Let me start this column by telling all of you that you live in a very safe neighborhood. There are many reasons that this neighborhood is safe, but the main one is all of you. You watch out for each other, you call us at the first sign of anything amiss, and you are very organized and proactive in foreseeing anything that might negatively affect your quality of life.

All of that said, crime does occur in your neighborhood. As an example, last month on Jan. 10 at 11:30 p.m. and a few hours later at 1:50 a.m., two street robberies happened. In the first incident, an anonymous caller dialed 911 to report that they heard a woman “screaming for help.” Officers responded and found the victim; fortunately, she was not hurt. She told officers that she was walking alone towards Safeway at 11:30 p.m. with her purse slung over her shoulder. The victim noticed a dark-skinned male with a heavy build wearing a grey hoodie with a black jacket over the hoodie and black pants; the hoodie was pulled over his face as he walked towards her. As the suspect walked up to her, he pulled a black handgun and said, “Purse, purse now.” The victim screamed for help and the suspect ran off, east on Beach Street. She watched the suspect run and get into a white or light silver SUV-type car that had been waiting for him on Cervantes Street. The suspect was not successful in this robbery attempt, as the victim retained her purse.

Later on, officers were in the area when they were flagged down at Union Street and Laguna. They found a victim lying unconscious on the ground and immediately summoned an ambulance. Friends relayed the preceding incident to officers. One witness told officers that he and two friends, including the victim, were leaving a bar when they were approached by a Hispanic male who asked, “What do you got?” The witness said he doesn’t know what happened but suddenly the victim was unconscious on the ground, bleeding from a head wound. The witness told officers that the suspect then reached into the victim’s pockets and removed his cell phone. The suspect then told the witness, “Give me what you got or get knocked out like your friend.” The witness said he thought the suspect was reaching for a gun or something, so he put his hands up. The suspect then stole his cell phone too. Witnesses said the suspect then ran to a waiting white car and drove off south on Laguna. Interviewed later in the hospital, the now-conscious victim could not recall the incident; he only knew that his cell phone was missing.

We think the two robberies may have involved the same suspects and have a lead on the car.

We cannot always prevent these things from happening but there are things we can do to reduce our victimization. I have said it, written it, even tweeted about it: always be aware of your surroundings and conceal your valuables, especially after dark. These opportunists walk or drive our neighborhoods looking for prey. They target people walking alone, or those absolutely engrossed in their smart phones. They almost always hit after dark. They hit the side streets of busy areas. In the Marina, the robbery suspect is either going to “surprise attack” from the rear or they will drive past you, mark you, and get dropped off around the corner in the direction you are walking. They rob you and run back around the corner and into the waiting car; usually the car is unseen.