Mission Mission

As she came out, the plainclothes guys confronted her, indicated they knew she had something in her purse. She protested, tried to keep walking. They grabbed her, and she kept trying to push past. They were frustrated. They even offered her a pretty sweet deal: “Fine, just give it back and you can go.” But she didn’t bite. Kept trying to fight her way out instead.

So they overpowered her, cuffed her, while the uniformed guy came over and showed her a photo on his iPhone: “Look,” he says, “It’s you.” She’d been busted earlier trying to make off with the same item. And she didn’t even change her outfit for the second attempt.

That guy’s not even in a real space. He backed into the little triangular area that CR-V behind him is supposed to be able to use to get out. And he’s blocking the bike lane. And he’s probably partying at Blondie’s. Nice, dude.

Yeah, so somebody found a bag of grenades in a garage, the bomb squad comes in, they shut down Potrero Avenue, they run a robot in there, KTVU starts showing some live video, robot picks up the bag to ferry it out to some kind of disposal unit, and as it’s cruising down the sidewalk, the bag splits and grenades — GRENADES — start spilling out. But the robot doesn’t seem to notice, and ROLLS RIGHT OVER ONE.

KTVU has the whole long video here, but nothing beats the above screenshot.

(Thanks, ZB!)

Previously:

Potrero Not a Good Travel Option This Morning BECAUSE OF GRENADES

Since it happens to be closed off to traffic from Mariposa to 19th. Something is going down near the 18th Street intersection, as there are firetrucks, cruisers, and even DPT Cushmans on the scene, in addition to that auspicious black truck-van.  So, unless you prefer to be late in whatever endeavors you undertake this morning, try to find another route.

UPDATE!!! Apparently this closure was due to the fact that GRENADES were found there!  Too much Call of Duty, folks.

Janebook is about to rile you up:

Earlier today I was totally distracted and left my phone on top of a paper towel dispenser in the restroom at the Public Library on 24th Street. Realized a few minutes later, ran back down to look for it and it was gone. I went to ask the lady at the desk if anyone had turned it in and she said nobody had turned anything in that day. Honestly I wasn’t expecting anything so I wasn’t too surprised, just assumed someone had taken it, and was at least consoled by the fact that, were this the case, they wouldn’t gain much from selling it as it’s a first generation iPhone that’s three years old and has a shattered screen among myriad other problems. So imagine my surprise when I get home and go on Facebook to see that two of my friends have messaged me saying that a guy called them saying he found my phone and wants to return it. So I call the guy, arrange to meet up with him. He’s incredibly nice, refuses to take the reward money I offer him, but here’s the fucked up part. He tells me that after he found it, he tried to turn it in at the front desk of the library, but the lady told him “I’m busy right now. Just take it.”

Yo, that’s fucked up! Either the SFPL needs to hold a bake sale so they can afford to hire some decent people, or dudes are going to ever-crazier lengths to meet Jane in person. Read on.

[Photo by Carina]

Now that I’d like to see stenciled on a Valencia Street sidewalk.

[Photo by Mike Monteiro]

Loyal reader Tom C. was walking down the street when he noticed this peculiar sight:

I caught this guy breaking into and stealing from a Nissan parked at Harrison and 23rd, I took the pic and called 911. Which kinda pissed him off. He told me to give him my phone, which I declined to do and after some strong words, some scuffling and punch to the back of my head he made off with his lady friend down treat towards 24th.

Geez Tom, we hope you’re alright!  Stay alert out there, everyone!

UPDATE!!!  Tom delves into detail:

Here’s what happened, this thief and his girlfriend were walking along Harrison @ 22nd. I was walking my dog behind them, he threw something up in the air and let it crash on the ground… and kept walking. I had a look at what he had “dropped” and it was a GPS unit. I keep walking along with my dog, stalling at every tree, bush, sign post whatever so I could see what they were up to. He was walking real close to the parked cars, scoping them out I guess. Then, they stopped and started being all making out with each other. I walked past and turned the corner at 23rd.

I stopped for a second then headed back to see what they were doing. The guy had disappeared and she was sitting on the sidewalk applying makeup. I kept walking and saw the Nissan with the window smashed out and the guy inside going through the glovebox. I asked him what he was doing, “terracing” he said. I then asked him what that meant and he said “I don’t know, why you got a problem?” I snapped a quick pic of him climbing out, why he didn’t just open the door I don’t know, but he left with his girlfriend down 23rd.

I called 911 and also walked down 23rd. That’s when the guy went crazy. He saw me on the phone and charged up to me demanding the phone, saying he wanted to know who I was calling, he told me he was going to kill me if I didn’t give him the phone. I told him it wasn’t going happen and put it in my pocket, the SFPD was still on the line. So, I’m holding the guy at arms length and keeping my dog back with the other hand. He swings at me and lands one on the back of my head. “I know people, I’m gonna kill you, you’re fucking with the wrong guy” etc. They turned down Treat towards 24th and vanished. The Police showed up and took a report. The owner of the Nissan showed up and thanked me for what I did.

I’ve seen this thief on my street 3 or 4 times, he lives in the neighborhood. I showed the owner of my corner market the photo and he said that his name is Robert and his girlfriend is Claudia. Hopefully this guy will get caught eventually.

Would I get involved again? Definitely. I’d just be a bit more stealthy about it.

Basically you’re in for a world of hurt. Reader MC found a TV on the above street corner a couple months back, and we all puzzled over what to do in a post titled What Would You Do If You Found A Working 42″ Plasma-Screen TV on a Street Corner in the Mission? MC decided to notify the cops of his find, and they came by and  confiscated it, telling him he might be able to claim it later if its rightful owner didn’t show up. MC wrote in yesterday with an update:

Alright.. here’s the update on the TV.  It’s probably not that intersting, but I have to write it in the assumption that the SFPD have stolen the TV and I’ll have to file an OCC against them anyway, so I might as well send it on to you.

About two weeks after the police officers took the TV from me, I called the number on the Police Report.  The woman on the phone asked for my case number, and describe the situation.  When I began to explain she stopped and said “Wait – you found a 42-inch TV on the STREET?’ and I said ‘yes’ and she said ‘…and you decided to call the police…?’

After she confirmed the TV was, in fact, still in the property room, she told me I had to go to the 5th floor of the Hall of Justice to turn in paperwork if I were to claim the TV after the requisite 120 days.  She then said ‘but you want to do it soon — it’s going to take a while.’  That was an understatement, as I was soon to discover.
(more…)

Concerned reader Jeremiah M. noticed the suspicious contents of this black Nissan pickup truck parked on Valencia at 21st and decided to alert the authorities:

Notice hacksaw, broken u-lock, many bicycle wheels including several sawed apart bicycle wheels.

What do you think, readers?  Is there a logical, non-criminal explanation for having all of this stuff or were we just treated to a behind the scenes peek into a bicycle thief’s mobile base of operations?  Those are quite a lot of sheared spokes in that blue bin.  Also, are those wheels locked down or just sitting there?  Either way, this doesn’t look good!

On Valencia Street between 14th and 15th. The block is closed to traffic as of 8:15 pm tonight. Witnesses heard between 6 and 8 shots. Apparently the victim got up and ran down Rosa Parks Lane, or thereabouts. It sounded like stray shots may have also gone into the windows of nearby homes.

Now word comes from the police that a disturbance is developing on the next block in the Sunrise Hotel.

Please be careful out there.