Police blotter: Recent crime in Berkeley

Drunk In Public Arrest – 900 Block of Carleton Street
On Sunday at about 9:20 p.m., an employee of a restaurant called about a woman outside the business who was causing a disturbance. When BPD officers arrived, the case officer noted that the woman was belligerent, had a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage on her breath when she spoke, was staggering and had bloodshot/watery eyes. Based on the officer’s observation of the woman’s objective symptoms of impairment, he arrested her for violation of PC647(f)– Drunk in Public as she could not care for herself. The officer learned the 36-year old Berkeley woman was on active probation so he booked her into the BPD Jail for violations PC647(f) and PC1203.2 – Probation Violation.

Attempted Commercial Burglary via Roof – 1300 block of San Pablo Avenue
Between the hours of 8:00 p.m. on Sunday and 6:30 a.m. on Monday, an unknown suspect or suspects attempted to enter a retail business in the 1300 block of San Pablo Avenue. The incident was discovered when some retail staff noticed water leaking from the roof into the interior of the store. The BPD officer and the manager got onto the roof as it was already being repaired and examined the area. Rubber shingle material had been pried, an area of about 5 feet by 2 feet. The sub-roofing material was not penetrated. The BPD officer who documented and investigated the attempted crime sent a message to all officers to check the roof when responding to this location for any alarm or suspicious call.

Grand Theft of Bicycle (over $950) -Shattuck Avenue and Center Street
On Sunday at about 1:50 p.m., a Berkeley man returned to the spot that he had locked his bicycle and discovered it had been stolen. The man called BPD. He told the BPD officer that he parked and secured his bike with a cable and lock at 6:00 p.m. the previous day. When he came back, it was gone. An unknown suspect or suspects cut the cable lock and made off with a gray men’s Rocky Mountain brand, 12-speed bicycle with red forks. The owner/victim told the officer that the bike is worth approximately $2,000.

Monday, January 23

Stolen Auto – Haste and Piedmont Avenues
On Monday a woman called BPD at 6:45 p.m. to report that her car had been stolen. She had parked her 1991 green Honda Accord in the area of Haste and Piedmont Avenues the previous day at 6:00 p.m. When she returned to the location just before she called BPD, she discovered it had been stolen. The BPD officer documented the crime and entered the vehicle and description into the Stolen Vehicle System (SVS).

Burglary to Garage – 600 block of Neilson Street
Between the hours of 7:00 p.m. on Sunday 9:07 a.m. on Monday, an unknown suspect or suspects cut the padlocks that secured the garage doors to a home in the 600 block of Neilson and stole two bicycles. The suspect(s) stole a Cannondale brand, green men’s racing bike and a Giant brand women’s blue road bike. The male victim was able to provide one of the serial numbers for the bikes and the BPD officer entered it into the Automated Property System database (APS) as stolen property.

Tuesday, January 24

Armed Robbery – 2700 block of Sojourner Truth Court
On Tuesday at about 9:05 p.m., a 19-year old pizza delivery person was bringing an order to an address in the 2700 block of Sojourner Truth Court. As he was walking away from the address after the customer paid for it, three male suspects got out of a silver Lexus GS300 type car. One suspect grabbed his arms, one suspect pointed a gun at the delivery person and the third suspect pointed a knife at him. The suspect with the knife demanded anything the victim had. The victim handed over a small amount of cash. The suspects got back in the car and drove away. The victim was not physically injured during the crime. Officers did area checks for the suspects and the suspect car, but did not locate them.
.
The victim described the suspects as: Suspect #1 — a Black Male Adult, 19 years old, 5’11”, medium build, black hoodie. Suspect #2 — a Black Male Adult, 19 years old, 5’11”, medium build, black hoodie. Suspect #3 – a Black Male Adult, 19 years old, 5’11”, medium build, black hoodie.

Bike Stop Leads to Dope Arrest – 63rd & California
On Wednesday at about 8:35 p.m., BPD Drug Task Force (DTF) officers detained a man on a bicycle who was riding at night without a headlight. A records check of the cyclist name revealed that he was on probation for DUI and had an active $20,000 warrant for his arrest. During a search incident to his arrest, an officer found three balloons containing powder heroin and some hypodermic needles in his possession. The officer booked the 43-year old Berkeley man for violations of H&S11350 – Possession of a Controlled Substance/Heroin, PC1203.2 – Probation violation and the warrant.

Strong Arm Robbery — Unit 1 Loading Dock, Durant Avenue
On Tuesday at about 4:24 p.m. UCPD Officers responded to a report of a strong arm robbery which had just occurred at the Unit I loading dock near Durant Avenue. The victim, an 18-year old female student, was walking eastbound on Durant listening to music on her iPod when she noticed three males walking in the same direction ahead of her. The victim turned into the Unit I loading dock area. The victim did not notice that the three suspects had followed her into the alleyway. One of the suspects hit her in the back of the head, knocking her to the ground. The two other suspects searched her pockets and took her iPod. The three suspects fled the scene on foot heading southbound through the alleyway. The victim suffered a laceration to her elbow. UCPD searched the area but was unable to locate the suspects.

The suspects are described as: Suspect #1 – A Black male in his 30s, wearing a red and black baseball cap and a blue jacket. Suspect #2 – A Black male in his 20s, with a goatee, and wearing a light
tan jacket. Suspect #3 – A Black male wearing a blue snow jacket and dark blue jeans.

Wednesday, January 25

Drunk in Public Arrest – 2200 Block of Martin Luther King Jr. Way
On Wednesday a community member called BPD at 1:10 a.m. to report a male adult walking and stumbling northbound on MLK Jr. Way near Bancroft Way. The assigned BPD officer found the described person in a front yard in the 2200 block of MLK Jr. Way. The officer saw that the subject was staggering and could barely stand on his own. He also had slow, slurred speech and a strong odor of alcoholic beverage coming from his breath and person. The man told the BPD officer that he had been drinking and was walking home, but the man thought he was in Oakland. Due to his high level of intoxication, the officer determined that the Oakland man was unable to care for his own safety. The BPD officer booked him into the BPD Jail for violation of PC647 – Drunk in Public.

Narcotics Search Warrant Yields Dope & Guns – 2 Arrested
On Wednesday the Special Investigations Bureau (SIB) detectives with the support of Drug Task Force officers and Property Crimes detectives served a search warrant on a known Berkeley drug dealer. The team detained both subjects that were the focus of the investigation without incident and served the warrant at their residence. At the conclusion of the search warrant, a significant amount of contraband was located. Officers and Detectives found two .38 caliber revolvers, a tech 9 assault weapon, a Glock 45 Cal. with a high capacity magazine, a 308 Cal. rifle, 8 bottles of codeine cough syrup, approximately 50 ecstasy pills, cocaine base, and over 20 pounds of marijuana. Detectives also seized over $6,000, a Cadillac Escalade, and a 2006 Maserati. Detectives arrested and booked a 32-year old male suspect and a 24-year old woman suspect for nine felony offenses each including H&S11351 – Possession for sales of cocaine base, H&S11351- Possession for sales of codeine cough syrup, H&S 11378- possession for sales of ecstasy pills, H&S 11359- Possession for sales of marijuana, HS 11370.1- possession of cocaine base while armed, PC 29800(a)(1) Formerly PC 12021(a)(1)- possession loaded firearm by convicted felon, PC 30305(a)(1) Formerly PC 12316(b)(1)- possession of ammunition by person prohibited from possession a firearm, PC 30600(a) formerly PC 12280(a)(1)- possession of an assault weapon and PC 1203.2- Felony probation violation.

Fraud – 1300 block of Alcatraz Avenue
On Wednesday at about 11:44 a.m., an 81-year old Berkeley community member called BPD to report some fraud. She had received a letter from Sprint stating she owed nearly $600 for an account that had been opened in her name. She immediately closed it and called BPD. The BPD officer documented the crime and provided some crime prevention advice and resources regarding fraud and Identity Theft.

Other police activities

Between January 23, 2012 at approximately 1:21 p.m. and Thursday, January 26, 2012 at 1:13 p.m., BPD officers have responded and managed 19 calls for service regarding possible abandoned vehicles throughout the City of Berkeley. (this does not include Parking Enforcement Officers)