The following was compiled from Renton Police Department case reports.
A 30-year-old Kent man arrested Oct. 27 after he tried to break into a car at Fry’s Electronics was caught trying to conceal heroin in the stolen car he was driving.
The man was spotted next to a black Acura by a Fry’s security officer with what was described as a “punch key.” Without success, he drove off toward Lowe’s, where he was confronted by Renton police officers. He was wanted on a felony warrant for escape from community custody and had a suspended license for failing to pay traffic tickets.
Officers found nearly $600 in cash in his pockets, which he said was from the sale of a laptop and he also buys and sells used cell phones. The cell phones were littered throughout the green Acura, along with a digital scale.
An officer saw him move away from the rear of the car and drop something on the driver’s seat. The black substance was recognized as heroin.
He had paid $50 to someone named “Tim” so he could use the green Acura, which had been stolen in Puyallup on Oct. 24. He told officers he had nothing to do with the”stuff” that was in the car’s trunk.
The suspect was booked into the SCORE regional jail for felony investigation of drug possession and possession of a stolen vehicle, along with his warrant.
Robbery suspect ID’d but released
A 23-year-old Renton man was positively identified Oct. 24 by an 18-year-old woman as the man armed with a handgun who robbed her of her wallet.
But the investigating officer started having doubts about the woman’s story because of the 30-minute delay in reporting the incident and the fact she was on “restrictions” for smoking.
The woman was walking on Houser Way South from the Renton Transit Center when a man showed her a black handgun in his waistband and grabbed her wallet. He ran off and she stood frozen for a few moments before going home.
Officers, including a Tukwila K9 unit, searched without success for the stolen items. The suspect was found nearby; he matched the clothing description almost exactly but was cooperative and denied robbing anyone.
She identified the man. In giving a written statement, she indicated she delayed going home because she thought two girls were going to fight and she wanted to watch. At home she didn’t tell her mother about the robbery because of the restrictions, but she blurted out she had been robbed after they argued.
The Renton man was released because the woman’s story just didn’t add up. She was given a case number and the case was forwarded to detectives.
Man offers rides, scares school kids
A man driving near 161st Avenue Southeast and Southeast 144th Street at about 7:30 a.m. Oct. 31 asked children waiting at a bus stop whether they wanted a ride to school.
The children screamed and ran home to tell their mother.
The vehicle was described as a silver-colored van.
Four cars prowled at stadium
Four cars were prowled Oct. 28 in the parking lot at Renton Memorial Stadium during the Hazen-Tyee girls soccer game.
One victim’s purse was stolen; a school backpack containing four school books was taken. Two other vehicles also suffered damage, but nothing apparently was taken.
Several hundred dollars worth of damage was done.
Man in mask tries to rob Popeyes
A man wearing a skeleton mask jumped over the counter at Popeyes Chicken on Southwest Seventh Street Oct. 31 and tried to open the cash register.
As he jumped the counter, the suspect pulled the fire-suppression cable. That caused the fryers to boil over and distract employees. He then tried but failed to open the cash register.
