Home Invasion on Scenic Avenue in Central Piedmont
At about 8 p.m. on Wednesday, December 12, the son of a Piedmont family went out of their house to look for his dark glasses in the family car parked in front of the house on Scenic Avenue. Although he noticed three African-American men nearby, he “didn’t think much of it.” They were armed and soon forced him at gunpoint to lead them back into the house. One of the men located his father reading in an upstairs bedroom and surprised him with a gun to his head. They moved very quietly through the house and found the mother in the laundry room. The family members were forced to lie face down in the kitchen with the father’s legs tied up. While one of the trio stood guard over the family in the kitchen, the others searched the house for valuables. They took money, iPhones, laptops, jewelry, and a few other valuables. Once they were gone, the family called the police at about 8:30pm.
Not knowing what had happened, an alert Piedmonter a block away, was suspicious when the three men carrying the loot ran past and jumped in a parked car. Following them briefly, the neighbor obtained the license number of the car. Oakland police soon found the car abandoned on Shattuck Avenue recovering some of the stolen jewelry.
REMINDER: Be aware of activities and strangers in your surroundings at all times.
Increased awareness is essential to to Piedmont’s public safety, however given the steady increase in the rate and severity of crimes in Piedmont, additional police patrols should be implemented. Over-time was held flat in the 2012-2013 budget, so additional funds will need to be committed for additional patrols to be implemented. This is typically done at the mid-year budget review in January and I encourage residents concerned about the increase in crime to submit comments at the hearings in January.
Reconsider surveillance cameras at key locations.
Maybe the police patrol schedules should have more variability built into them so start and finish times are staggered and automatic overtime is not necessary.
Ms. Nakagawa’s suggestions about surveillance cameras has merit and has been suggested and rejected previously by the Police. With a new Chief coming in this may be an idea worth revisiting.
As to overtime versus Jim’s suggestion, I don’t know what is the most cost effective way to get more officers on the street. Regardless, with the sharp uptick in crime this is needed.
Piedmont residents have a responsibility to aid the Police by promptly reporting suspicious behavior. Piedmont’s small “footstep” allows for rapid response and the Police need this type of input, it helps us all.