Crimes and Misdemeanors on the Peninsula

There’s been a spate of crimes and misdemeanors of late on the Peninsula – in Ocean Beach and the Midway District. Stabbings … thefts … Here’s a brief outline of the recent incidents.

Two Stabbed in OB Saturday Night

A 32-year-old woman and a 25-year-old man suffered non-life threatening stab wounds during a fight with two suspects in OB. The two suspects were arguing with the 25-year-old man a little after 11:20 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 30,  in the 1900 block of Bacon Street, when he was stabbed by one of the suspects.

The 32-year-old woman suffered a stab wound while trying to break up the fight. Paramedics transported her to an area hospital with non-life threatening injuries.  Police said, “The suspects got into a car and fled the scene. A short time later there was a male with a stab wound contacted by police at Logan Avenue and Beardsley Street. It was later determined this stabbing was related to the 1900 Bacon Street incident.” Paramedics transported the 25-year-old man in stable condition to an area hospital.

San Diego police urged anyone with any information regarding the stabbings to call Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477. Point Loma – OB Monthly

Police Dog Stabbed in Midway

A man was arrested on suspicion of stabbing a San Diego police dog during an altercation in the Midway District. Two officers responded to a radio call of a man trespassing at a business in the 3300 block of Barnett Avenue at about 11:30 a.m. Jan. 25. The officers found the man, but he refused to give them information about himself and kept reaching for his bag. When officers tried to put him in handcuffs, the man punched the officers and ran into a nearby military property, where he stood on a shipping container waving a knife for four hours, police said.

Emergency negotiators persuaded him to come down from the shipping container, but he “refused to put the knife down,” the Police Department said in a tweet. “The officer released his K-9 partner, Titan, to assist and the suspect stabbed him.” Officers then ran in and took a suspect into custody, police said. Dedrick Jones, 35, was booked into San Diego County Jail on suspicion of felony resisting arrest, resisting an executive officer and harming a police dog, according to jail records. Titan was rushed to an animal hospital for treatment of stab wounds to his side that caused a laceration to his colon in three places, police said. Titan had six to eight inches of his colon surgically removed and received more than 100 stitches.

“We are grateful Titan is on the road to recovery,” the department tweeted. “He’s a brave boy!” Jones’ bail was set at $50,000 pending his arraignment, scheduled for Feb. 19. PL Monthly

Religious Antiques and Robe Stolen From Ocean Beach church

Surveillance video shows a burglar emerging from an Ocean Beach church Saturday, wearing a robe, carrying a staff, and loaded bags of antique religious objects. Ransacked rooms greeted Director of Operations Jeff Green Saturday when he walked into the Episcopal Church Center on Sunset Cliffs Blvd., headquarters for the local Episcopal Diocese. “It’s disgusting and disheartening … It felt like I was walking into a crime scene on a movie set or something,” said Green.

Surveillance video revealed what happened. Just past 2 a.m., two men, one holding a skateboard, hopped over a church wall. One of them, armed with a knife, is seen ripping open some delivered packages outside the church. The other person can be seen opening packages. What happens next isn’t on video but the result was a shattered window in the sacristy, the room where priests prepare for services. Inside was a mess. “All the shelves and drawers were open, things hanging out of drawers,” said Green.

About three hours later, one of the men with a large bag and backpack — wearing a priest’s robe and wielding a religious staff — is seen leaving through a chapel window. Inside the bags: some five antique silver dishes, several silver chalices, and four bottles of communion wine. The total value lost was upwards of $5,000. “How could anybody do this to a church that’s trying to help people, especially during this pandemic?” said Green.

Throughout the pandemic, the church has continued to serve the homeless population, including food distribution and mail services, along with religious services which will now be missing some cherished objects, courtesy of two thieves. “What bothers me the most is that if these two people had just come to us and said they needed something, we probably would have given it to them. They felt they needed to break in and steal things and desecrate our sacristy. That’s what’s disheartening,” said Green. Along with the loss from the theft, the burglars also caused about $1,000 in damage. 10News

Guy Takes Fire Equipment During Fire art Mother’s Saloon Building

The fire was reported just before 9:30 p.m. at the Mother’s Saloon building in the 2200 block of Bacon Street. Video of the scene shows thick plumes of white smoke billowing from the structure along with bursts of flames visible on the side of the building near the intersection of Bacon and Lotus streets. San Diego Fire-Rescue Deputy Chief Kelly Zombro said the fire appeared to have started in the attic area. The cause of the fire is still under investigation. No injuries have been reported.

Police now are searching for a man who entered one of the fire engines during the incident and stole a bag with at least $1,000 worth of equipment inside. He has been identified  and is described as a white male wearing a white hat, a black jacket with a red shirt underneath and black pants. Fox5

Midway Stand-Off With Hostages at Sandwich Shop

A man armed with a knife held two people hostage for about 30 minutes Thursday afternoon, Jan. 14 inside a Midway District sandwich shop before they were able to escape to safety. The 38-year-old man remained holed up inside the Subway restaurant for roughly 90 minutes after the hostages got out, police said. He later surrendered to SWAT officers, who arrested him on suspicion of robbery, false imprisonment and parole violation.

The incident began just before 3 p.m. when a woman called 911 and reported she and another employee, a man, were being robbed inside the sandwich chain’s location on Sports Arena Boulevard near Rosecrans Street and Camino Del Rio West. A police officer arrived within two minutes, found the suspect still inside the store and ordered him to the ground, Officer Robert Heims said in a news release. “The suspect grabbed an employee and a knife and told police to leave or he would cut the employee,” Heims said. The officer backed away and called for assistance, including a SWAT team and emergency negotiators. At one point as officers descended on the area, the would-be robber reportedly held his arms around the woman, with the knife near her chest, according to police radio traffic. Shortly thereafter, he reportedly put his arms and the knife around the man, too.

Just before 3:30 p.m., both hostages were able to escape. Neither suffered any physical injuries. The suspect remained holed up inside the Subway, telling a crisis negotiator over the phone that he wanted to commit suicide by cop. But after staying on the phone with negotiators, he surrendered a little after 5 p.m. A stretch of Sports Arena Boulevard in the area remained closed into Thursday night as police at the scene wrapped up the investigation. The man was taken into custody by police. SD U-T
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