West Seattle Crime Watch: Two people “violently mugged”

We’re checking with the Southwest Precinct for any more info on this, including whether anyone’s been arrested. But we didn’t want to wait any longer to share the original reader report, from Zack:

Two of my neighbors were violently mugged last night in Highland Park as they were walking home. The mugging took place at the intersection of 14th and Cambridge [map] around 7:30 pm. The muggers worked in tandem. One approached the couple asking where the closest bus stop was, while the other hid out of sight. The first mugger wrestled one of the victims to the ground, using a blade of some kind to cut open the victim’s pants and remove his wallet. The other mugger stepped out from behind a car and flattened the second victim, ripping her purse and handbag from her. The muggers fled in a vehicle heading south. The muggers made off with both of the victims’ wallets, a lap top computer, and various personal items (including house keys). Within minutes, the criminals had attempted to use the victims’ credit cards at a gas station with a 98116 ZIP code.

The victims described the assailants as Asian Pacific Islanders or Samoans in their early 20s. The muggers did not have any distinguishing features or marks. They were both large men.

The victims are friends. My wife took them to the hardware store last night to buy replacement locks. Needless to say, we are all shaken up over this. The violent nature of the crime is particularly disturbing. The police who responded said that as the economy worsens, they are seeing a rise in these types of snatch and grab crimes.

Please alert your readers to call the police the first moment they notice any suspicious looking vehicles or people in their neighborhood.

20 Replies to "West Seattle Crime Watch: Two people "violently mugged""

  • mellaw6565 December 10, 2008 (2:38 pm)

    Wow – that’s terrible! We walk through there all the time at all hours and have never had any issues at all. Hope they catch them!

  • ellenater December 10, 2008 (2:47 pm)

    harsh. so sorry to hear that. :( that is PTSD inducing…

  • CB December 10, 2008 (3:59 pm)

    That’s terrible to hear. Remember, though: just because they’ve built a bunch of pretty townhouses nearby doesn’t mean it’s any safer of a neighborhood. 14th & Cambridge (Roxbury & Delridge) always has been, and remains a dangerous area.

  • CatP December 10, 2008 (4:30 pm)

    Oh no, this is terrible. I’m one block north, so they are neighbors. I hope they are okay. I’ve been walking through that intersection every night at about that same time (with my young child) for cat-sitting duty, and never noticed anybody lurking, so hopefully this was a completely isolated incident and the muggers will be caught soon.

    CB, I believe those pretty townhouses are mostly empty…

  • d December 10, 2008 (5:29 pm)

    That is horrible. I’m sorry this happened to your friends, or anyone for that matter.

    I think it is accurate to say that every street in West Seattle has the potential to be a dangerous location for muggers to the unwary.

    I recall reports here on WSB of thefts and robberies all over West Seattle – from Alki to the parking lot behind Husky Deli. So, let us disabuse ourselves of an untruth that one area is worse than others for crime, whether muggings or thefts. As SW Precinct spokesmen averred – these incidents are about the economy, not the locations.

    Folks, I don’t know about you, but I think SW Seattle has to adopt a new mantra: Know Your Block Watch Captain.

    Find out where your Block Watch Captains are and get on your street’s email list. If you don’t know who that is for your area – get a pen and paper and write the following name down and call tomorrow. It doesn’t matter if you are a homeowner, a renter, in a house or a condo or apartment. It’s just one of those things we are ALL are going to have to do, sooner rather than later. We can whine and moan, or we can be proactive and act.

    Contact SW Precinct Crime Prevention Coordinator:

    Benjamin Kinlow, 684-7724,
    email: benjamin.kinlow@seattle.gov

    Call the Crime Prevention Coordinator to set up a Block Watch meeting date and time for your block.

    Talk about ongoing crime problems and work to resolve the crime on your block.

    Set up a “CPTED Block Tour”, so everyone understands the problems on your block and how to fix them.

    Check out our new web-page:

    http://www.seattle.gov/police/precincts/southwest/prevention.htm, please share our information with others.

    Contact Your CPT Officer:

    Call 615-1976 to find out the name of your CPT Officer, telephone and email

    Set up an appointment with the CPT Officer that works your area. They want to know about the ongoing problems in their area that has not been resolved by calling 911.

    Godspeed all –

    make the calls.

  • Irukandji December 10, 2008 (6:06 pm)

    Breaks my heart and makes me sick to my stomach. So sorry to hear of such pain and loss.

    Excellent info, d. Our block watch has been a work in progress and is celebrating a little success in addressing our local issues. We couldn’t have done it if we hadn’t come together as a community.

  • RS December 10, 2008 (7:15 pm)

    This sucks. I’m so sorry this happened to my neighbors!! I wholeheartedly agree with d about the fact that this could happen anywhere. But living in this neighborhood, I’m not sure what a block watch could have done to prevent this. There are major bus routes that go through here and if I let the police or my neighbors know every time I saw a strange person walking down 14th, they’d write me off as crazy and paranoid after two days. In general, yes, block watches are a great idea and first step and all that. I just feel a little helpless knowing that this could happen anywhere and at any time.

  • aunteesocial December 10, 2008 (7:24 pm)

    The Q13 van is parked with it’s satellite pole thing up on the corner. Was there a news story about this? It’s a drag that this took place, my heart goes out to the victims who I’m sure are traumatized. I certainly would be.
    And there are always unusual characters in the neighborhood- the bus stops add to the unfamiliar faces. And I agree with RS, we can’t report all of them. One block off Roxbury can be not the greatest place to try to keep track of everyone, it’s too bad.
    Again, sorry this happened in the neighborhood.

  • WSB December 10, 2008 (10:56 pm)

    A WSB report *is* a “news story.” But if you mean, did the citywide media cover it – they all check WSB (per our logs) and have access to police reports too, so if they see something like this and the report is available, it’s not too tough to pull the report and base a TV story on it. Or, maybe the folks who e-mailed us also contacted the station; that’s been known to happen too. However, I can’t find any online evidence (missed the top of 13’s 9 and 10 pm newscasts) that this was indeed what they were covering (let me know if you saw the story and that’s what it was) – TR

  • Kayleigh2 December 11, 2008 (5:24 am)

    Sorry, but some areas *are* worse than others for crime, statiscially speaking. And intuitively speaking, I don’t trust that area. (No offense to the good people who live there.)

    Very sorry it happens to anybody, regardless of where they live.

  • the_bridge_to_somewhere December 11, 2008 (11:31 am)

    Although I understand that we should not universally condemn an area or classify neighborhoods with charged works like “good” or “bad,” Kayleigh2 is right: statistically speaking, some neighborhoods have more of some types of crime than others: http://web1.seattle.gov/seastats/doStatistics.aspx. You can see in aggregate (i.e., across crimes of all types) there isn’t a lot of difference in neighborhood crime rates across West Seattle, but for specific crimes there is tremendous variation. In particular, residential burglaries and vehicle thefts seem to vary in number by neighborhoods. So it isn’t an “untruth” that one area is worse than another in terms of specific types of crime . . . and incidentally and unfortunately, my neighborhood seems to be the worst. ;-)

  • Flavian December 11, 2008 (12:51 pm)

    Muggings were the result of the economy? Are we talking the local economy? This robbery was not committed by unemployed realtors, mortgage brokers, or bank executives. This was a brutal and coordinated ambush by thugs who enjoy using violence. These criminals did not have a day job that laid them off. I am willing to wager that these hoodlums are proud of not working ordinary jobs, have nothing but contempt for the rest of us, and regardless of the state of the economy, they will keep robbing and assaulting until they are caught and incarcerated.

  • Joseph December 12, 2008 (5:01 am)

    Listen economy be damned … crime is crime and it is evil I hope they are caught, convicted, and locked away… I am so sorry these people had to endure this. WTF threw a link up there for a taser … for about $6 you can get a pepper spray at a hardware store (it even has a convenient key chain attached). I carry one w/ me each night as I walk my dog. I am 6′ and weigh 250lbs. I did 23 years in the military and I assure you this $6 pepper spray will lay me out flat … I have had it done to me for training and it was the same kind as you get in the hardware store! It works and is cheap … Simple to use “point and spray then run away”.

  • roberto jose December 12, 2008 (10:39 pm)

    Reality Check. Having lived in West Seattle since 1955 I believe I speak with some credibility. The law-abiding residents of Highland Park have been victimized by higher crime rates for decades. And for those of you new to West Seattle, the entire Delridge Corridor has a reputation for housing deviants of all types. Additionally, the closer one resides to Roxbury Street the higher the likelihood of criminal victimization. Why? Because of Section 8 housing. That is not to say that all residents within Section 8 housing are criminally inclined. However, virtually every study addressing the relationship between Section 8 housing and criminal behavior overwelmingly concludes a direct correlative impact. In other words, Section 8 housing attracts the so-called “criminal element”. But more to the point, these victims should not have been carrying anything of value. Apparently one of the victim’s purse and handbag were stolen. With all due respect to the victims, there is absolutely no way I would go anywhere near that neighborhood, after dark, carrying anything of value that could be stolen from me in the event of a mugging. And truth be told, if for some unfortunate circumstance I did have to visit that area after dark, I surely would be in possession of a firearm.

  • JenY December 13, 2008 (11:54 pm)

    Roberto Jose–wow, talk about blaming the victims. Say YOU were walking home from work (with your briefcase with a laptop in it–pretty common) at 7:30 pm (which is after dark these days). Based on your comment, I assume you’d be packing heat. So what would you have done? Shot the guy who stopped you to ask directions for the bus? Great idea! (If he’d actually been just a guy asking for directions, well, too bad. You’d be alive and he wouldn’t.) Or would you have somehow shot the guy who tackled you from behind? On the other hand, maybe the gun would have been wrestled out of your grasp and been used against you. They were big guys, after all.

    There’s being stupid, and then there’s walking home from work. What happened to those poor folks was horrible, and it wasn’t their fault. By making it sound as though it were–and by assuming that being armed is the answer–you perpetuate a climate of fear that helps to breed more crime.

  • Diane December 18, 2008 (12:35 am)

    I was mugged in Chicago years ago…had my purse with my keys and wallet in it. One thing the cops told me to do was always keep my keys in my pocket…that way I’d at least be able to get into my house if my purse was stolen. Since the purse has your I.D. with address in it, you don’t want them to have your keys. It’s still creepy though. I’m sorry to hear this happened in Highland Park.

  • roberto jose December 18, 2008 (9:31 pm)

    JenY. Your conclusion is premature and both your assumptions are faulty. Also, I see our hooded friends have escalated their criminal wrong-doing. And, for your information, I am a customer of Mr. Lee, the owner of the Deli who was robbed while these 2 thugs shoved a shotgun under his nose. Mr. Lee is a great guy who pays college tuition for many of his relatives who work at his little store. I would hate to see Mr. Lee die at the hands of 2 sleazy low-lifes.

  • EP December 27, 2008 (4:52 pm)

    Is there an update on this story? Do we have a police report? I live very close and would like some more information!

  • WSB December 27, 2008 (7:05 pm)

    I spoke with police a day or two afterward and there was no additional information – no arrests, no further description – TR

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