A series of more than 20 car prowls that occurred over Wednesday and Thursday last week were clustered in northeastern and northwestern neighborhoods near I-90 on Mercer Island. The MIPD estimates 13 on the first day and eight on the next, and no suspect information has been obtained.
June 15
Abandoned vehicle: A Volkswagen Passat registered to a Bellevue resident was abandoned in the 6600 block of S.E. 25th Street. The vehicle was impounded on June 20.
Burglary: Someone entered a garage that was likely left open in the 5600 block of 90th Avenue S.E., rifled through a car and stole tennis rackets and a tennis bag out of the garage. The case might be related to the prowling of a neighbor’s car.
June 19
Malicious mischief: Someone used a black marker to write on a Mercer Island woman’s vehicle overnight in the 3600 block of 73rd Avenue S.E. The writing expressed a message of “displeasure with the driver’s driving.”
June 20
DUI: Police arrested a 44-year-old Mercer Island man at 9:40 p.m. in the 2700 block of West Mercer Way after stopping him for traffic offenses. The suspect had been drinking. He was cited and released.
June 21
Accident: A vehicle pulled out from a driveway and struck an oncoming Jeep at 2 p.m. in the 5200 block of Forest Avenue S.E. The driver, 19, was cited for failing to yield the right of way. The other driver, a 73-year-old Mercer Island woman, reported back pain.
Car prowls: A Canon digital camera was stolen out of a Volvo after a passenger window was shattered overnight in the 9900 block of S.E. 40th Street.
Two vehicles were prowled overnight in a driveway in the 4100 block of 97th Avenue S.E. Both vehicles, a Chevrolet Silverado and Volkswagen Passat, were left unlocked. Unknown suspects opened the garage door of the residence using a remote in one of the vehicles. The homeowner, a 49-year-old man, said he closed the garage door when he went to bed. A broken digital camera was stolen. Fingerprints were lifted from one of the vehicle’s rear view mirrors.
Two doors were left ajar in an unlocked Mercedes-Benz that was prowled overnight in the 4100 block of 97th Avenue S.E. No items were missing. Fingerprints were lifted from the exterior windows and pillars between the front and rear doors.
An unknown suspect rifled through the center console of a Honda CR-V after smashing out the driver’s window overnight in the 2800 block of 62nd Avenue S.E. No items were stolen. Another vehicle, a Chevrolet Avalanche, was prowled a few houses away after a front window was smashed, though nothing was stolen.
Police found a prowled vehicle, a Mercedes-Benz, at 5:58 a.m. in the 3000 block of 62nd Avenue S.E. while checking the area for prowls. The vehicle had not been locked, and the vehicle registration document was stolen.
Police found the driver’s door in an Acura MDX ajar in the 3000 block of 61st Avenue S.E. at 6:07 a.m. Items were scattered around the inside of the vehicle, where the glove box and center console had been opened. The owner said there was no damage to the vehicle and nothing was stolen.
The driver’s window was smashed out of a Volvo in the 2800 block of 61st Avenue S.E. No items were stolen.
Empty sunglasses cases were stolen out of a Mercer Island woman’s business vehicle after the driver’s window was shattered in a driveway in the 9800 block of S.E. 40th Street. Another vehicle in the driveway was also damaged after an attempted break-in through its passenger door window.
$3 in coins was stolen from a Toyota Prius overnight in the 9700 block of S.E. 41st Street. The vehicle was not damaged.
A Canon camera was stolen from a Hyundai Tucson with a shattered window overnight in the 3800 block of East Mercer Way. The loss was $500.
Two vehicles were prowled in a driveway in the 3000 block of 60th Avenue S.E. Both vehicles, a Land Rover Freelander and Volkswagen Jetta, were not locked overnight and the glove boxes were rummaged through. No items were stolen and there was no damage.
Attempted prowl: Two windows were cracked, but not shattered, in a Volvo parked in a driveway in the 9800 block of S.E. 40th Street. The cost for replacing both windows is estimated at $800.
Two passenger windows of a Lexus were shattered overnight in the 3800 block of East Mercer Way. The vehicle was searched, but nothing was stolen. The damages totaled $600.
June 22
Car prowls: Police responded to a car prowl in progress after midnight in the 9500 block of Mercerwood Drive. Two or three male suspects in dark clothing were at the scene. Officers stopped a vehicle that left the area and circled back, and the driver, 17, said she was picking up her boyfriend in that area. No damage was done and no items were stolen in the prowl. Later that night, the front window of a Cadillac was shattered in the same area and a GPS device, credit card and $20 were stolen from the vehicle. A hand print was lifted from the vehicle hood, near the location where a purse was found.
Police responded to the report of a car prowl overnight in the 3800 block of East Mercer Way, where a window was shattered out of a Nissan Titan. Fingerprints were lifted from a passenger door.
Found: A black Samsonite luggage case, a car emergency kit, was found on the road in the 4000 block of 92nd Avenue S.E. at 8:09 a.m. The case contained jumper cables, flares, a flashlight, fix a flat and screwdriver kit.
Oakley sunglasses were stolen out of a Scion with a shattered window sometime after 2 a.m. in the 3800 block of East Mercer Way.
June 26
Recovered: A change purse that was stolen in a car prowl was found at 6:45 p.m. in the 4100 block of 97th Avenue S.E. The purse, which contained a credit card, driver’s license and $1.23 in coins, was returned to its owner. The credit card and driver’s license were submitted to police to be processed for fingerprints.
June 27
Car prowl: An unknown suspect stole prescription medication and a GPS device out of a Jaguar at 2717 78th Avenue S.E. while the driver was picking up food in a restaurant after 3 p.m.
