Palo Alto police last week arrested two men who they said broke into cars at Stanford Shopping Center and, in one case, stole two backpacks containing electronics, the department announced in a news release Thursday.
The arrest occurred shortly after noon last Thursday, Aug. 8, when officers saw the two men in a vehicle that was associated with recent car burglaries, police said. The duo was in a vehicle heading north on Alma Street downtown and approaching Stanford Shopping Center when officers stopped them at Sand Hill Road and Vineyard Lane, according to the news release.
Inside the vehicle, police reportedly found a window punch — a tool commonly used to shatter car windows — and stolen items from a burglary that took place at the shopping center on July 25. Officers said that theft involved someone breaking the window of a vehicle and stealing two backpacks with electronics. Police also found an item associated with that burglary in the vehicle and connected one of the two men, a 19-year-old San Francisco resident, to that theft.
The other man, a 20-year-old also from San Francisco, is associated with a separate burglary that occurred on July 20, also at Stanford Shopping Center, according to the news release. Police said someone broke the window of a vehicle in the mall parking lot and entered the car, but did not take any items.
The two men were each arrested on suspicion of felony auto burglary and misdemeanor possession of burglary tools. Both were booked into the Santa Clara County Main Jail, police said.
The department is investigating whether the two men are connected to other burglaries in surrounding cities, police said.
Anyone with information about the burglaries is asked to call the department's 24-hour dispatch center at 650-329-2413. Anonymous tips can be emailed to paloalto@tipnow.org or sent by text message or voicemail to 650-383-8984. Tips can also be submitted anonymously through the police's free mobile app, downloadable at bit.ly/PAPD-AppStore or bit.ly/PAPD-GooglePlay.
Editor's note: The Weekly's policy is to withhold the names of those arrested for most crimes until the District Attorney has determined there is sufficient evidence to file charges in the case. See our guidelines here.
Comments
Mountain View
on Aug 15, 2019 at 3:16 pm
on Aug 15, 2019 at 3:16 pm
My brother was visiting last week and I warned him, adamantly, DO NOT LEAVE ANYTHING IN YOUR CAR!!!
Of course he did leave his backpack with an iPad in the car when he was eating at a restaurant on University Ave. Said it was
“hidden”. This was in the evening, still light out and valet parking.
When he came out the window was smashed and backpack gone.
Police said the thieves have a way of electronically picking up the WiFi/Bluetooth signal.
Window smashed and gone in under 10 seconds.
Registered user
Adobe-Meadow
on Aug 15, 2019 at 4:17 pm
Registered user
on Aug 15, 2019 at 4:17 pm
I hope that there is a follow-up on this case as to what happened to the two thief's. If they were let out on bail then that is something that we need to know. All kinds of low level thieves are being let lose and they go right out and do the same thing again. We all keep reading about people who are picked up and then a list of offenses are listed relative to the person being held.
Old Palo Alto
on Aug 15, 2019 at 9:36 pm
on Aug 15, 2019 at 9:36 pm
Can we at least get a description of the suspects? 19-year-old and 20-year-old is not very helpful. Did they also have two arms and two legs? Palo Alto suspect descriptions are getting less and less useful by the day.
Palo Verde
on Aug 16, 2019 at 3:02 am
on Aug 16, 2019 at 3:02 am
@Jason, make sure you are reading the expanded article rather than the abbreviated form. At the end of the 2nd paragraph Gennady provides this link to the PAPD Nixle news release which includes, uh, photos -- Web Link
"Police located a window punch near the front driver seat..." Sounds like a common auto safety hammer that I carry so I won't burn alive in an accident that jams the door. Often combined with a seatbelt cutter. Two for $10 on Amazon.
Mountain View
on Aug 16, 2019 at 8:00 am
on Aug 16, 2019 at 8:00 am
What's with people leaving backpacks in their car with all their computer stuff? I keep reading the same mantra over and over. I guess the, "it can't happen to me" wins out.
Charleston Gardens
on Aug 16, 2019 at 10:43 am
on Aug 16, 2019 at 10:43 am
act accordingly
Palo Verde
on Aug 16, 2019 at 12:01 pm
on Aug 16, 2019 at 12:01 pm
Somebody should make a political statement by welding bars onto their car windows.
Registered user
Adobe-Meadow
on Aug 16, 2019 at 12:05 pm
Registered user
on Aug 16, 2019 at 12:05 pm
evidently they have an electronic tool that can tell if you have a computer or other electronic devise in your car. Even if you hide it they can read your car electronically.
Charleston Gardens
on Aug 16, 2019 at 12:50 pm
on Aug 16, 2019 at 12:50 pm
[Post removed.]
Charleston Gardens
on Aug 16, 2019 at 3:14 pm
on Aug 16, 2019 at 3:14 pm
Wow, I posted the suspects' names and my comment was removed. Very interesting actions taken by a so-called news organization...
Downtown North
on Aug 17, 2019 at 4:43 pm
on Aug 17, 2019 at 4:43 pm
"Police arrested 19-year-old Kamron Malek Albert Johnese and 20-year-old Kevon Earl Rabb, both of San Francisco, for auto burglary (felony) and possession of burglary tools (misdemeanor). Johnese is connected to the auto burglary from July 30 and Rabb is connected to the one that occurred on July 25. Both were booked into the Santa Clara County Main Jail. Their booking photos are attached to this news release. "