Police Blotter: No Leads Yet on One-Night String of Car Break-Ins

Here's the round-up of Birmingham's police news this week:

Laptop, cash stolen from five cars broken into during one night

are investigating a string of car break-ins that occurred overnight March 16 in the neighborhood south of Brown Street and east of Southfield.

According to Birmingham Police Cmdr. Terry Kiernan, the department believes the incidents are connected. He also noted that March 16 was the first warm night in a while and that pleasant weather usually means more crime.

All the cars involved were parked in driveways, police reports state, and all incidents occurred between 9  p.m. March 16 and 7 a.m. the next day.

In an incident on the 900 block of Southfield Road, a man noticed a tennis bag that had been in his unlocked car was sitting in his neighbor’s driveway. According to police reports, two tennis rackets — worth approximately $450 — were missing from the bag.

On the 700 block of Chester Street, police say a laptop worth around $2,000 was stolen from a briefcase that had been sitting in a car overnight. The victim told police his car was locked but there were signs of entry on the passenger door, specifically scratch marks on the door’s edge.  

That same night, a man living on the 1500 block of Washington Boulevard told police his wallet was stolen from the center console of his unlocked car. The wallet had his personal identification and $150. Also on Washington Boulevard, a man found his unlocked car ransacked the morning of March 17, but the only thing missing was $3 in change from the center console.

And finally, a car parked in a driveway on the 700 block of Wallace was found with a large dent in its passenger door March 17, police reports say. The dent had been made with a tire jack taken from another car in the same driveway.  In total, reports say there were several marks on the window and a tire was punctured, though nothing else was taken from the vehicles. The tire jack was left on the scene.

Kiernan said police have no leads at this time but he encourages residents to lock their cars at night.

Man steals $18,000 engagement ring from local jeweler

Police are searching for a man who stole an $18,000 engagement ring from March 18. According to police reports, a 20-year-old man wearing a white shirt and blue jeans entered the jewelry store around 4:20 p.m. He told the store employee that his fiancée had been in a week ago and was looking at a specific engagement ring. Police say the employee pulled out the ring to show the man, but the suspect took the ring and ran out of the store. Reports state he was heading east on Maple Road, past Old Woodward.

Kiernan said police don’t have any suspects yet, though a similar incident occurred recently in West Bloomfield when a . Kiernan said police aren't sure the two incidents are connected, though the manner of the theft was the same in both cases.

If you have any tips, contact the Birmingham Police Department at 248-530-1889.