Kent Police Blotter: Feb. 24 to March 11

A sampling of Kent Police incidents Feb. 24 to March 11:

Feb. 24

• Drug activity: 12:52 a.m., officers responded to the Ventana Apartments, 329 Ridgeview Dr., after a witness reported being threatened with a gun by an unknown individual in a vehicle. The vehicle fled but was later stopped after a brief pursuit. Investigation revealed no substantiated threat but indicated possible drug activity. The case was referred to the Valley Narcotics Enforcement Team.

Feb. 26

• Stolen vehicles: Officers assisted in investigating stolen vehicles at a residence. Several stolen vehicles and a new camping trailer were recovered. One stolen vehicle fled, but the driver was apprehended after fleeing on foot.

• Employee theft: Officers investigated a significant internal theft at the Chevron on South 180th Street and East Valley Highway. A night employee was reportedly found stealing tobacco products, with an estimated loss of $4,000 to $5,000.

Feb. 27

• Burglary: Officers responded to a burglary at an evicted tenant’s apartment. The male suspect was found flooding the unit and taken into custody without incident.

March 2

• Police pursuit: Officers pursued a stolen Ford Mustang. After a patrol precision immobilization technique (PIT) maneuver, the driver rammed patrol cars but was arrested after attempting to flee. The passenger was identified and released, while the driver was taken to the hospital and later booked into jail.

March 4

• Passed out: 1:42 a.m., officers were on routine patrol when they observed a green Ford Ranger stopped at the pumps at Chevron, 1246 Central Ave. N. Officers noticed the vehicle was running with both occupants passed out. Upon looking inside, they observed severe ignition damage along with drug paraphernalia inside the vehicle. The vehicle was pinned in, and both occupants were detained without incident. The Ranger was not reported stolen, but the registered owner could not be located. Officers observed a large piece of commercial equipment that appeared to have been stolen. The driver admitted to being in the area where numerous commercial burglaries had been reported. The Ranger was seized for a search warrant, and the occupants were released.

March 6

• Man with knife: Officers responded to an address in the Valley several times attempting to serve an order on a male whose erratic behavior had caused other family members to vacate their shared apartment. Management informed them that the power had been shut off to the apartment, and the suspect was now stealing power by running an extension cord to the laundry room (which he had broken into). Officers arrived on March 6 to find the suspect was not home, but they soon located him walking along Central Avenue. A foot pursuit quickly ensued. As the suspect ran toward the apartment with officers chasing him, one officer cut him off, blocking his path. The suspect soon drew a large knife (over 8 inches) and threatened that the officers would have to shoot him. Officers did recognize a potential crossfire situation, adjusted, and eventually deployed a Taser. The suspect was taken into custody and was later placed in a restraint device.

March 8

• Playground fire: 3 a.m., K-9 officers were driving through the area when they saw the newly installed playground at Morrill Meadows Park, 10600 SE 248th St., engulfed in flames. Puget Sound Fire responded and extinguished the flames. It appears an accelerant was used to light the equipment on fire. No suspects or witnesses were located nearby. Officers taped off the damaged area and are working on obtaining any video footage.

• Assault: Officers responded to an assault at Circle K Mobile, 1809 W. Meeker St. Officers contacted the victim outside the mobile home; the suspect was seen inside and refused to come out. A search warrant was obtained for the trailer in record time. Multiple officers executed the warrant and took the suspect into custody, who was found hiding in a closet.

• Stolen semi: The owner of a recently stolen semi in Pacific called to report that it was tracking near South 236th Street and 64th Avenue South. Officers located the stolen semi at the Atrium on James Apartments, 24216 63rd Way S., before Pacific Police had a chance to finish their stolen vehicle case. The truck was unoccupied. Officers cleared the unusual stolen vehicle. AFIS (Automated Fingerprint Identification System) was called out, and the owners were already on scene to recover the vehicle.

March 11

• Shooting: 2:39 a.m., officers were dispatched to Veterans Drive/Military Road South for a possible shooting. Several callers reported hearing between 20 and 50 gunshots. Upon arrival, officers located the victim’s vehicle (a white Chevrolet Malibu) abandoned, facing eastbound in the westbound lane. The vehicle was unoccupied, with a large dog left inside and a bullet fragment visible on the floorboard. The investigation revealed that the Malibu was traveling northbound on Military Road and was being followed by a blue sedan. The vehicles turned west onto Veterans Drive, where the blue sedan began shooting at the Malibu. The Malibu jumped the median to escape, causing severe damage to the vehicle. The blue sedan continued east on Veterans Drive, and an unknown white sedan later arrived to pick up the driver of the Malibu. Several shell casings were located on Veterans Drive. No victims or suspects have been identified. Patrol processed the crime scene.