 (8:19 am)

My boyfriends truck was broken into Tuesday night, Roxbury and 32nd. It was also parked right next to the house with flood lights on. They took a flat screen back-up monitor and rummaged through the glove box. I don’t think they are taking the time to really search but just grabbing what they see. In this case there was an Ipod just lying on the back seat and they didn’t take it because they would have had to actually climbed up into the truck, which is very high up.

Picky Nulu March 13, 2009 (10:01 am)

“And word of more car break-ins” WSB
Small point.
If the car is left open, I believe there is no “break-in”, illegal entry perhaps.
But nothing was broken to get in.
For those that choose to leave valuables in their cars, they are “saving money” by leaving their cars unlocked and lessening damages to the car.

Cheryl March 13, 2009 (3:26 pm)

I work from home a little further north on Beach Drive SW, and have noticed some unusual activity lately. This morning, there were two guys walking around the neighborhood in those orange vests like construction/cable guys wear, but otherwise had on jeans, tshirt, baseball hat, sunglasses. I watched them kind-of walk around a car like they were checking it out, then one of them got into it, sat for a while, and drove away. I didn’t think it looked right, so I called the police and gave them the plates. There was no truck for cable or City Light nearby. It was all wrong.

Pay attention to people that look like service guys, if the circumstances aren’t right. I’ve noticed it more than once lately.

Holly Place March 13, 2009 (9:20 pm)

I noticed two men driving through the parking lot closest to the ferry dock at Lincoln Park today that had orange vests in the back window of their car. Two caucasion males in their 40’s -50’s in an older dirty white american car. They circled through the lot a couple of times like they were looking for somewhere to park, but there were quite a few spots open. I don’t know if it is related, but it was enough to make me notice.

snowlion March 15, 2009 (3:18 am)

Holly – they could have been WSF employees. Oddly, however, I saw two men that fit that description walking in opposite directions down by Salty’s on Wednesday – they were very noticeable, because they both had the same see-for-miles orange coats on, and they just walked right past each other, not speaking. Since there is construction in the area, I thought they might be related to that, but it didn’t appear to be the case. Maybe not the same guys, but it seemed kind of weird, that they would be wearing the exact same piece of LOUD clothing, just strolling alone in opposite directions…
The house in front of where the GPS was stolen might have been ours – we have a motion-activated light, but I don’t think it activates if there is motion on the sidewalk – we have a huge laurel hedge between our home and the sidewalk/road, and I don’t think our sensor can pick that up. Our neighbor, however, usually has a bright porch light on that was not on last night.

Sorry, comment time is over.