Berkeleyside Police Blotter: Crime in Berkeley, Feb. 20-26

Selected calls for service to the Berkeley Police, via CrimeMapping.com. (Scroll down for maps of burglaries, auto burglaries and auto thefts.) Click the map for the full list. See the map key here.

This is a partial list of recent crime in Berkeley, compiled by Berkeleyside, and based on reports to the Berkeley Police Department unless otherwise noted. See recent Berkeley crime coverage here.

The following items represent just a sampling of calls, and times may be approximate. From Feb. 20-26, there were 14 burglary reports, 19 auto break-in or theft from a vehicle reports, and nine stolen vehicle reports to the Berkeley Police Department, according to CrimeMapping.com. Three robberies and 16 assaults, domestic violence incidents or batteries were reported. These numbers are subject to change. Click the previous links for the most current information.

[Editor’s Note: We always appreciate photographs and tips, about breaking news or neighborhood safety issues, via email at tips@berkeleyside.com or via Facebook or Twitter; please let us know when you write if you prefer to be anonymous.]

Thursday, Feb. 20

Two home burglaries were reported, at 1 a.m. in the 1700 block of Walnut Street, and at 1 p.m. in the 1500 block of Addison Street.

Two robberies were reported, at 8:40 a.m. in the 2300 block of Shattuck Avenue, and at 10:45 p.m. in the 2500 block of Hillegass Avenue. According to a statement released by the University of California Police Department, three men were arrested in the Hillegass incident after punching a woman and stealing her money. A 36-year-old woman was sitting on the sidewalk when the men approached her: “They started crowding the victim and made her fear for her safety. The victim started to get up at which time she noticed that money had been taken from her wallet which was sitting next to her.” The woman yelled at the group, and one of the men began to punch her in the face, according to authorities. Berkeley Police officers responded to the area and arrested Kaidi Clutchette, 34; Jessie McAllister, 19; and Jerron McCoy, 19. The victim was taken by ambulance to a local hospital. Clutchette was arrested in Berkeley in September on suspicion of sexually assaulting a woman, though ultimately he was only charged with drug possession. According to authorities at that time, Clutchette had seven prior convictions and had served time in prison related to possession, robbery, sale of a controlled substance and grand theft. All three remain in custody and are scheduled for a pre-trial hearing March 5. Berkeleyside broke the news of the People’s Park robbery on Facebook.

Four vehicles were reported stolen: at 9 a.m. in the 2600 block of Durant Avenue; at 10 a.m. in the 1900 block of Yolo Avenue; at 8 p.m. at Hillegass and Ashby avenues; and at 10:30 p.m. in the 1300 block of Milvia Street.

At 5:31 p.m., Berkeley Police officers were dispatched to a reported disturbance in the 1600 block of Blake Street, according to police spokeswoman Officer Jennifer Coats. The caller reported a group outside challenging someone to a fight. The group was asked to leave and one of its members struck the victim, then left and returned with more people. As officers arrived, the group was uncooperative and failed to adhere to police commands, Coats said. Officers requested expedited cover because, when they attempted to detain one person, the group started to surround them. The people in the group were quickly detained, and the expedited cover request was cancelled. After the subsequent investigation, police found that the suspect in the battery had left before officers arrived. The remaining parties were released. No arrests were made and no weapons were found at the scene, though someone initially had reported seeing a weapon. Officers are still investigating the original battery incident and what led up to it, Coats said via email.

There were 14 burglaries reported over this period, via CrimeMapping.com. The prior week there were four. Click the map for a list of calls.

Friday, Feb. 21

A commercial burglary was reported at 3:13 a.m. in the 1800 block of Sixth Street.

Two home burglaries were reported, at 5:45 a.m. in the 1300 block of Northside Avenue, and at 10 p.m. in the 2500 block of California Street.

Two vehicles were reported stolen, at 6 p.m. in the 1900 block of Eighth Street, and at 9 p.m. in the 1800 block of Seventh Street.

A man described by authorities as a “violent fugitive” from Montana, reported to have possibly fled into Northern California after escaping police custody, was picked up by police in Oregon at 6:45 p.m. Kevin Briggs had been wanted on suspicion of sexual assault, aggravated assault against a police officer and escape. Friday afternoon, someone told police they thought they saw Briggs at the Emeryville Trader Joe’s, but he was arrested in Oregon a short time later.

A felony assault or battery was reported at 9:50 p.m. in the 1300 block of Allston Way.

Saturday, Feb. 22

Five thefts or burglaries from vehicles were reported: at 3:42 a.m. in the 2200 block of Curtis Street; at 11 a.m. in the 1500 block of Lincoln Street; at 4:30 p.m. in the 2400 block of Durant Avenue; at 7:30 p.m. in the 2800 block of Derby Street; and at 9 p.m. in the 2800 block of Forest Avenue.

At 12:15 p.m., UCPD received a report of a sexual assault the previous evening. The female victim, a student, had been drinking at a fraternity party when she realized she was intoxicated and asked a male student acquaintance to walk her home. Said police in a statement: “The suspect took the victim to her residence in Unit 1 and sometime between 10:30 p.m. on the 21st and 2:30 a.m. on the 22nd sexually assaulted her.” The suspect in the case has been identified and the investigation is ongoing, said police.

A felony assault or battery was reported at 4:30 p.m. in the 2300 block of Telegraph Avenue.

An arson was reported at 5:55 p.m. in the 2900 block of Shattuck Avenue.

A commercial burglary was reported at 9:54 p.m. in the 900 block of Grayson Street.

There were 19 thefts or burglaries from vehicles reported in Berkeley over this period, via CrimeMapping.com. There were 32 reported the prior week. There were also nine vehicles stolen (shown in purple). Click the map for a list of incidents.

Sunday, Feb. 23

A felony sexual assault was reported at 12:36 a.m. at Telegraph Avenue and Haste Street.

A vehicle was reported stolen at noon in the 200 block of Spinnaker Way.

A home burglary was reported at 12:05 p.m. in the 1600 block of Grant Street.

A theft from a vehicle was reported at 5:25 p.m. in the 2600 block of San Pablo Avenue.

A robbery was reported at 8:15 p.m. at Alcatraz Avenue and Ellis Street.

Monday, Feb. 24

Two home burglaries were reported, at 12:47 a.m. in the 1500 block of Ashby, and at 6 p.m. in the 200 block of Northampton Avenue. Police arrested two men in connection with the Ashby burglary: 58-year-old Clarence Babb and 57-year-old Bobby McGough. They have been charged by the Alameda County district attorney’s office with burglary and possession of burglary tools, according to the Alameda County docket finder website. They remain in custody and are scheduled for a pre-trial hearing March 6.

Two commercial burglaries were reported, at 6 p.m. in the 900 block of Allston Way, and at 7:07 p.m. in the 2600 block of Telegraph.

A vehicle was reported stolen at 6:30 p.m. in the 2500 block of 10th Street.

An auto burglary was reported at 7:30 p.m. in the 1800 block of Scenic Avenue.

A felony assault or battery was reported at 7:45 p.m. in the 2500 block of McGee. (A shooting victim told police he was shot at this location, but police have not been able to confirm it.)

A breakdown of the most serious crimes reported by day of the week from Feb. 20-26. (Please note: The days of the week are not shown chronologically.) Image: CrimeMapping.com

Tuesday, Feb. 25

Two home burglaries were reported, at 4 a.m. in the 2400 block of Browning Street, and at 8 p.m. in the 600 block of Peralta Avenue.

Six auto burglaries were reported: at 6 a.m. in the 1700 block of Alcatraz Avenue; at 11 a.m. in the 1400 block of Grizzly Peak Boulevard; at noon in the 1200 block of Fifth Street; at 1 p.m. in the 1800 block of Fourth Street; at 9 p.m. in the 1500 block of Grizzly Peak; and at 10 p.m. in the 2900 block of Sacramento Street.

A commercial burglary was reported at 7:55 p.m. in the 1000 block of Gilman Street.

A gun or other weapon was reported at 11:30 p.m. in the 1900 block of Marin Avenue.

Wednesday, Feb. 26

Six thefts or burglaries from vehicles were reported: at 7:30 a.m. in the 1000 block of Creston Road; at 8 a.m. in the 3000 block of College Avenue; at 10 a.m. in the 1400 block of Grizzly Peak; at noon in the 1400 block of Grizzly Peak; at 4:45 p.m. in the 1700 block of Eighth Street; and at 8 p.m. in the 3000 block of Dana Street.

A vehicle was reported stolen at 5:30 p.m. in the 1300 block of Virginia Street.

See the full list of Berkeley Police Department calls for service on CrimeMapping.com. See the list of calls to UC Police at Berkeley. See also Local Crime News’ regularly published list of arrests of Berkeley residents. Other sources of information on crime in Berkeley include the Police Department’s CrimeView Community and CrimeMapping.com. [Editor’s Note: New calls for service are at times added to the CrimeMapping.com system in an unpredictable manner, and numbers for most types of calls are likely to increase in the days following this report. This post does not reflect every call.]

Berkeleyside publishes many articles every day. To see all our stories in chronological order, and read ones you may have missed, check out our All the News grid.

Emilie Raguso