The crimes below are a small snapshot of what the officers of Northern Station are doing. For a more comprehensive list, visit www.sf-police.org; under Compstat, there is a link to CrimeMAPS.
UP ON THE HOUSETOP
Tuesday, April 23, 2:49 a.m.
1100 Block of Sutter
Police responded to a call from an apartment tenant who demanded the arrest of trespassers who were walking around on the roof above his unit. Officers reached the roof and found three subjects, along with several bags and backpacks. While detaining the males for trespassing, the officers ran checks on their names and found that two of them had warrants for their arrest. A search of the bags revealed numerous random keys, tools, apparently stolen mail, checks not in the subjects’ name, miscellaneous ID cards, and lock picks.
The apartment building manager said he did not know the subjects and that they had no business being there. Two of the subjects were transported to Northern Station and booked; the third was cited for trespassing and released.
“I’M DUMB FOR BREAKING THE DOOR”
Saturday, May 4, 1:24 a.m.
1400 Block of Pine
Officers responding to a report of a person breaking into a residence arrived to find a damaged front door and a female victim pointing out an apparently inebriated male.
“I’m dumb for breaking the door,” the subject said. “I just wanted to see her.” The victim acknowledged that she and the subject are friends, but she “barely knows him.” The officers recorded the evidence of damage to the door and ran a computer check on the subject, which revealed he had $50,000 in outstanding warrants. He was transported to Northern Station and booked on charges of malicious mischief, vandalism to property, trespassing, and other charges.
CAR BECOMES A HONEYPOT
Sunday, May 5, 11:13 p.m.
2800 Block of Pierce
Officers interviewed separately four victims of a robbery, and each told the officers essentially the same story. They had been hanging out on the steps of a Pierce Street home when a car with four individuals on board stopped to ask for direction to the BART station; the car then drove off, only to return a few minutes later. The four subjects exited the car and approached the men on the steps, asking if they wanted to buy marijuana. They began taking items such as bags, wallets, phones, and backpacks from the victims, with one subject holding his hand at his waistband, leading the victims to believe he had a gun. One of the subjects punched a victim in the nose and then went through his pockets after he collapsed on the ground.
The victims were nevertheless able to get a description of the vehicle and its license plate number as it drove away. SFPD inspectors on the other side of town located the vehicle a short time later and officers were able to arrest the driver, who was the sole occupant of the car at that time. They then left the car and watched it until the other three subjects returned to it, whereupon they were arrested without further incident. The victims positively identified all of the subjects, who were arrested and booked at county jail. None of the stolen property was successfully located.
NEXT TIME, ORDER A DRINK
Sunday, May 12, 12:30 a.m.
2200 Block of Polk
A Northern Station sergeant on uniformed patrol stopped when he saw a subject being shoved out the front door of a Polk Street bar. Bar employees told him that the subject was caught red-handed stealing a purse from a bar patron.
A witness said the subject had come into the bar alone, sat at the bar, but didn’t order a drink. Instead, he was looking at people’s property, apparently casing the place for items to steal. The bartender watched the subject and saw him grab a purse from under the bar and place it into his jacket. The subject then got up and walked toward the bathroom, which is when the establishment’s security stopped him and escorted him out.
Another victim approached the officers and said that her purse was missing about $50. She said she had — astonishingly — left her purse unattended for a few minutes when she went to use the restroom.
On the surveillance video from the bar, police watched the subject get stopped and escorted out by security; when he raised up his hands, the purse fell to the ground.
The subject was transported to Northern Station for booking. While there, he was found to have a meth pipe in his pocket, which earned him an additional charge.
THE BICYCLE THIEF
Monday, May 13, 4:20 a.m.
Undisclosed location
Officers responding to a report of a possible burglary in progress arrived to see two males near the address, one of whom started to walk away from the first as soon as he saw the police car coming toward him. Officers quickly detained both subjects, then set about investigating the scene.
The caller had said that he heard drilling and grinding sounds coming from inside the garage, where the bikes are kept. Officers found that the front gate of the apartment building had been pried open, and they discovered an open garage door and a backpack that did not belong to the owner. Inside the bag were numerous “burglary tools,” including a battery operated grinder and a handheld blowtorch. The officers also found a large piece of metal pipe, which was cut from the bike rack area. They noticed several unlocked bicycles and cut bike locks.
The caller said that the garage has been broken into at least twice before. Officers took photos of the damage, property, and crime scene. The subjects were transported to Northern Station, where they were booked on charges of burglary, hot prowl, warrant arrest, conspiracy, possession of burglary tools, and more.
