Police confront woman panhandling with child | Federal Way Police Blotter

Published 12:00 pm Monday, May 30, 2016

The following is a sample from the Federal Way police log:

Drive-by shooting at mall: At 2:20 a.m. on May 22 at 1701 S. Commons, an officer was flagged down by a man claiming his vehicle was shot at by two people in a truck. The man was not injured. Officers stopped two trucks in the Sears and Car Toys parking lots and detained a man and a woman. Police found two spent shell casings in the man’s pocket and a “live bullet” in another pocket and arrested him. The man admitted there was a gun in his truck, and the truck was sealed pending a search warrant. The woman explained that the victim had been following her and the male suspect and had done so multiple times. She didn’t know who he was or why. She told officers the male suspect shot twice at the vehicle because they thought the victim was armed.

34 truck tires punctured: At 1:18 p.m. on May 22 at the intersection of South 344th Street and 15th Avenue South, an unknown suspect punctured 34 tires on several semi-trucks and trailers. The tires facing north, along a wood line, were the only ones damaged. The victims think the crime occurred sometime in the early morning, but there were no witnesses.

Copper stolen from abandoned Albertson’s: At 3:39 a.m. on May 21 at 33620 21st Ave. SW, a person reported that sometime over the previous month someone entered an abandoned Albertson’s building and stole copper tubing and wiring from the ceiling.

Reader board with Crime Stoppers information tagged: At 8:47 a.m. on May 21 in the 2100 block of Southwest 356th Street, police responded to a report that an electronic reader board was tagged by graffiti. The reader board displayed Crime Stopper information “for passing motorists” on Southwest 356th Street. With no witnesses, police deemed the case inactive pending new leads.

Thief pulls gun on Wal-Mart employee: At 1:45 p.m. on May 21 at 34520 16th Ave. S., a man tried to pull a gun on a Wal-Mart loss prevention employee after he was caught shoplifting from the business. The employee and the suspect were fighting when the employee saw him reach into his pants and grab something black. As he did this he kept repeating, “I’m going to kill you.” But the employee held onto the gun and eventually gained control before police arrived. The man had stolen nine items worth $37.

Panhandler arrested at Wendy’s: At 7:31 p.m. on May 21 in the 2200 block of South 320th Street, a man was arrested for “aggressively begging” at a Wendy’s. Restaurant employees called police to report “a transient-looking male” sitting in the drive-thru. Police arrived and watched the man for 30 seconds before approaching him. During that time, an officer reported seeing the man attempt to talk to customers and employees through the back window. He said it was “apparent” customers were uncomfortable with the man’s presence and that they would roll their window up to avoid talking to him. The officer also saw that his legs were extended as he sat and that vehicles had to “steer very hard to their right” to avoid hitting him. When the officer tried to speak to him, he said the man became hostile and it appeared that he was intoxicated. The officer explained to the man he would be trespassed with a warning or he could arrest him. The man allegedly told the officer to arrest him and then threatened him. The officer detained him and booked him into SCORE jail.

Police receive reports of gunshots: At 3:33 a.m. on May 20 in the 33300 block of 38th Avenue South, multiple people called 911 to report gunshots. One caller said he saw subjects in the area hide from police, but he could not provide a description. Officers arrived at the location but couldn’t find any suspects, victims, or property damage. They did, however, find shell casings in the middle of the street.

Teenage girl suspended for cyberbullying: At 11:57 a.m. on May 20 in the 32500 block of 24th Avenue Southwest, a 13-year-old girl was suspended from St. Vincent de Paul Catholic School for making threats via email to a Saghalie Middle School girl. The victim’s mother called police to report the threats were made on her school-assigned computer. After police arrived at the school, the victim said she was arguing with her friend on Gmail when the friend told the suspect about the argument. The suspect then emailed the victim that she was going to cut her head off and place it on a platter. The victim’s friend, with whom the victim was initially arguing, apologized about a half hour after the threats were made and asked her friend to delete the message sent by the suspect. But the victim said she felt threatened by the emails and wanted the incident documented with police. No charges have been filed.

Principal hit during student fight: At 9:13 a.m. on May 19 in the 31455 block of 28th Avenue South, police were dispatched to a fight between three male students at Truman High School. During the investigation, police discovered the school principal had also been struck. As officers tried to arrest the male who hit the principal, he resisted and was taken to the ground. The fight started when two students began arguing and “posturing” to fight. The principal and a staff member got in between the two, but a third student reached over the top of the principal and punched one of the students. When he did this, he struck her on the right side of her neck and jaw line. In a later statement, the suspect admitted to punching the other student five to seven times after he was insulted. The student was booked into King County Juvenile Detention Center on charges of third-degree assault.

Man holding machete hits man with branch: At 12:52 a.m. on May 18 in the 900 block of South 344th Street, a man was arrested for hitting another man with a branch while holding a machete. Officers responded to the assault, which was located at a homeless encampment, and learned that the victim and his father were in their tent when they heard the suspect make comments to them outside. The victim left the tent and was hit in the face with the tree branch; he thought he was going to be killed because of the machete the suspect was holding. The victim and his father suspected the man to be suffering withdrawals from narcotic use. The victim admitted to punching the suspect to defend himself and witnesses corroborated the story. When police spoke to the suspect, he said he was actually the victim. He said they got into an argument about $20 and the victim punched him in the eye. But because his story didn’t match up with the witnesses’, police arrested him for second-degree assault.

Police confront woman panhandling with child: At 5:46 p.m. on May 17 in the 3400 block of Enchanted Parkway South, police contacted a woman who was panhandling with her child nearby. The woman had been advised by Child Protective Services to not beg on a busy street corner with her 4-year-old son, and police made contact with the woman on the same corner with her young child. Police said they have seen the woman use her son as “bait” to get people to give her money for the past seven months while the father sits nearby in a vehicle. When police asked the woman, she said Child Protective Services never spoke to her about panhandling. The case was forwarded to Child Protective Services.

Caller reports hearing man talk about murders: At 9:19 p.m. on May 17 in the 25608 block of Pacific Highway South, a male called a police tip line to report that he had been at Stimpy’s Tavern in Kent on May 14 when he heard a male talking about three shootings in Federal Way. The caller couldn’t provide more information because it was “family.” The Valley Communications Center said the caller declined to use the SafeCityFW tip website and that he also sounded intoxicated. Officers attempted to contact him to question him further but he didn’t answer.