Clayton Police Incident Report: April 5-11

From the City of Clayton:

April 12, 2021

For the reporting period of Monday, April 5th – Sunday, April 11th, the CPD responded to 429 calls for service, including 11 vehicle accidents & 35 calls to assist the fire department. Among those calls were the following incidents:

Officers responded to the 7800 block of Forsyth early Monday morning to assist the CFD with a fire inside a dumpster. The cause of the fire is unknown & no injuries were reported.

A loud argument between an attorney & a client prompted a clerk to call 911 Monday afternoon. Though heated, the confrontation was verbal in nature & neither party desired police assistance.

A resident in the 8000 block of Davis Pl. reported a bicycle belonging to one of her children was stolen Monday evening. The time of occurrence is between 7 & 9pm.

While on patrol in the 6500 block of San Bonita early Tuesday morning, a CPD officer was flagged down by a woman regarding a stolen vehicle. The woman stated an acquaintance assaulted her Monday night while they were in University City Monday & then stole her car. The vehicle was found parked behind the acquaintance's residence & the reporting party noted items, including prescription medication, were missing. After contacting the acquaintance, those items were recovered & University City PD authorized the vehicle's release to the woman.

Later Tuesday morning, officers responded to the St. Louis County Department of Revenue. A clerk reported an elderly woman was attempting to pay her personal property taxes with "stage" money. An investigation concluded the woman was not aware the currency was fake & she had no ill intent.

After dining at IHOP Tuesday night, three subjects left without paying their bill. Their waitress discovered one of the individuals left her purse behind & she provided it to responding officers. Wednesday, one of the subjects turned up at the CPD, where she attempted to report her purse as lost. While speaking with an officer, she admitted she was one of the suspects & did not pay for her meal before leaving the restaurant. She was issued a summons for stealing, with a court date through the Clayton Municipal Court.

Wednesday morning, a resident of the 900 block of St. Rita discovered someone damaged her vehicle overnight by breaking out a window. An investigation continues; however, no witnesses or suspects have been identified.

A man parked his vehicle near the St. Louis County government buildings Wednesday morning. When he returned an hour later, he observed fresh damage to his truck. A witness informed him a black passenger vehicle, possibly a Dodge Charger, struck the victim's truck. The driver did not stop before leaving the scene.

A woman was in for quite the surprise Wednesday evening as she traveled through town. She was stopped at an intersection in the central business district when a street sign blew off its post & struck her vehicle, causing minor damage. The St. Louis County street department was notified & the sign will be replaced.

CPD Officers & CFD personnel responded to the 7700 block of Forsyth late Wednesday night after a vehicle crashed into parking barriers & 2 dining parklets. Following an on-scene investigation, officers arrested the driver for DWI.

A resident of the 700 block of Wenneker awoke Thursday morning to discover someone rummaged through his vehicle overnight. The car was unlocked but secured behind a gate in the driveway. After discussing the incident with neighbors, they learned individuals were seen on foot in the backyards of homes throughout the neighborhood.

In April of 2019, a man's wallet was stolen from the bleachers as he played basketball at the Center of Clayton. He did not report the theft to the PD but immediately canceled his bank & credit cards. He didn't think anything further about the incident until receiving a notice in the mail regarding a mandatory court date in St. Louis City. When he contacted the clerk for additional information, he was informed it was related to a traffic stop this February. He is not associated with the vehicle described on the traffic citations & he believes someone is using his stolen driver's license.

A property manager reported a man was loitering in the stairwell of a building in the 8500 block of Maryland Saturday morning. Officers contacted the man & informed him he was not welcome in the building & would be charged with trespassing if he returned. He stated he understood & left the area. However, approximately 2 hours later, building staff reported the man had returned. When officers returned, they learned he was no longer on the property when.

Finally, a resident in the 8500 block of Maryland reported hearing a loud disturbance in a neighboring unit Sunday night. Officers determined the quarrel was verbal & the parties had separated for the evening before officers arrived.

We ask you to continue including a #9pmRoutine in your daily habits. Removing anything of value from your vehicles, including keys & remotes, reduces the opportunity for crime & increases our community's safety. If you haven't already done so, please consider registering your home security cameras with the community camera program. Registering your camera allows officers to quickly identify nearby cameras that may have captured criminal activity. To learn more, please visit https://www.claytonmo.gov/government/police/community-camera-program.

Until next week, stay safe!

This press release was produced by the City of Clayton. The views expressed here are the author’s own.