Police Blotter – May 24, 2013

[Reprinted from The Richmond Police Station Newsletter of May 24, 2013. To be added to the station’s mailing list, email sfpd.richmond.station@sfgov.org.]

CAPTAIN SHARON FERRIGNO’S MESSAGE
This Week I participated in a national program to increase school safety. Three Richmond Schools were chosen as part of President Obama’s Now Is The Time School Safety Initiative. One hundred and one schools were chosen nationwide. Congratulations to our local schools and their leadership in being a part of this important initiative. Richmond Station personnel have been working closely with our schools to stay abreast of trends and opportunities to increase safety.

At the request of our community I urge each of you include checking your car lights and signals regularly to make sure they are in working order. Blinkers are required when making a turn, this signals to others on the road that we are making turns and lane changes.

Our next Community meeting will be held on Tuesday, June 18, 2013 at 6pm. It will be in the Community Room, here at Richmond Station, 461 6th Ave.

NOTEWORTHY ARRESTS
On 05/19/13 at 1:30pm, plainclothes officers in an unmarked vehicle were stopped at the intersection of Crossover Drive and Transverse Drive when they were stuck from behind by a moped. The officers identified themselves and asked the driver for his information. The driver said his license was suspended and he had no proof of insurance. The officers then noticed that the moped had recently been painted and the paint was still tacky. The driver said that he was being paid to paint the moped for a friend and was driving it around so the paint would dry. An officer was sent to the home of the registered owner who told them that his moped had been stolen and should have been parked in front of his home. The suspect, a 29 year old male was charged with stolen auto, driving on a suspended license and outstanding warrants.

On 05/21/13 between 9:50pm and 10:30pm a cell phone caller called 911 and wanted police to go to a certain location near 32nd and California Sts. The caller was vague and uncooperative. The officers went to the home twice and spoke with the residents who were fine and did not make the call to 911. At 11:20pm the same caller was on the phone calling from a bar on the 3100 block of Clement St telling the 911 dispatcher to “make it happen” and then he hung up. A call back to the bar was made and the employee told the dispatcher that the male had come in and started throwing things around and was now in the middle of the street running around.

The officers arrived to find the man running in circles in the middle of the street yelling “they are coming to get me!” The officers tried to speak to him and when they approached he suddenly took off running and hopped over a fence at 30th and Clement St. Several officers went into the backyards to search for the male and could still hear him yelling. Suddenly the male appeared on the roof of a home on the 300 block of 31st Ave and was jumping back and forth across two homes. He started to yell that he was going to jump with officers still trying to calm him down. Suddenly the male grabbed onto some cable wires and jumped from the roof landing in the driveway below. As the officers tried to give him first aid, the male was still combative and spitting blood on the officers. The ambulance arrived and 39 year old was taken to a local hospital for his injuries and placed on a psychiatric hold.

On 05/22/13 at 9am, officers were called to the area of Commonwealth and California regarding a male who was exposing himself. The witness reported that he was seen masturbating on hospital property and was told to leave. The witness continued to watch him as the suspect then went to a bus shelter and masturbated in front of the people waiting for the bus. The suspect a 35 year old male was detained and charged with indecent exposure and several outstanding warrants.

NOTEWORTHY INCIDENTS
On 05/18/13 between 12:15am and 6:15am on the 700 block of 4th Ave a suspect entered a garage and took two bikes and assorted groceries. The victim may have forgotten to shut the garage door.

On 05/18/13 between 1:30am and 10am on the 400 block of 20th Ave, a bike was taken from the lobby of an apartment building. There were no signs of forced entry.

On 05/18/13 at 3:50am, a employee of a restaurant was contacted by their alarm company that the alarm was going off at the restaurant on the unit block of Clement St. Officers were already on scene and had conducted a walkthrough and the suspect was gone. The suspect entered by throwing a rock through the front glass door and took the cash register which was located outside.

Between 05/18/13, 7am and 05/19/13, 5:30pm on the 400 block of 21st Ave, a suspect entered an unsecure multi-unit garage and took a bike.

Between 05/18/13, 2pm and 05/20/13, 7:30am on the 600 block of 16th Ave a suspect entered an apartment building through an unlocked garage door. The suspect then pried open a door to an apartment and took a desktop computer and car keys. The suspect then took the victim’s car which had been parked across the street.

On 05/18/13 at 2pm, the victims were walking on a service road near the Academy of Sciences. The suspect who was on a bike rode past the victims then turned around and came back to them. The suspect said in Spanish, “Give me everything you got” while pointing a handgun in their direction. As there were many other people nearby, the victim’s started yelling for help and the suspect rode off. He was described as a Hispanic male, 25-30yrs, dark complexion, wearing a dark colored top and a gray baseball cap with a “M” on the front.

Between 05/18/13, 5pm and 05/19/13, 12pm on the 1300 block of Lake St, a suspect entered a garage by unknown means and took a bike.

On 05/19/13 at 3am, the victim was walking on Geary Blvd towards 36th Ave. The two suspects were walking west. The victim had her cell phone in her front sweatshirt pocket and was listening to music with her earphones. The first suspect said “Give it up” and as she tried to walk away, the second suspect placed his hands on her shoulders to prevent her from walking away. Because the first suspect had his hand inside his sweatshirt pocket, she believed he was possibly armed and handed over her phone. The suspects then fled to an awaiting small sized SUV which was being driven by a by a Hispanic female. The suspects were described as black males, 20-25yrs, both wearing white hooded sweatshirts. The incident was reported several hours later.

Between 05/19/13, 11pm and 05/20/13, 7am on the 700 block of 5th Ave, the victim’s vehicle which was parked outside was broken into and the garage remote was taken. The suspect, then using the remote, entered the garage and took 3 bikes.

On 05/19/13 at 11pm, the owner of a restaurant on the 6100 block of Geary locked up his business by wrapping a chain around the door handles and securing it with a lock. When he returned on 05/20/13 at 8:45am, he saw that the suspect had cut of the chain, entered the restaurant and took the cash register, a laptop and cash.

On 05/20/13 at 8:35pm, the victim was walking on the 2600 block of Sutter when he heard someone say “Hey” from behind him. He turned around and saw the three suspects who all tried to grab his laptop bag. When the victim struggled over the bag, one of the suspects pulled out a handgun and hit him in the side of the face with the butt of the gun. The victim let go the bag and fell to the ground and the suspects fled east on Sutter. The victim got up and began to give chase when the suspect with the gun fired one round in his direction. The victim could only describe the suspects as black males, 18-19yrs. The loss was the laptop, bag, cell phone and headphones.

On 05/21/13 between 12:40am and 5:30am, on the 3300 block of Geary, a suspect entered a flat while the residents were sleeping and took a purse and its’ contents from a chair. The front door lock and deadbolt are both broken.

On 05/12/13 at 12:15pm, the victim, 72yrs, was approached at the corner of 22nd and Clement by a male who said that he had just arrived from South Africa and was looking for the “International Office.” According to the male, he was going to inherit $2,000,000 dollars, but in order to do so; he needed to find two worthy charities to donate $85,000 dollars to. He asked the victim to assist him in finding these charities. At this point, the second suspect drove up in an older model gray Lexus, parked, and approached the two. The first suspect gave the second the same story and then opened a bag which appeared to have two large rolls of money in it. The second suspect had to prove that he was trustworthy and if so, the first suspect would give him the $85,000 dollars to donate. All three got into the gray Lexus and drove to a bank where the second suspect said he had cash in a safety deposit box. The car was parked out of view of the bank, and the second suspect exited the vehicle, leaving his keys behind to show he trusted the victim and first suspect. The male returned from the bank with a bag and show them a roll of $100 dollar bills. He gave the victim the bag to hold and had the victim and first suspect exit the car. The suspect then drove away with this being another sign of trust. When he returned with the victim and first suspect still standing there they all get back into the car. It was now the victims’ turn to show his trustworthiness and he was asked how much money he had at home. The victim told them the amount along with the fact that he had several expensive watches. They drove to the victims home and he went in and got cash and the watches. They then drove to the victims’ bank where he withdrew an additional amount of money and got back into the car. They then drove to the area of 27th and Balboa were they let out the victim as it was know his turn to trust them. They told the victim to face the building and they drove off with the victim’s cash and watches. After waiting 45 minutes, the victim realized the suspects were not returning. The suspects were described as black males, 45-50yrs, with the first suspect having an accent, short hair, wearing a dark brown jacket and black slacks. The second was wearing a dark baseball cap, dark blue t-shirt and blue jeans.