Features

Threatened, robbed 

A 68-year-old Berkeley woman surrendered her wallet and cash to a short, fat and angry young man who confronted her as she walked along the 1600 block of Kains Ave. just before 6 p.m. on Dec. 4. 

The suspect, a man in his mid-30s who stands about 5’4” and weighs about 200 pounds, fled the scene in a white sedan. 

Wrong place, time 

Responding to repeated calls from concerned business folk worried about drivers using bogus handicapped placards to park in scarce spaces near the corner along Oxford Street and Addison Way, five Berkeley traffic officers were checking cars just before 8 a.m. on the Dec. 6 when they heard cries of “Help me! Help me!” 

Officers spotted a man wrestling a backpack off the back of a young Berkeley man. His prize in hand, the bandit leapt into a van that sped from the scene, and officers set off the hue and cry. 

The bandit, and Oakland resident, made it as far as Delaware Street before he was pulled over and given a pair of steel bracelets before a trip to the city lockup where he was booked on suspicion of robbery. 

Wrong again 

It was one minute after midnight when an undercover officer working near the corner of Ward and Sacramento streets spotted a 16-year-old and a 15-year-old trying to steal a 13-year-old’s belongings. 

The undercover officer notified his support team, who swooped up the two young bandits and escorted them to juvenile hall. 

Fake pistol? 

Given the choice of believing if the young bandit in the black hoodie really had the pistol in his pocket he claimed to possess, a 53-year-old Oakland woman decided not to force the issue and handed over her purse. 

The robber then ran with his loot to a nearby gray sedan and headed south. Officer Galvan said the incident happened just before 8 p.m. on the 7th as the woman was walking along Howe Street near the corner of Telegraph Avenue. 

Rat pack 

A gang of three or four teenagers menaced a 33-year-old Berkeley man as he was walking along the 1500 block of Shattuck Avenue at 2 a.m. last Friday, then strong-armed away his laptop and forced him to surrender his cell phone and wallet. 

The crew escaped in a beige, 1970s Detroit-made sedan. 

Upside the head 

Three 20-something bandits, including one in a gray hoodie and another wearing a similar model in red, walked up to a 23-year-old Berkeley man as he was strolling along Grant Street near the corner of University Avenue when one of the trio hit him in the head, shortly before 2 a.m. Friday 

Dazed, their victim was in no shape to resist as the robbers relieved him of his cell phone and cash, then departed in an American-made sedan. 

Domestic stabbing 

A 31-year-old Berkeley man refused the aid of paramedics after a woman friend stabbed him in the upper chest during a spat that happened shortly before 5 p.m. Saturday in the 1300 block of 66th Street. 

The suspect, an Oakland woman, remains at large, said Officer Galvan. 

Strong-armed 

Even though witnesses gave chase, a fleet-footed felon fled successfully after strong-arming a 26-year-old Oakland woman’s purse after he grabbed her from behind as she was walking along Shattuck Avenue near the Woolsey Street intersection shortly after 6:40 Sunday evening. 

Creepy crawler 

A Berkeley woman was stunned to find herself facing a man in black sliding into her home through an open window, armed with a shiny silver revolver just before 1:30 a.m. Monday. 

“He was wearing black clothes, including a turtleneck and a knit cap,” said Officer Galvan. 

After threatening the woman, the man scooped up cash and a digital camera before fleeing. Because a resident was home at the time of the incident, police are classifying the crime as a home invasion—an offense that carries a more severe penalty than a typical robbery. 

Skateboard attack 

A 27-year-old homeless man was rushed to a local hospital after he was bashed in the head with a skateboard outside the Center for Independent Living just before 6 a.m. Tuesday.  

The suspect, who remains at large, was described as a man with shaggy blond hair and blue eyes who is between 22 and 25 years old. 

Gang of three  

Police are looking for three juveniles who tried to steal another youth’s iPod near the corner of Milvia and Carleton streets just before 6 p.m. Tuesday. The young fellow managed to hang on to his Apple music-maker—a device that has become a common target of Berkeley heisters.