Police Blotter: October 22, 2015

SFPD Richmond District Police Station
Weekly Update 10-22-2015
From Captain Simon Silverman

Halloween Event at SFPD Headquarters
The SFPD will be hosting a free Halloween event at the Public Safety Building (1245 3rd Street) on 10/31/2015 from 11:30 AM to 4:30 PM. This event is for children 10 years and younger. There will be arts and crafts, face painting, and trick or treat stations.

Please note that the above event is not at Richmond Station, but at SFPD HQ on 3rd Street. However, if you’re out trick or treating on Halloween come by Richmond Station too since we’ll have some little goodies to hand out. This year, everyone at the station will be wearing matching costumes for Halloween (spoiler alert… we’re dressing up as police officers)!

Here are some of the incidents that occurred in the Richmond Police District this week:

BURGLARY (GUN STOLEN)
10/12/2015 7:30 AM to 10/15/2015 7:30 PM
Fulton & 46th Ave
The suspect entered the premises through an unlocked door and stole several items including a revolver and ammunition.
Captain’s Note: If you own a firearm please be vigilant in securing it against theft. Just recently, we have seen three cases where people were murdered with stolen handguns.

ARREST: ATTEMPTED BIKE THEFT / WARRANTS
10/16/2015 9:45 AM
De Young Museum
Officers responded to a report of a man trying to cut bike locks. They detained the suspect who had a set of cable cutters in his possession. The suspect also had two warrants for his arrest.
Captain’s Note: Regular readers (and this suspect) know that cable locks are not effective because they can easily be cut. For tips on locking your bike visit www.safebikes.org.

ARREST: THEFT FROM A VEHICLE / POSSESSION OF STOLEN PROPERTY / POSSESSION OF BURGLARY TOOLS / VIOLATION OF PROBATION
10/17/2015 3:40 PM
JFK & Stow Lake Drive
The victims called the SFPD after their car was broken into and several items (including an iPhone were stolen). Officers tracked the iPhone to a MUNI coach at Geary & 20th Ave and stopped the bus. The suspect (who is well known to the officers at Richmond Station as a thief who breaks into cars in Golden Gate Park) stuck his head out of the back door of the bus and called to the officers, “You’re looking for me aren’t you?” As he was doing this, the officers made the stolen iPhone ring – inside the suspect’s backpack. Officers also found a screwdriver and a pair of pliers (tools used to break into cars) plus the victim’s wallet in the backpack. The suspect is on probation for… (if you know the words sing along)… breaking into cars.
Captain’s Note: I took a look at this suspect’s SFPD rap sheet (I would have said a “quick look” but it’s 30 pages long) and found that since 1987 he has been charged with possession of burglary tools 23 times, with burglary 15 times and with possession of stolen property 11 times.

ARREST: BURGLARY / GRAND THEFT / TRESPASSING
10/18/2015 4:58 PM
Jackson & Cherry
Officers responded to a report of a person trespassing in a vacant home that is for sale. The suspect told them that he was trying to establish a legal claim to the property by occupying it. Officers discovered that he had stolen several expensive items from the home (including paintings valued at about $300,000). In subsequent days, investigators from Richmond Station recovered almost all of the stolen artwork.

ROBBERY AT AN ATM
10/20/2015 3:30 PM
Geary & Wood
A woman in her 70s was at the ATM when the suspect shoved her aside and began pressing buttons on the ATM she had just been using. She went into the bank to report the incident and the bank manager found that several hundred dollars had just been withdrawn from her account.

“Shoulder Surfing” at ATMs:
The case above is a more aggressive example of the increasingly common crime known as “shoulder surfing.” This occurs when the criminal looks over your shoulder to see you enter your PIN and or hurries you away from the machine. Once you have left, the suspect quickly uses the ATM before you are logged out. He enters another transaction while your session is still active at which point the machine will sometimes ask him to re-enter your PIN (but not to re-insert your card). The suspect will then withdraw as much cash as he can.

Unless you are being assaulted or threatened (as in the last case above), you should not step away from the machine until you are certain that your ATM session has closed completely. If someone makes you uncomfortable while you are using an ATM quickly cancel your session, do not withdraw cash, and leave once you are certain that your session is closed. If you see anyone loitering near an ATM machine, do not use that machine. Look for machines that are in busy areas rather than isolated spots. Use the buddy system and have someone watch your back whenever possible.

Contact Us:
Richmond Station
461 6th Ave.
San Francisco, CA 94118
415-666-8000
E-mail: SFPDRichmondStation@sfgov.org