[Highland Park] Suspicious person near park entrance
Wanted to share this with all of you.... this afternoon, (Thursday 2/4) around 1:00pm, I was driving on Bunker Hill headed towards the lower reservoir. I noticed a male, walking slowly and carrying a rake and broom......I thought it was really strange so I turned around near the tennis courts and saw him on Greystone knocking on the doors of a couple of the first houses on that street. I drove to the entrance of the park and pulled over near the water fountain and watched him. He proceeded to walk on N. Highland and go to a couple more houses so I then parked across the street from the one house he was at for more than 5 minutes.... then I called 911. I explained it was a non-emergency call - just something was suspicious in the area. The 911 operator asked me for a description, etc., and while I was talking to her; he walked to the houses on Bunker Hill - in the 'no outlet' section... I could see he went to the first home there; but I wanted to finished my call to the operator before following him again. After my call - I drove around the park to see if I could spot him; no luck so I drove on the 'no outlet' part of Bunker Hill to see if he was still around. I made it to the end and could not see him; but as I turned around in someone's driveway, I saw him on the street below... I guess he walked down the steps that have a red railing (I have lived here a LONG time and never been on that part of Bunker Hill nor did I know there were steps there!!) anyway; he was walking on that street. Is that part of High Park Place ?? He ended up walking slowly towards the steps; I suppose to go back onto Bunker Hill; but by that time I was late for my appointment and hoped the police would be around to maybe check him out, etc. Just wanted to remind everyone to lock EVERYTHING!! Homes and vehicles!! Just be aware of everyone! His description: male; about 19 to 23 yrs old; African-American; thin build; about 5' 7" to 5' 9"; clothing: black hoodie with white design on front; black pants and black work boot style footwear. Thanks much! also- thanks to the HP Community Council meeting on 1/21 where Zone 5 police and detectives were on hand to talk about the recent car and home incidents. The one detective said while he was outside waiting for the meeting to start he and the other detectives saw a young male going to a house right across from St. Andrews Church (meeting site) and he had a rake......if I recall correctly the detectives then went to the home and the homeowner did not know the youth.....I do not recall if any more was said about that situation.
The final part of this story is wrong. I am the homeowner on Hampton and I told the detective that the kid's name was Daniel and he has done snow shoveling for us several times this winter. I guess the detective was trying to scare people even more. He called the kid a "prime suspect". I can't explain why Daniel was raking leaves at 7pm other than he seems to like making money and we still had a fair amount of leaves in our shrub beds. The kid is ambitious and works hard. He may be casing places but you can't prove it by me. -----Original Message----- From: Susuboombatz@aol.com Date: Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:20:40 To: <neighborhood@highlandparkpa.com> Cc: <Emily.Keebler@city.pittsburgh.pa.us> Subject: [Highland Park] Suspicious person near park entrance -- <http://lists.highlandparkpa.com/mailman/listinfo/neighborhood>
Since the meeting, there has been some significant developments on the Highland Park burglaries. One suspect has been arrested and I hope that the detectives assigned to Highland Park will be able to attend and elaborate on the suspect and number of burglaries that he committed. As for the person with the rake...I do not think the detectives were trying to scare anyone. Someone going door to door in area where burglaries have been committed, may have looked suspicious to a police officer on the look out for such activity. This is based on past experience with burglars who at times, knock on doors to see if anyone is home, before breaking in and/or providing an off-the-cuff story about looking for someone, when the owner answers the door. I have arrested a burglar in the past who employs this strategy. However, residents who know "Daniel" might not think anything of it because "Daniel" lives in the neighborhood and this is behavior. That is the importance of the police and the residents working together. Residents know their neighbors / neighborhoods and can recognize things that are out of the ordinary. If it were someone that neighbors do not know, going door to door, and their intentions do not seem legitimate (and/or you sense something does not make sense or feel right...please call 911 as soon as possible. Commander Thomas Stangrecki Pittsburgh Bureau of Police Major Crimes 1203 Western Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15233 (412) 323-7800 -----Original Message----- From: neighborhood-bounces@highlandparkpa.com [mailto:neighborhood-bounces@highlandparkpa.com] On Behalf Of Harold Love Sent: Friday, February 05, 2010 8:57 AM To: Susuboombatz@aol.com; neighborhood-bounces@highlandparkpa.com; neighborhood@highlandparkpa.com Cc: Keebler, Emily Subject: Re: [Highland Park] Suspicious person near park entrance The final part of this story is wrong. I am the homeowner on Hampton and I told the detective that the kid's name was Daniel and he has done snow shoveling for us several times this winter. I guess the detective was trying to scare people even more. He called the kid a "prime suspect". I can't explain why Daniel was raking leaves at 7pm other than he seems to like making money and we still had a fair amount of leaves in our shrub beds. The kid is ambitious and works hard. He may be casing places but you can't prove it by me. -----Original Message----- From: Susuboombatz@aol.com Date: Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:20:40 To: <neighborhood@highlandparkpa.com> Cc: <Emily.Keebler@city.pittsburgh.pa.us> Subject: [Highland Park] Suspicious person near park entrance -- <http://lists.highlandparkpa.com/mailman/listinfo/neighborhood> -- <http://lists.highlandparkpa.com/mailman/listinfo/neighborhood>
participants (3)
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Harold Love
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Stangrecki, Thomas
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Susuboombatz@aol.com