A school bus with red lights flashing was rear-ended by a Nissan Leaf driven by a 45-year-old Mercer Island woman at 9 a.m. on Thursday, April 18, on First Hill in the 2700 block of 72nd Avenue S.E. The woman, who was cited for negligent driving, said that she stopped behind the bus while students were boarding and reached down for her purse on the passenger floor before she collided into the bus, according to the police report. The bus driver did not feel the collision and was informed of it by parents who were standing near the bus. No injuries were reported.
April 8
Theft: An unidentified person purchased $11,000 in merchandise with a 64-year-old Mercer Island man’s Home Depot credit card via a phone call to the Issaquah and Seattle stores, then picked up the merchandise in person. The victim’s driver’s license information was used for ID.
April 15
Bike accident: A 47-year-old bicyclist was taken to Harborview with injuries after an accident at 3:10 p.m. in the 4400 block of Forest Avenue S.E. A basket on the back of her bicycle was damaged. One witness was present.
April 19
Arrest: During a heavy rain, a police officer contacted two men walking southbound in the 6000 block of West Mercer Way at 12:25 a.m. The officer asked if they needed help, and they replied that they were looking for a friend’s house. One of the men offered his ID to the officer, who then did a background check and found that the subject, a 29-year-old Everett resident, had a Seattle warrant for theft. He was arrested and booked into the King County Jail.
Trespass: The owner of a home in the 4600 block of 88th Avenue S.E. reported that a former resident entered his house through the garage.
April 20
DUI: A vehicle ran a stop sign at 1:37 a.m. in the 2800 block of 78th Avenue S.E. and was pulled over by police. The 24-year-old driver smelled of intoxicants and admitted consuming “a few drinks,” according to the police report. She failed standard sobriety tests and was arrested for DUI.
Car prowl: Contents of a glovebox were spread over the seats and floor of a Subaru Forester in the 3200 block of West Concord Way when someone entered the vehicle sometime after April 15. No items were stolen.
Car theft: A Dodge Durango was stolen overnight in the 3500 block of 88th Avenue S.E., in the Shorewood neighborhood. The victim had locked her vehicle and left it parked on the street in front of her apartment building. The vehicle had a Hide-A-Key that would only allow entry and could not turn on the ignition.
Jewelry theft: Jewelry worth thousands of dollars was stolen from a Mercer Island woman’s bedroom in the 6800 block of West Mercer Way sometime after March 1. The woman who cleans the victim’s house has been identified as a suspect, a 49-year-old Pacific, Wash., resident. Missing jewelry included pearls and multiple pairs of earrings.
April 21
Abandoned car: A Honda Accord without license plates or a VIN plate was abandoned in the 1600 block of Roanoke Way. Police responded at 10:09 a.m. and found names and telephone numbers inside the vehicle, leading to suspicious circumstances, according to the case report. The person who reported the vehicle said that she had seen a man, the previous evening, loading and unloading items from the car. Police found the VIN in the engine compartment and found that the vehicle had last been registered to a Seattle resident in February 2011. The vehicle was impounded.
Statue theft: A 39-year-old watched as a male suspect entered her yard and stole a statue, described as a “Easter Island head tiki statue” just over three feet in height, at 4:30 p.m. in the 7400 block of West Mercer Way. He hid the statue in the trunk of his vehicle before driving away.
Asleep at pump: After dozing off in his vehicle at a Sunset Chevron gas pump, a 36-year-old North Bend man was contacted by police at 11:05 p.m. in the 7600 block of Sunset Highway. He was arrested on a $2,500 Redmond warrant for a trip permit violation and given into Redmond police custody.
Car prowl: A cell phone was stolen out of a 74-year-old woman’s unlocked Ford Escape sometime overnight in the 9200 block of S.E. 46th Street, in a neighborhood east of Ellis Pond. A house key and mailbox key were also stolen out of the vehicle console. The victim reported that the vehicle was a mess after being rummaged through.
April 22
Burglary: When a maid came to clean a home in the 5400 block of 96th Avenue S.E., in a neighborhood below East Mercer Way, she discovered it had been burglarized. The burglary occurred sometime after April 8 when burglars pried a window open after trying to pry open a door. The wooden door, with a glass insert, was cracked and split. The 5-by-2-foot window and frame were also damaged. Several pieces of expensive jewelry were stolen. The homeowner had been out of town and planned to return the next day.
Fraud: A Lowe’s credit card account and Best Buy account were opened in a 45-year-old Mercer Island woman’s name sometime between March 30 and April 4. The victim reported the fraud on April 22. Best Buy declined the account, but purchases were made with the Lowe’s credit card. Lowe’s cancelled the charges on the account.
