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Berkeley Police Log for Nov. 23-30, 2011

Incidents are compiled from reports referenced in the Berkeley Police Department weekly log, the UC Police Daily Activity Bulletin and other police reports. The BPD calls are a police-provided sampling of the 375 calls the force receives each week.

Wednesday, Nov. 30

A teenage girl was walking in the 1200 block of Bancroft Avenue about 7:30 p.m. when she was attacked by two young men, one of whom punched her in the cheek and one of whom grabbed her iPhone. When she resisted the robbers, they grabbed her by the neck and threw her to the ground. She was able to get up and run away.

Tuesday, Nov. 29

A restaurant in the 2900 block of San Pablo Avenue was broken into overnight and cash, brass objets d' art and alcohol looted from the premises.

An officer stopped to chat at Sacramento Street and Ashby Avenue with a fellow she knew to be on searchable probation. He told her he was "staying outta trouble," but, in fact, was carrying an alleged crack pipe and cocaine.  

Prescription glasses, a GPS and other stuff was stolen from a car in the 1600 block of University.

Monday, Nov. 28

Tired from a long drive back to town, a woman parked her car at 5 a.m. in the 2600 block of Dana Street with her bags still inside. When she returned to the car four or five hours later, the driver's side rear window was smashed and at least one of the bags gone.

A woman left her home in the 3000 block of Deakin Street about 10 a.m. and returned two hours later to find the screen to an unlocked window cut and stuff missing including a large LCD flat screen TV, TC speakers, identification and some personal checks. 

A man prevented by a University Avenue gas-station clerk from heating his own food in the station's microwave retaliated by hurling a basket of plastic lemon-juice-filled lemons at the clerk and threatening him with the box cutter he was using as a food-prep implement. 

A 36-year-old man was found near McCone Hall at 1 p.m. with burglary tools, drug paraphernalia and two apparently stolen bicycles: a red men's 23-speed Specialized Sirrus mountain bike and a black men's 21-speed Giant Cypress mountain bike. The bikes were taken to UCPD for safekeeping; the man was cited at UCPD Jail and released.

A student's MacBook Pro was stolen from 701 Wurster Hall between 4:45 and 5 p.m.

A Hopkins Street senior citizen phoned Macy's about her misplaced credit-card bill and was surprised to learn someone had recently charged $900 to it. Not only that, but someone had opened Old Navy and WalMart accounts in her name and charged $450 to the former. 

A black Schwinn bike and trailer, value $400, were stolen from 1110 Jackson Street in University Village sometime between 6 and 7 p.m. 

Two apparently unrelated Fourth Street visitors shared the bond of having their vehicles burglarized about 7:40 p.m. in the 1600 block of the street. One man, from Healdsburg, lost his suitcase, shoulder bag containing clothing, a Canon camera, iPad, airline tickets and medications. The other, from Eureka, lost his wife’s iPhone.

Fire of suspicious origin in a Dwinelle Hall men's-room trash can forced about 100 people to leave the building at 8:28 p.m.

And another campus fire of suspicious origin, this one in Parking Structure B about 11:10 p.m.

Sunday, Nov. 27

Two unlocked bikes walked away from the 3000 block of Dana Street.

A glass door was broken this morning and $483 missing from the cash register of a business in the 2400 block of Sacramento Street.

A student's notebook computer was stolen this morning from the Cal Optometry Clinic.

Someone smashed the window of a home in the 1400 block of Derby Street and stole a TV.

The lock to a garage was cut in the 500 block of Neilson Street and five bikes stolen.

An XBox walked through an unlocked door in the 2500 block of Hillegass Avenue.

Two people were arrested after robbing someone during the noon hour in the 2800 block of Park Street.

Two teenagers threatened someone with a glass bottle at Ashby Avenue and Fulton Street about 7 p.m.

A middle-aged woman shoplifted perfume in the 2300 block of Shattuck Avenue.

Luggage and a camera left in a car at Lincoln Street and Shattuck Avenue were all too tempting to a burglar.

A home in the 2100 block of Hearst Avenue was broken into and an MP3 player, gift card and keyboard stolen.

A silver 1996 Honda was stolen from the 200 block of Fairlawn Drive. 

Saturday, Nov. 26

A drunken 60-year-old man was escorted this afternoon from 2452 Parker St. to the Berkeley City Jail.

A $150 bike seat vanished from the racks in front of the Recreational Sports Facility.

A purse left unattended in the 1000 block of Camelia Street was last seen on the arm of a portly middle-aged black man in a black blazer and gray slacks.

A bike left unattended in the 1700 block of Berkeley Way didn't stay there long.

Nor did the GPS and CD player left in a car in the 3100 block of Ellis Street.

Or the purse left in a car at Fourth Street and University Avenue.

Someone smashed a vehicle window in the 20 block of Domingo Avenue and stole two violins that probably shouldn't have been left inside.

Someone was arrested at San Pablo Avenue and Gilman Street just before 5 p.m. for beating someone up.

The day in car thefts: a 1993 white Integra from Keeler and Twain avenues and a 1997 Toyota Tercel from Spruce and Cedar streets.

Someone pried open a window in the 1500 block of Ward Street and stole a laptop.

A skinny young white couple cut the lock to a storage unit in the 1500 block of Walnut Street about 5:20 a.m. It's not clear what, if anything, was taken. 

Through an unlocked window in the 1500 block of Berkeley Way walked a backpack, laptop, keys and a checkbook.

Friday, Nov. 25

Sometime over the holiday, somebody broke into the front door of the Pelican Building (a/k/a the Graduate Assembly) and stole seven computers worth $14,000. 

More : this time a Chevy Suburban's window was smashed sometime between 2 and 3:30 p.m. and $2,840 worth of stuff taken. 

Up in Canada, former Cal coach and quarterback Joe Kapp punched a former rival and fellow septuagenarian who dared to swat him with his cane, then yelled "Sportsmanship!" to stunned onlookers. Video is here.

A laptop left unattended in the 2400 block of Ridge Road disappeared.

A guy in an A's jacket shoplifted something over the lunch hour from the 2900 block of San Pablo Avenue and got away, while an alleged shoplifter later in the afternoon in the 1900 block of San Pablo was arrested.

A no-doubt-disappointed thief stole an iPad box from the 2200 block of Shattuck Avenue with a fake tablet inside. 

Somebody smashed the window of a home in the 1100 block of Carrison Street and stole a TV.

A 30ish guy was interrupted while prying open the door of a home in the 2400 block of Piedmont Avenue.

The unlocked door to a basement in the 2400 block of Russell Street yielded camera equipment, tools and a bike.

Any Martian reading today's police reports from the 800 block of Keeler Avenue and the 1300 block of Bay View Place would think a Clinton-era Honda Civic the most sought-after commodity on Earth.

But someone also stole a blue 2006 Kawasaki from the 3200 block of California Street.

Thursday, Nov. 24

Shortly after midnight, two folks in the 2100 block of Virginia Street returned home to find their front door kicked in and a passport, two backpacks, two laptops and a camera stolen. 

The window was smashed about 5:30 a.m. to a home in the 1700 block of Spruce Street; it's not clear what, if anything, was taken. 

Same thing happened 15 minutes later to an apartment dweller in the 1800 block of Arch Street.

And also at 5:52 a.m. at an apartment at 2317 Hearst Street: A resident woke to footsteps in the unit above his that seemed louder than the usual occupant's. Police arrived to find the suspect, a 25-year-old white Oakland man, on the roof; he jumped to a nearby roof and from there to the ground until finally arrested. Says BPD: "The investigation of whether he is connected to the other aforementioned burglaries is ongoing."

Senior Alex Kim and his cat Obi spent Thanksgiving morning camped on Chancellor Birgenau’s lawn until UC police told them to move along. 

Somebody else celebrated the holiday by stealing a 1994 red Acura Integra from the 70 block of Avenida Drive.

A white man in scruffy clothes beat someone up about 4 p.m. in the 2300 block of Shattuck Avenue.

A bag was left in a car in the 2100 block of University Avenue, and someone smashed the window and stole it. 

Wednesday, Nov. 23

Someone's debit card and keys were snatched this afternoon in the 2800 block of California Street. Police are pretty sure they know who did it.

Someone was arrested for shoplifting in the 900 block of Heinz Avenue.

So was someone in the 2000 block of Fourth Street.

A lock was cut in the 2000 block of Kittredge Street and a bike stolen. 

A teenager stole the tip jar this morning from a business in the 1800 block of Alcatraz Avenue.

Someone pried open a window of a home in the 2300 block of Virginia Street and stole an iPad, a camera and a datebook.

The lock was cheated on a home in the 2400 block of Jefferson and jewelry and camera equipment was stolen.

Someone else left his/her backpack unattended in the same block and guess what?

Same thing happened to an unattended iPhone and iPod in the 2300 block of Ashby.

More bike thefts: from MLK Drive and Center Street; the 2500 block of Warring Street (this one was unlocked); a $1,4000 blue Bianchi Brava bike from outside Birge Hall; a $600 black-and-yellow Raleigh outside Griffiths and a $600 black Giant Avalanche from outside Evans. 

Someone broke into another vehicle in the 20 block of Domingo Avenue and stole a bunch of stuff including a pilot's license.

A blue 1992 Honda Civic is homesick for the 1600 block of Curtis Street.

A guy who calls himself Fred Ra III lost his campus hanging-out privileges for seven days. 

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nick mastick April 28, 2013 at 09:34 pm
Of all the concerns in our society, I put this just about dead last.
Steven Murphy April 17, 2013 at 02:25 am
Hmm. So I think you're telling me I need to add the countdown timers to the long list of BerkeleyRead More idiosyncrasies I need to ignore? I guess can do that. Thanks. --Murph
Alexander Sinclair Merenkov April 15, 2013 at 04:34 pm
This is very interesting. I bicycle and walk a lot around Berkeley. I think i know exactly whatRead More signal is being referred to the walk sign across Bancroft at MLK specifically will reset itself. many of the walk signals rely on induction loops which are loops placed in the ground that can detect Bicycles and Cars when the Bicycles or cars pass over them disrupting the current. You can often see these loops as they look like hexagonal saw cuts in the ground. Anyways the intersection detects traffic with these devices & if it doesn't detect anything then it assumes nothing is there and gives right of way to the major throughway in this case being MLK. So the reason the counter to cross Bancroft resets itself is totally logical because the intersection suspects no one is there and since that side of Bancroft is more or less residential there would be no point in setting that intersection to a timer where it gives priority to one light then the other & switches based on that & not on wether it detects any bicycles or cars passing over the induction loops. Also this is Berkeley and we are rather quirky and always have been so nobody exactly fallows the rules or knows about them its funny how simple crossing the street really is but its anything but simple in reality. Many people choose to jay walk if its safe to do so, this is typical on Shattuck at alston especially and makes sense for efficiency but isn't very safe or lawful. If the hand is flashing/Counting down dont cross!
Janet Scrivener April 6, 2013 at 11:15 pm
Actually, I just saw and spoke to him about an hour ago - the wire sculpture man. He'd moved downRead More Solano a few blocks, opposite Safeway. I asked him if the police had moved him off Colusa. He said he didn't want to talk about it. He wasn't in a very good mood. I told him that people had asked about him on a web local news site. He said, "People want to know how I'm doing? I need a car. I need somewhere to put my stuff in. To get off the streets. I don't want to sit around starving in public." I thought to myself, "Who do I think I am? A Girl Scout leader? Pollyana?" I realized my upbeat, cheery tone was really not what was needed just then. I said I couldn't help him with a car. "People want to know how I'm doing?" he said again. "Tell them that." I said, "I will." I turned to walk away, knowing only too well that the real needs that exist, yes, right here in our lovely, excellent neighborhood, are great and once you start giving you'll find it's difficult to get out of. He did say, "Thank you," as I left. He doesn't look like he's starving. But he's right about being out in public more than he would like to be. As a reasonable human being, I have to ask myself, what sort of person finds himself in that position? Ex con? Mental illness? Mind-blown Vet? Drugs? Alcohol? Incapacitated by an accident? An unforgivable act? Some combination of the above? Jesus did say, "The poor you shall have always with you." What would you do?
P. Park April 4, 2013 at 03:29 am
I agree Shattuck, especially right in front of the fire station is the scariest street around.
Mary April 3, 2013 at 06:45 pm
I am not disabled, but I am terrified of crossing streets nowadays because there are too manyRead More careless and aggressive drivers who act is if red lights, speed limits, and crosswalks either don't exist or don't apply to them. Shattuck in particular has become a nightmare to cross. Sometimes I have counted over 30 cars going by before one stops for the crosswalk. What we need is far more law enforcement - the tickets written would more than pay for the cost of hiring extra officers.