Brazen daylight burglars continue to smash their way into local homes, say police, most recently by throwing a rock through a window in the Lakes neighborhood on Dec. 23, then again on Dec. 30 in the Parkwood area.
Mercer Island Police said the owners of a home on the 7400 block of 80th Place SE said they left their home Dec. 23 at 9 a.m. and returned at 1 p.m. to find the residence had been burglarized. A single-pane door window at the rear of the home was smashed and unlocked to enter the rest of the home. Items stolen from inside include various jewelry and an iPad computer.
On Sunday, Dec. 30, burglars again hurled a rock through a locked window to open and climb through it to access to the residence on the 8900 block of SE 54th Street. A married elderly couple returned from church at 11:25 a.m. and found the master bedroom and bathroom of the residence ransacked and several valuables taken, including jewelry and an iMac computer. The rest of the residence, apart from a linen closet, was left undisturbed.
The burglaries have several similarities, including the use of a rock to break into homes, to about a half-dozen other Mercer Island burglaries reported earlier in December.
Dec. 21
Mystery Black Backpack, Cellphone Found
A black backpack containing two metal thermoses and a black LG cellular phone was located on the side of the roadway on the 2600 block of 80th Ave. SE in the Town Center area. Police left several voicemails for both contacts in the phone. The property was placed into secure storage for safekeeping.
Dec. 25
Seattle Man Arrested Christmas Day for DUI on I-90
Police stopped a 31-year-old Seattle man driving a Hyundai Elantra on westbound I-90 for lane travel and signal violations at 2:53 a.m. He soon admitted he had been drinking and failed field sobriety and breathalyzer tests and was arrested, and later breathalyzer test results indicated a BAC of 0.149 and 0.151.
Dec. 27
Asphalt Compactor Stolen From Job Site on SE 70th
A residential construction contractor reported a Mikasa vibratory plate compactor was stolen from his job site on the 7800 block of SE 70th Street sometime overnight. He suspected two men he hired through a temp agency had stolen the equipment since they were the last workers who left the site.
Dec. 28
Two Men Stiff Cabbie, Flee Into Lakes Neighborhood
A Yellow Cab driver picked up two men in the Capitol Hill area and drover them to Lakeridge Elementary, arriving at 2:16 a.m. Rather than pay the $42.50 cab fare, the men exited the cab and ran into the Lakes neighborhood, where the driver lost sight of them.
East Mercer Way Mail Box and Key Pad Vandalized
A homeowner of a residence on the 6200 block of East Mercer Way reported her mail box and key pad was vandalized with silver spray paint sometime over the past week. Total estimated damages were set at $800.
Police Speed Trailer Vandalized
Police discovered the Mercer Island Police Department's radar-activated speed trailer was vadalized with graffiti sometime overnight while it was parked on the SE corner of the 6000 block of East Mercer Way. The graffiti "TIB", "CDEF" and "MC" was sprayed in black and silver spray paint.
(Ed. Note: The Mercer Island Police Blotter is not intended to be representative of all crime on Mercer Island, but is instead a representation of police activity from the persepctive of the MIPD.)
