Full Notification

The following is a summary of criminal activity in El Cerrito. It does not include all crimes. It also does not include non-criminal events such as missing persons, traffic collisions, non-criminal deaths, non-criminal disputes, nor many other police activities that do not result in arrest.
The following is a summary of criminal activity in El Cerrito from January 10^th to January 15^th 2023.
 
 
January 10^th
Identity Theft – 2600 block of Tulare Ave.
On January 5^TH, the victim called an “800” number she found on the internet to help fix issues with her IPhone.  The suspect convinced the victim into opening a Zelle account and gained remote access to her cellphone.  On January 6^th, $989.90 was fraudulently transferred from the victims Zelle account to two unknown accounts. 

Petty Theft – 10900 San Pablo Ave.
At approximately 1:07pm, the victim came to the police department to report that they never received their new license plates from DMV, for their 2022 Mercedes. According to their records, DMV advised that the license plates were delivered. 

Shoplifting – Skechers 5805 Cutting Blvd.
At approximately 2:45pm, the suspect entered the store, stole a pair of shoes and fled on foot towards BART.  The suspect was described as a black male adult, 50 years old, bald, wearing all black clothing, brown boots and carrying a black backpack. 

Auto Burglary – Denny’s 11344 San Pablo Ave.
An unknown suspect shattered the rear passenger window to the victims white Lexus sedan.  The suspect stole the victim’s purse and lunchbox.  The incident occurred between 1:30pm to 3:20pm.

Commercial Burglary / Warrant arrest – 11511 San Pablo Ave (IHOP). 

At 2327 hours, officers were dispatched to a glass break alarm at the business.  Upon arrival, a window on the east side of the building had been shattered by a large rock.  The front counter had been ransacked and there was blood on the lobby floor.  Officers checked the rear of the business and observed a male subject walking in the area.  The male had blood on his clothing and facial lacerations.  The male subject was detained in handcuffs and medical was requested.  Officers conducted an interior search of the business which met with negative results.  Video surveillance was reviewed and showed the male subject breaking into the business. The male subject also had a no bail warrant out of San Francisco for burglary.  The subject was later transported to county jail.

January 11^th
Shoplifting – Lucky 1000 El Cerrito Plaza
At approximately 10:29am a suspect entered the store and stole $111.00 worth of laundry detergent. 

Recovered Stolen Vehicle – Jack in the Box 5920 Cutting Blvd. (parking lot)
At approximately 11:06am, the victim tracked her cell phone, which was in her stolen Honda CRV, in the area of San Pablo Ave/Cutting Blvd.  The victim reported her vehicle stolen today to Suisun City PD.  The vehicle was located parked unoccupied in a parking stall.  The vehicle was impounded and will be released back to the victim.

Warrant Arrest and False Identification – 6500 block of Manila Ave.
At approximately 11:36am, a person was contacted for loitering near a residence.  Officers learned that the person had a Parole Violation warrant. The person initially provided his twin brother’s first and middle name, however, his true identity was revealed.  The person was arrested,  booked at the El Cerrito Police Department, and transported to the Martinez Detention Facility.

January 12^th
Identity Theft – 1500 block of Richmond St.
At 9:38pm the victim received a Kohl’s credit card in the mail, with her name embossed on it.  The victim never applied for the card, learned no transactions were made and cancelled it. 

Warrant Arrest – 10900 San Pablo Ave.
At approximately 10:08am, a 31 year old male came to the police department to retrieve his belongs from a prior El Cerrito PD arrest.  Officer’s learned he had a warrant for his arrest.  The male was booked at ECPD and released on a citation.
 
Battery – Ross 2000 El Cerrito Plaza
At approximately 4:37pm officers were dispatched to the store for an unwanted female subject.  Officers contacted the female, who stated a loss prevention employee pushed her.  The female did not have any visible injuries and declined medical treatment.  The loss prevention employees denied any physical altercation, and stated the female refused to leave after attempting to bring numerous items of clothing into a dressing room without checking them in per store policy.

Shoplifting / Criminal Threats – 420 El Cerrito Plaza
At 1847 hours, Officers was dispatched to a robbery that just occurred.  The suspect stole items and threatened to assault the employee.  The suspect was last seen walking towards the creek.  Officers circulated the area and located a subject matching the description as Masonic Ave / Portland Ave in Albany walking on the BART path.  The suspect was positively identified during an in-field show-up and placed under citizen’s arrest.  All stolen property was recovered and returned to the business.  The suspect was later released on a citation.

January 13^th
Commercial Burglary – 6420 Fairmount Ave (Ifshin Violins):
At 12:14 PM, two unidentified suspects entered Ifshin while masked and hooded to conceal their identities.  The men walked straight to the vault, and each selected two violins, then walked out of the store with the violins.  Total value of the stolen violins was estimated at $16,000. 

Vehicle Burglary – 800 block of Norvell St:
At 2:28 PM, an unidentified suspect smashed the front window of the victim’s vehicle and stole her purse from the front seat. 

Petty Theft – 100 block of Carmel Ave:
An unidentified suspect stole packages worth approximately $74 from a residential porch at 3:00 PM. The victim saw the theft on camera, then searched the neighborhood and located his property down the block.  All items were recovered.

Grand Theft – 7800 block of Potrero Ave:
The catalytic converter was stolen from a 2015 Prius between 1/12/2023 – 4:00 PM and 1/13/2023 at 10:00 AM.

Battery- Walgreens, 11565 San Pablo Ave. 
At 6:18 PM, officer reports employees advised the uniform security guard of a chronic shoplifter. The guard contacted the suspect and asked him to leave the store. While walking towards the front of the store, the suspect challenged the guard to a fight and started punching him. The guard defended himself by deploying mace and his Taser. The suspect fled the business after leaving clothing and his wallet containing identifying information.
 
January 14^th
 
Vehicle Theft – 11740 San Pablo Ave:
A 2014 burgundy Kia Optima was stolen from the resident parking lot overnight between 6:00 PM and 6:30 AM.

Grand Theft (Firearm) – 6800 block of Eureka Ave:
The victim was unable to locate his black Taurus 9mm handgun after he moved to El Cerrito from San Antonio.  The victim believed one of the movers stole the gun but had no evidence to support his thesis.  Entered in Automated Firearms System.

January 15^th
Vehicle Tampering – 2300 block of Tamalpais Ave:
At 8:20 AM, the victim heard his car alarm sound.  Upon checking his video, he discovered footage of a person apparently attempting to break in to his vehicle.  No apparent entry or theft.  A screwdriver was left behind and collected as evidence.

Vehicle Theft – 400 block of Richmond St:
A white 2008 Honda CBR600 motorcycle was stolen from the driveway between 11:00 PM on 1/13/2023 and 8:00 AM on 1/14/2023.