Theft

A man living in the 5000 block of West Mercer Way reported that a bicycle was stolen from his garage on Aug. 11. According to the incident report, the man’s garage door had been left open overnight. The bike was made by Univega and is worth about $800.

An Islander who hosted a party at his home in the 3400 block of 7th Place S.E. reported that several items had been stolen, including a cell phone, XBox 360 and laptop computer. Somebody had also done damage to the passenger’s side front wheel and valance of his car.

A man living on Wembley Lane reported that a bicycle, tires and a GPS system were stolen from his open garage on Aug. 14. The approximate loss is $12,000.

A man living in the 3700 block of East Mercer Way reported that a construction worker whom he had hired through Craigslist stole two checks from his home sometime between Aug. 3 and Aug. 12. According to the incident report, one of the checks was transacted for $495. The suspect appeared to have used his real name on the stolen check, which was deposited into his own account.

Accidents

A “runaway car” struck a house in the 3200 block of 74th Place S.E. on Aug. 11. According to the incident report, a woman living in the neighborhood left her car in her garage in neutral without the parking break on while she ran into the house to get something. Because her driveway is so steep, the car began to roll backward, down the driveway, across the street and crashed into the outside of her neighbor’s house. The vehicle caused damage to the exterior of the home and broke some water pipes, causing leakage. The Mercer Island Fire Department was called to the scene and turned off the street’s water supply. The rear of the car was also damaged.

An Island woman struck a cyclist on East Mercer Way on Aug. 12. According to the incident report, the woman was about to turn west onto S.E. 53rd Place when she suddenly saw the cyclist heading southbound. She swerved to avoid the cyclist and struck his rear tire. No injuries were reported.

Fraud

An Island woman reported that somebody had fraudulently cashed a check for $800 from her account. According to the incident report, the check had been earlier written for $200 and mailed to a friend on Mercer Island on July 30. The check was stolen and the name and amount on it was changed.

An Islander woman reported that her credit card was fraudulently used on Aug. 10. According to the report, an unknown person in Carmel, Ind., made a purchase of $68.21 online through List for Cash.