Berkeleyside blotter: Crime in Berkeley, Dec. 3-9

Selected calls to the Berkeley Police, via CrimeMapping.com. Scroll down for detailed maps. Click the map above for the list. See the map key here.

This overview of recent crime in Berkeley is based on reports to the Berkeley Police unless otherwise noted. Please share photos, videos and tips, about breaking news or neighborhood safety issues, via email at crime@berkeleyside.com or on Facebook or Twitter; let us know if you prefer anonymity. Don’t assume someone else will alert us — you may be the only one to get in touch. We want to know about issues of concern and rely on readers to help us stay informed.

From Dec. 3-9, there were reports of five robberies, 16 burglaries, 10 assaults or batteries, four weapon-involved calls and one sexual assault, according to CrimeMapping.com. There were also nine stolen vehicles, 15 disturbances and 43 auto break-ins or thefts from vehicles reported. A stolen vehicle was reported by the University of California Police Department (UCPD). Click the links for the latest numbers. The following items represent a sampling of calls, and times may be approximate; incidents that took place during a range of time are listed unless otherwise noted by the beginning of that time period.

Thursday, Dec. 3

There were two disturbance calls, at 7:55 a.m. in the 1400 block of Hawthorne Terrace, and at 8 a.m. in the 1900 block of Allston Way.

There was a home burglary at 8:25 a.m. in the 1300 block of Santa Fe Avenue.

Two vehicles were stolen, at 11 a.m. at Hearst Avenue and Oxford Street, and at 8 p.m. in the 2600 block of Telegraph Avenue.

Police responded to a stabbing at the Old City Hall homeless protest camp and arrested a man shortly before 11:30 a.m. in the 2100 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Way. Jerry Ziegler, 53, remains in custody at Santa Rita Jail with a bail of $80,000. He is scheduled for a pretrial hearing Dec. 17.

A motorist reported to the BART Police the theft of a gold-colored 1997 Honda Accord from the North Berkeley BART station between 8:30 a.m. and about 5:40 p.m.

A car crash downed power lines and caused outages to more than 1,000 people in southwest Berkeley at 8:40 p.m., and police say it appears drugs or alcohol may have been a contributing factor.

There were 16 burglaries (shown in black) reported over this period, via CrimeMapping.com. The prior week there were 13. There was also five robberies (in blue), following one the prior week. Click the map for a list. — There were 16 burglaries (shown in black) reported over this period, via CrimeMapping.com. The prior week there were 13. There were also five robberies (in blue), following one the prior week. Click the map for a list.

Friday, Dec. 4

A vehicle was stolen at 6:30 a.m. in the 1300 block of Delaware Street.

There were two disturbance calls, at 6:35 a.m. in the 2100 block of MLK, and at 2:12 p.m. in the 900 block of Channing Way.

There was a robbery at 11:59 a.m. in the 2100 block of Oxford Street.

A band of thieves struck the Berkeley Apple store in what authorities described as a “coordinated effort,” and a problem that has been faced by numerous Apple stores around the Bay Area. The commercial burglary took place at 2:53 p.m. in the 1800 block of Fourth Street. Read more on Berkeleyside.

Saturday, Dec. 5

There was a commercial burglary at 6:05 a.m. in the 900 block of Gilman Street.

There were four home burglaries: at 7 a.m. in the 1300 block of Carrison Street; at 8 a.m. in the 1600 block of Fifth Street; at 2:30 p.m. in the 1500 block of Rose Street; and at 6 p.m. in the 2300 block of Channing Way.

There were two calls involving guns, at 5:46 p.m. in the 1600 block of Alcatraz Avenue, and at 9:48 p.m. at Julia and King streets.

In the first call, police arrested Arturo Avalos, 25, on suspicion of being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm. He remains in custody at Santa Rita Jail with a bail of $130,000. He is scheduled for a pretrial hearing Jan. 6.

In the second call, police arrested 19-year-old Deandre Bess on suspicion of five firearm-related violations, including one related to having a large-capacity magazine. He remains in custody without bail at Santa Rita Jail and is scheduled for a sentencing hearing Jan. 14.

UCPD received a report that a 1999 silver Honda Civic was stolen from the Underhill parking lot between 9 a.m. and 6:30 p.m.

Authorities responded to eastbound I-80 between the Ashby exit and entrance ramps shortly before 11 p.m. for what was reported initially as an injury accident involving several vehicles. Oakland CHP spokesman Officer Sean Wilkenfeld said the hit-and-run accident ended up involving three vehicles, but that no injuries ultimately were reported. Officers located two of the involved vehicles on the scene but a third one fled. Read more on Berkeleyside.

Police arrested Davorre Cyrus, 22, on suspicion of vehicle theft. He is no longer in custody, after being released on a $25,000 bond. He is scheduled for arraignment and to enter a plea Dec. 22.

Shown above: assaults or batteries, weapon calls, sexual assaults, arsons and disturbances. Click the image for a list. Source: Crimemapping.com

Sunday, Dec. 6

There were three disturbance calls: at 12:01 a.m. at 2134 MLK; at 1 a.m. at an unlisted location; and at 9:41 a.m. at Bancroft Way and Fourth Street.

There was a second-response call at 12:47 a.m. in the 2300 block of Warring Street.

There were three home burglaries: at 4:30 a.m. in the 1500 block of North Street; at 11:10 a.m. in the 1300 block of Russell Street; at 2:30 p.m. in the 1800 block of Stuart Street.

There was a robbery at 4:43 p.m. in the 1200 block of San Pablo Avenue.

Police arrested Demetrius Bryant, 34, on suspicion of vehicle theft, a felony, and several misdemeanors. He remains in custody at Santa Rita Jail with a bail of $175,000, and is scheduled for preliminary examination Dec. 23.

There was a call involving guns at 6:33 p.m. at Dwight Way and Acton Street. Police ultimately arrested three men and recovered three guns. Stay tuned for the story on Berkeleyside.

Monday, Dec. 7

There was a home burglary at 3 a.m. in the 1700 block of Walnut Street.

There were two disturbance calls, at 7:35 a.m. in the 3000 block of Telegraph Avenue, and at 1:22 p.m. in the 1900 block of Hearst Avenue.

There was a call involving a gun or other weapon at 6:20 p.m. in the 1900 block of Allston Way.

A vehicle was stolen at 9:30 p.m. in the 1400 block of Eighth Street.

There were 43 thefts or burglaries from vehicles, via CrimeMapping. There were 32 the prior week. There were also nine vehicles stolen (in purple). Click the map for a list of incidents.

Tuesday, Dec. 8

There was a commercial burglary at 1:15 a.m. in the 2300 block of San Pablo Avenue.

There were two disturbance calls, at 4:30 a.m. in the 2100 block of MLK, and at 8:35 a.m. in the 2100 block of Shattuck Avenue.

There was a misdemeanor sexual assault at 6:37 a.m. at Channing Way and Dana Street.

There were two robberies, at 8:55 a.m. at Russell and Harper streets, and at 11:23 a.m. in the 2300 block of Shattuck.

Police arrested Barrett Brown, a transient, on suspicion of robbery in connection with the incident on Shattuck. According to police, Brown was not armed but instead used a note to demand money from a teller at Union Bank located at 2333 Shattuck Ave., at Durant Avenue. The 35-year-old remains in custody at Santa Rita Jail with a bail of $60,000, and is scheduled for a pretrial hearing Dec. 17. Read more on Berkeleyside.

There was a home burglary at noon in the 2500 block of Piedmont Avenue.

A driver reported to the BART Police the theft of the catalytic converter from his or her vehicle, which was parked at the North Berkeley BART station, between 8:30 a.m. and 7 p.m.

A vehicle was stolen at 9 p.m. in the 2100 block of Derby Street.

An officer was attacked by a pit bull and accidentally shot during a search warrant operation in Oakland, authorities said. Officers fatally shot the dog alleged to have attacked the officer, whose injuries were described by police as non-life-threatening. According to scanner recordings reviewed by Berkeleyside, the officer received an accidental graze wound from a bullet shot at the dog during the confrontation. During the operation, police arrested Barron Cusick, 42, in connection with two felony identity theft violations and grand theft. According to online records from the Alameda County sheriff’s department, identity theft charges have been filed against Cusick and Terrence Humphreys, 24. Cusick remains in custody at Santa Rita Jail with a bail of $500,000. Humphreys, who was arrested in Emeryville at 7 p.m. Dec. 8, is also at Santa Rita, with a bail of $275,000. They are scheduled for a pretrial hearing Dec. 17. (Charges do not appear to have been filed against two other people arrested during the operation.) Read more on Berkeleyside.

There was a second-response call at 10:26 p.m. in the 2600 block of Ellsworth Street.

Wednesday, Dec. 9

There were two second-response calls, at 12:25 a.m. in the 2300 block of Piedmont Avenue, and at 2:28 a.m. in the 2300 block of Piedmont.

Four vehicles were stolen: at 1 a.m. in the 1400 block of Carleton Street; at 6:45 p.m. in the 1400 block of Grizzly Peak Boulevard; at 8 p.m. in the 1900 block of Haste Street; and at 9 p.m. in the 1300 block of Scenic Avenue.

There were three home burglaries: at 7 a.m. in the 1600 block of 62nd Street; at 12:05 p.m. in the 1100 block of Park Hills Boulevard; and at 1:10 p.m. in the 100 block of Vicente Road.

There was a robbery at 9:50 p.m. in the 2500 block of Haste.

See the Berkeley Police Department’s crime reports on CrimeMapping.com. See the list of calls to UC Police at Berkeley, which are also posted in brief on CrimeMapping, and UCPD crime alerts. 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. The Berkeley Police Department also posts “calls for service” spreadsheets — containing more data — online for those who would like to see more. New reports may be added to CrimeMapping in an unpredictable manner, so numbers may increase in the days after this report. This post does not reflect every call. See recent Berkeley crime blotters here.

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Emilie Raguso