According to our check of the police-report map, 20 car prowls have been reported in West Seattle in the past week:

That’s up from 15 during the same week last year. Car-prowl details aren’t posted by SPD – only where/when they happened – but we have details via two reader reports – first, from Jill:

Just wanted to inform the neighbors and also wondering if anyone saw anything:

The rear driver’s side window of my Subaru Outback was smashed in last night sometime between 6:00 pm and 10:00 pm, at the West Seattle YMCA. It was parked in the gravel spaces on the north side of the building (along SW Oregon St). They rummaged through my really boring stuff in the backseat, but nothing was taken. I don’t think they even made their way to the front seats or the cargo area, as all the doors were still locked. If someone scared them off, I hope they can provide some description of the perp(s) to the police.

Earlier this week, Alex‘s car was ransacked in the Luna Park area:

My car was broken into (window smashed) and my backpack full of books and student papers ( I teach at a local college) was taken. I have a feeling that the backpack and its contents will be disposed of somewhere, as I can’t see them being helpful to anyone but me. Can you ask readers to keep their eyes peeled for a purple backpack full of ESL textbooks and papers?

These are the latest unfortunate reminders that even if you think what you left in your vehicle doesn’t look like something criminals would bother with – chances are, you’re wrong. Even a couple of canvas grocery bags strewn in the back of a car might look to a prowler like something worth checking out – possibly at the expense of the glass in your vehicle’s window.