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 March 19^th to March 25^th, 2023.

March 19^th

Warrant/Possession of Narcotics-11344 San Pablo Ave. (Denny’s):
At 11:12 PM, an officer was dispatched to the business for an unwanted subject. The subject was contacted and detained.  During a records check officers discovered the subject had an active warrant out of Solano County. During a search incident to arrest the subject was found to be in possession of suspected methamphetamine. After booking, the subject was transported to the Martinez Detention Facility.
 
March 20^th

Grand Theft – 900 block of Avis Dr:
At 8:24 AM, an officer reports the catalytic converter was stolen from a Toyota Prius between 3/17/2023 at 9:00 PM and 3/18/2023 at 9:00 AM. 

Burglary (Locker) – 10636 San Pablo Ave (24 Hour Fitness):
At 9:35 AM, an officer reports an unidentified suspect broke in to a locker in the women’s locker room, removed a purse and stole car keys.  The purse was later located stuffed in another locker.  The car was rifled through but no known loss.  Occurred between 3:30-5:30 PM on 3/17.

Burglary (Residential) – 5300 block of Potrero Ave:
At 10:27 AM, two unidentified suspects entered an enclosed sun room at the rear of the residence, then shattered the sliding glass door that led in to the residence.  The occupants of the residence went to check on the noise made by the breaking glass and scared the intruders off. 

Burglary (Residential) – 900 block of Kearney St:
At 10:57 AM, an officer reports the victim’s claims that an unidentified suspect had been breaking in to their garage / storage unit for over a year now.  

Grand Theft – 10650 San Pablo Ave (CVS):
At 12:24 PM, two unidentified suspects left the store, each carrying a backpack full of unpaid cosmetics worth an estimated $1000. 
 
Warrant Arrest-Parking lot of 11450 San Pablo Ave (Safeway): 
At 7:43 PM, an officer checked the license plate of a vehicle and discovered one of the plates had been reported stolen. The officer conducted an enforcement stop on the vehicle and discovered the driver had an outstanding warrant for their arrest.  The suspect was booked at the El Cerrito PD and transported to the Martinez Detention Facility.

March 21^st
 
Theft by False Pretenses – 500 block Albemarle St.
At 11:39 AM an officer reports that last week an unknown suspect called the victims and identified themselves as an Apple employee.  The suspect told the victim that they were in trouble with the FBI for visiting illegal websites.  The victim was told to make wire transfers to four different accounts to exonerate them from being prosecuted.  
 
Shoplifting – 5805 Cutting Blvd. (Skechers)
At 12:45 PM, the suspect stole (3) pairs of shoes and a backpack. The suspect fled towards the Del Norte BART station. 

Petty Theft – 1700 block Elm St.
From March 20^th at 9:00 PM to March 21^st at 1:00 PM, the victim’s license plates were stolen from their vehicle. 

Battery – 10900 block of San Pablo Ave. 
At 9:58 PM, the victim reported getting into a Lyft at 12:45 PM on 3/21/23 and got sprayed with Lysol.
 
Drunk Driving – 400 block of Kearney St. 
At 11:46 PM, the owner arrived home to find a vehicle parked in their carport of the apartment complex.  When asked to move, the driver drove away in the vehicle and crashed into a parked vehicle.  The driver was highly intoxicated and arrested for drunk driving.  The driver gave a blood sample and was released on a citation to a sober friend. 
 
Stolen Vehicle / Possession of Stolen Vehicle – 10650 San Pablo Ave (CVS parking lot). 
At 4:00 AM, officers located a parked stolen vehicle.  The driver was asleep in the driver’s seat.  The driver was arrested and transported to county jail. 
 
March 22^nd
 
Assault with Deadly Weapon / Peeping / Drug Paraphernalia – San Pablo Ave / Moeser Ln. 
At 9:01 PM, officers observed two subjects fighting on the sidewalk.  One of the subjects walked away after from the scene and was detained down the street.  It was later determined the suspect was peeping through the window of a motel room and was chased off.  When the suspect was confronted on the sidewalk, the suspect hit the victim in the face with a glass candle.  Both, the suspect and victim were transported to the hospital.  After being medically cleared, the suspect was transported to county jail.
 
Grand Theft – 5500 block of MacDonald Ave. 
At 5:18 AM, officers responded to a catalytic converter theft in progress.  The victim yelled at the suspects who then fled the scene in a vehicle.  Total loss, $1,500.
 
March 23^rd
 
Stolen Vehicle – 800 block of Arlington Blvd.
The victim’s vehicle was stolen on March 23^rd from 12:30 AM to 8:00 AM. 

Battery – 3090 El Cerrito Plaza (Starbucks)
At 2:04 PM the suspect was placed under citizen’s arrest after they threw food at an employee, after being told to leave for bothering customers. The suspect was booked at the El Cerrito Police Department and released on a citation. 

Burglary / Unauthorized Use of Access Cards – 10636 San Pablo Ave (24-hour Fitness).
Between the hours of 11:05 PM – 11:30 PM, an unknown suspect broken into a locker and stole a bag containing personal items.  After fleeing the scene, at 11:37 PM, the victim’s debit card was used at Nations in El Cerrito.

March 24^th
 
Vandalism – 10740 San Pablo Ave (Donut Time):
At 7:08 AM, an officer reports the front door glass at Donut Time was shattered sometime overnight.  Mountain Mike’s Pizza next door also sustained similar damage.  No apparent entry.

Petty Theft – 11060 San Pablo Ave (Harbor Freight Tools):
At 8:34 AM, an officer responded to a lobby detail regarding the theft of a backpack from atop a shopping cart while the victim was shopping at Harbor Freight.  Occurred at 6:30 PM on 3/16/2023. 
 
March 25^th
 
Grand Theft – 1600 block of Everett St:
At 9:20 AM, an officer reports the theft of a Trek mountain bike worth $2000, between 8:40-9:00 AM.

Vehicle Theft – 300 block of Pomona Ave:
At 11:13 AM, an officer reports the theft of a white 2007 Jaguar during the previous ten minutes.

Recovered Stolen Vehicle- 700 Block of Balra Dr:
At 4:50 AM, an officer was dispatched to an abandoned auto detail. During the investigation, the officer discovered the vehicle was reported stolen to the San Francisco PD on 9/22/2022. The vehicle was recovered and the victim was advised.