By Megan Sheppard
On the WSBeat, for West Seattle Blog

From reports on cases handled recently by Southwest Precinct officers:

*Cleaning up the home of her recently deceased father, a woman came across a human skull encased in glass. She told officers what she could remember about the story her father had told her: That he had found it in the wild in Alaska back in the 1980s. Though Halloween is on the way, she decided to not keep it. She turned it over to officers, who passed it on to the Medical Examiner.

*A car prowl suspect, arrested in the 9200 block of 16th SW Sunday afternoon, denied responsibility and frantically claimed that he had to get back to his residence by 6 p.m. to, “tend to the goats.”

*A white male who appeared to be 65 years or older, with whitish/gray bushy hair, wearing a white baseball hat and a blue jacket has been acting suspiciously around a home in the 9400 block of 26th Ave. SW. He was seen in the yard, taking notes twice last week, claiming to be a gutter or a roof service person. The residents had not solicited any services from anyone. Officers suspect he might be casing residences.

A dozen-plus more summaries ahead:

*Around 1:45 Monday afternoon, a citizen reported a suspicious male with a shirt pulled over his head– “not looking right” — at the corner of California and Admiral. Officers spoke with the man, who was evasive and provided different reasons for being there. He was carrying a full gas can and said he was waiting for a ride to Delridge, where his car was parked. A records check showed that he was wanted on a $10,000 failure-to-appear theft warrant from Seattle Municipal Court. He was booked into King County Jail.

*On Friday the 30th, a citizen reported a suspicious male sitting in a car in the 6900 block of 34th. Officers found that he was drinking and was wanted on a $5,100 misdemeanor warrant from the King County Sheriff’s Office. He was booked into King County Jail.

*Tuesday afternoon, plainclothes officers with the SW Anti Crime Team spotted a car that looked similar to one suspected in several recent West Seattle burglaries. One of the three passengers turned out to have an outstanding felony burglary warrant ($15,000) from King County. He was arrested and booked into King County Jail. His friends were cleared and released.

*While driving in the 9000 block of 16th SW on Wednesday afternoon, an officer recognized and arrested a man who was wanted on an outstanding no-bail residential burglary warrant. In addition to the warrant, the man will be investigated for false reporting (he gave the arresting officer a false name four times), for possession of stolen property (he was carrying three cell phones) and for drug charges (he was carrying crack cocaine).

*Cars of interest in recent burglaries/break-ins: Maroon/Green Ford Crown Victoria; an older yellowish vehicle with darkened windows that looks like a retired cab.

*Afternoon fisticuffs in Morgan Junction on Friday the 30th: A driver honked at a cyclist. The cyclist was angered that the driver’s car edged too close. At a stoplight, the cyclist banged on the passenger window, reached through, and punched the driver. The driver jumped from the car, shoved the cyclist to the ground and punched him — most of this occurring in front of an officer who was stopped at the California and Fauntleroy light. The cyclist was booked into King County jail for misdemeanor assault.

*Also on Friday the 30th, an argument between an adult brother and sister escalated after the sister left to take a child to school. The adult male assaulted his 18-year-old nephew (the sister’s older son). The nephew was able to pin his uncle down for a bit, but when he let him get up, the uncle ran upstairs. The boy heard his grandma shout, “Stop, Stop!” and then heard her yell—to him—“Go, XXXX! Go!” He ran from the house, turned around once and saw his uncle carrying something. He then heard a gunshot. He hid in a neighbor’s yard and watched his uncle fire one more round. Officers went to the home and got permission to conduct a search. They found a loaded .22 caliber rifle under the grandmother’s bed—and the magazine was missing two rounds. Uncle was booked into King County Jail for investigation of aggravated domestic violence assault with a gun.

*On Wednesday, in the Alki area, an intoxicated yet happy sports fan became angered that his girlfriend wasn’t as excited as he was about the Sounders’ win. He began punching walls and cabinets. The pair has a history of domestic violence, and when he went outside to have a cigarette the woman locked him out and called 911. He began screaming and kicking the door so she let him back in, but the 911 dispatcher was still on the line and heard the dispute during which he hit her in the face and placed his arm around her throat. The victim was able to roll away and get to the door to let officers in. The 38-year-old suspect was too intoxicated to walk and made no sense. In a precinct holding cell he said he thought he had been brought in on a DUI charge. He was booked into King County Jail for investigation of assault and interfering with the reporting of domestic violence.

*Also on Wednesday morning, an Alki resident called 911 to report that her friend had threatened to commit suicide, saying that a voice in her head was telling her to, “drive off something.” Officers found the woman’s vehicle near Mee Kwa Mooks park and then saw her out waist-deep in the water, where she remained for 45 minutes, not responding to rescuers on scene. Her face was covered in a powdery substance and she repeatedly placed something in her mouth from a cup she was holding. (It turned out to be ground up heart medication tablets that belonged to someone else.) Fire officials finally convinced her to come out of the water. She was stabilized and transported to Harborview for evaluation. (Here’s the WSB report from the day this happened.)

*Wednesday morning, after a 34-year-old Morgan Junction resident posted a computer message that said “see you in the next life,” his friend called 911 to have officers check on his welfare. The man’s mother had also been alerted to the posting and arrived at his home about the same time as officers. The subject was lethargic, albeit upset, and smelled of intoxicants. He refused to answer questions about the meaning of several of his posts. Officers had him transported to Harborview for a mental evaluation.

*Several citizens reported a screaming male in the 6300 block of California SW on Friday evening the 30th. The agitated man would speak with the officer only in single-word sentences. The officer finally determined through questioning that the man was homeless, bipolar, and not taking medication. Concerned for his and the public’s welfare, the officer had him transported to Harborview for a mental evaluation.

*Around 2 a.m. Saturday, an Arbor Heights woman heard a knock at the door. On her porch stood a man wearing only a T-shirt and underwear. He said he needed help and asked her to call 911. He was high and incoherent and could say only that he’d been at a party at an unknown location. He thought his girlfriend was still there and in distress. Officers drove him around a bit to try and locate the house, without luck. Medics determined his ankle was broken and drove him to Highline Hospital for treatment and for a mental evaluation.

*Family members called 911 early Saturday after a 20-year-old—a diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic — suffered an ongoing episode which involved removing light bulbs from sockets, turning lights on and off, yelling profanities, and bringing an electric hedge trimmer into the house and threatening to cut off the arms of the people who were “coming.” After the young man had been escorted outside (he was eventually taken to Highline Hospital for a mental evaluation), his mother found a large kitchen knife stuffed between the couch cushions.

*Friday afternoon, an angry customer at a Delridge gas station drove away from the pump with the nozzle still attached to his vehicle.

*Questioned after a minor Junction incident, a man told officers that he lived on a boat at Fisherman’s Terminal in Ballard but, oddly, didn’t know the boat’s name or docking slip. The man finally admitted that it would be difficult to reach him as he was actually “inbetween boats at the moment.”

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24-hour statewide domestic-violence hotline: 800-562-6025

WSB Editor’s Note: The WSBeat reports are archived here. We publish crime reports the rest of the week, when we get tips or hear noteworthy incidents via the scanner, so don’t be shy about letting us know when you see/hear something happening.