presents stolen from car -- alleyway of unit block of W / Adams NW

See this Friday morning message from a Bloomingdale resident:

Friday, December 23, 2011 10:51 AM
Subject: We've been robbed - alley way of unit block of W/Adams NW

A thief broke into our car took presents my husband left in car to keep from the kids overnight. The thief took our trashcan, put all the presents in our trashcan, took the trashcan down the alley, tore through everything and stole the most expensive item- a camera. It was this morning before 10:30. Did any of you see something? Help? I am so angry right now I am fuming.

car break-in on the unit block of W Street NW

Can you please share with neighbors that we need to be vigilant about car break-ins, especially anyone who has a detachable face or after-market car stereo?

Between Sunday evening and 7:00 AM today, thieves broke the rear passenger, small ``triangle`` window of my very old Honda CRV (1997), unlocked the doors and rummaged through my glove compartment. It doesn`t appear they took anything when they didn`t find the car radio in the glove box. They left a variety of clothes, including a new roller board suitcase with the tags on it that was in the car. (Yes, I know, I shouldn`t leave valuables in the car, but clearly they weren`t interested in anything but the radio.) This is the second time this has happened to me in the unit block of W street where my car was parked almost directly in front of my house. In July or August, someone broke in and took the entire radio component as I forgot to detach the radio face on that occasion. I will call the police and file a report when I get home from work this evening.

I`m not really sure what I can do at this point other than leave a sign that says ``RADIO NOT IN CAR`` to keep thieves from trying again.

Now read this feedback from ANC 5C04 Commissioner John Salatti:

I am very sorry to hear about the break in. That is a shame and something we continue to work against. Of course, unless we have cameras or webcams on the streets, getting these thieves is tough. But not impossible. We`ve gotten them before.

I was just speaking this morning to 5D Commander Andy Solberg about how good things are in Bloomingdale this days concerning crime. Home burglaries are down 60% from earlier in the year! But I did note that the burning irritant of the moment is exactly what happened to you, car break-ins. So we have to stay vigilant and report the incidents. As police see the pattern emerge, they can track it and move against the perpetrators. They`ve succeeded before.

And remind me to find one of those ``No Radio`` signs soon.

John
John T. Salatti
Commissioner, ANC 5C04
Vice President, Bloomingdale Civic Association
(202) 986 - 2592
``Together, Building a Better Bloomingdale``

car break-ins around 1st & R St NW recently

See this 8/11/2011 message from a resident on the 1700 block of 1st Street NW:

From: Commissioner Youngblood
To: Resident on the 1700 block of 1st Street NW
Cc: D`Antonio Cecilia ; Davenport Stuart
Sent: Thu, August 11, 2011 10:27:52 AM
Subject: Re: Contact at MPD; Car Burglaries Near BBC

Thank you for writing.

I`m very sorry to hear about this incident (and the developing trend).

FYI, I`ve copied our Neighborhood Watch leader, Ms. Cecilia D`Antonio, and Mr. Stuart Davenport, proprietor of the Big Bear Cafe, on this message for their situational awareness.

I`ll send you the contact details for our MPD 5D Commander and Captain ASAP. Please let me know if you would also like me to send them a message on your behalf highlighting the issue.

I`ll also get the word out on the local grapevine and also on Scott`s List unless you`ve already sent Scott a request for posting. Scott provides the optimal venue for distributing neighborhood intel.

Hang in there.

Talk to you soon,

Hugh


On Aug 11, 2011, at 19:45, Resident on the 1700 block of 1st Street NW wrote:

Hugh,

My car was broken into for the third time in 3 months last night. All the thefts have been in a 1 block radius of Big Bear.

Two things:

1. Do you have the direct email of the 5th District Captain and Commander? I would like to send an email appealing for help with this and another police matter.
2. Can you pass the word along that we have another ring of car thieves and we need to band together and keep our eyes open!

Thank you for your help.

neighbor witnesses car break-in on Quincy Pl NW on Sunday, 2-13-2011

See this 02/15/2011 message from a Quincy Place NW:

On Sunday afternoon [02/13/2011] around 2pm, I watched a car break-in on Quincy Place NW. I was looking out my window when I noticed a skinny African-American guy hanging around a Honda Element with out-of-state plates. He was lurking, but I thought it **could** be his car. I kept watching. Low and behold, he took a screw-driver and popped the back window out and then broke through the glass with his elbow. He flew into the car like superman and rummaged around for 5 minutes. It was bizarre because he was in no rush and there were at least 3-4 people around -- getting into their cars, walking up/down the street, taking groceries inside, etc. There was even a guy fixing up the car parked immediately in front! Nobody seemed to notice. I was stunned and called 911 as soon as I recognized what was happening. This kind of petty theft enrages me, so I contemplated going outside to approach him -- I had plenty of time. But given recent events in our neighborhood, I decided against it. The police came 15 minutes later, but the guy had already casually walked down Quincy Place NW towards North Capitol Street. He was even laughing as he played with his new accessories. Turns out he got a cell phone and iPod that the owner left in her car.

do the police look into cars and takes notes on clipboards?

See this messsage from a household on the unit block of W Street NW:

Here`s the skinny: the other morning at about 5:30A my husband was leaving for work and saw a plain-clothed man with a clipboard, with a car with MD. tags. the guy was standing in the middle of the road and then in and out of his car. he was looking inside cars and making (or seeming to make) notations on a clip board. he told my husband he was a cop and that a lot of stolen vehicles had been dropped in our neighborhood. my husband believed him. but i think that is just plain odd and that the guy was probably looking for cars to in fact steal! can you solve this marital dispute? :-) do you know if this is a common police practice? i haven`t ever heard of this -- and would think that, at 5:30AM the police would/should send someone in a marked car or at least in uniform?

car broken into in alley between S & Seaton NW

See this late evening 04/20/2010 message from a resident on the unit block of S Street NW:

Last night, my roommate`s car was broken into and rummaged through. Nothing was stolen (as he had nothing of value inside), but this is still something we should be aware of (as it is apparently still a problem in the neighborhood). He was parked in the alley between S Street and Seaton Place NW. Just giving a heads up.