Police Report: Burglary Target Turns Out to Be Nearly Empty Home

Topping this roundup of recent police incidents is a successful break-in that, while no laughing matter, had to make the crook or crooks feel a little foolish.

A resident of the 6200 block of West Clarke Street found Saturday that some time since Wednesday, while he had been away, someone had broken into his home. Police were at the home investigating a call from a neighbor about a broken window when the owner returned.

Police determined that a burglar or burglars had entered the home because the front door was unlocked. The owner said that he never used the door and always kept it dead-bolted.

But the owner said that the home was nearly bare of possessions because he was in the process of moving and he could not find anything missing.

Monday

At 1:16 a.m., police were yet again called to the Carmelite Home for Boys, 1214 Kavanaugh Pl., to take a report of a runaway — the very same boy who has been reported numerous times over the past couple of weeks and who was cited . As usual, the boy had walked out of the Carmelite Home after lunch and disappeared onto the streets of Wauwatosa, a daily occurrence. In the earlier incident for which he was arrested, the boy admitted he was high on marijuana and he had a digital camera of unknown origin.

Sunday

A resident of the 2400 block of North 64th Street reported that some time over the weekend, someone stole two copper downspouts, one off his garage and the other off the house. He said another downspout had been stolen Tuesday and he was afraid that his two remaining downspouts would be stolen as well. The downspouts are worth an estimated $500 each.

At 12:10 a.m., a 23-year-old Menomonee Falls man was arrested for possession of drug paraphernalia and on a fugitive warrant for violating probation after a check of his vehicle registration Saturday while it was parked at , 11121 W. North Ave., turned up the wanted notice. The man was seen in the car later and stopped. He was found to have a syringe and a burnt spoon in the car. A passenger in the car, a 43-year-old Milwaukee man, was found to have an outstanding warrant for burglary and was arrested as well.

Saturday

At 2:45 p.m., a 27-year-old Milwaukee woman was arrested for theft after she stole a wallet from a car parked in the driveway of a home in the 1600 block of Ridge Court. A neighbor saw the woman walk into the driveway and watched as she spoke for a couple of minutes with the woman who lives there. When the resident went into the house, the suspect opened the back door of her car and got part way in, then appeared to conceal something behind a clipboard she was holding, the witness said. He then confronted the woman and stopped her from leaving, and when the resident came out with a glass of water for the suspect, he told her the woman had been in her car. The woman denied it and tried to leave, dropping the cup and, apparently, the wallet, which was found nearby. She was detained long enough for police to arrive, and she was arrested on the account of the witness, although she denied the story and said she was only soliciting money for the Milwaukee Restoration Church. That so-called “church” has been identified as an unregistered non-entity used as a ruse to commit widespread fraud and, in cases such as this, neighborhood crime.

At 2:26 p.m., a resident of the 1100 block of Glenview Avenue reported that two tool boxes had been stolen from his unlocked garage.

At 11:30 a.m., a resident of the 1800 block of Ludington Avenue reported that someone had entered two unlocked vehicles parked overnight in his driveway and rifled them, stealing a satellite radio and loose change.

At 1:19 p.m., two women reported that a man had exposed himself to them and begun masturbating as they walked past him in just west of Charles Hart Parkway. They walked away quickly, they said, but then stopped to call police, and when the man saw them doing so, he ran to a car and fled. Officers were delayed in responding because the 911 call first went to the , which referred it to Wauwatosa police after listening to the women’s story.

At 9 a.m., a resident of the 2100 block of North 89th Street reported that overnight someone had ransacked his unlocked car and stolen a $150 GPS unit and $10 in loose change.

At 3:13 a.m., a 25-year-old Wauwatosa man was arrested for drunken driving, third offense, after a patrol officer saw him driving erratically and pulled him over at North 109th Street and West Blue Mound Road. The driver performed poorly in a field test and blew a .13 blood alcohol content reading on a breath test. The man could not remember the name of a female passenger in his car.

At 1:06 a.m., a 45-year-old Brookfield man was arrested for drunken driving, first offense, after an officer saw him driving erratically and not wearing his seat belt and pulled him over in the 1100 block of North 68th Street. He failed to perform several field tests correctly and blew a .13 BAC.

Friday

At 11:28 p.m., a resident of the 2900 block of North 120th Street reported that at some time since 3 p.m. someone had stolen his bicycle from his open garage.

At 6:41 p.m., a Greenfield woman reported that some time on Wednesday someone had entered her car while it was parked at Mayfair Mall and stolen her cell phone and GPS unit. She said she was sure the car was locked but found no damage to the car.

At 4:34 p.m., two 14-year-old Milwaukee boys were arrested for retail theft at at Mayfair Mall when they were caught trying to steal four pairs of boxer shorts worth $24 a pair.

At 3:15 p.m., a 52-year-old Milwaukee man was arrested for retail theft after he left the store, 6700 W. State St., without paying for a number of items. The man, who uses a walker, was seen putting magazines, frozen food items and a soda in his backpack and a tote bag. When an employee tried to stop him, he used his walker to push past him. He tossed some magazines back at the security officer and kept walking north on North 68th Street, and police detained him when he reached Milwaukee Avenue. The man was found to have 46 arrests on record, most for retail theft but also for disorderly conduct, lewd and lascivious behavior, bail jumping and habitual criminality. When he was arrested, he told officers, “I hear voices and they told me to do it.”

Thursday

At 8:31 p.m., an 18-year-old Milwaukee woman was arrested for retail theft at Macy’s after she removed security sensors from three women’s tops worth $60 in a fitting room and tried to leave the store with them concealed in a purse.

At 5:02 p.m., an 18-year-old Milwaukee man was arrested for retail theft at at Mayfair Mall after he was caught trying to leave the store without paying for six newborn outfits worth $101.98. He told officers he was trying to steal the outfits for his infant child.