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Red Light Cameras Return To Arlington

By ARLnow.com

After a five year hiatus, Arlington is bringing back red light cameras at four busy county intersections.

Arlington’s previous generation of red light cameras went dark in 2005 after the Virginia General Assembly banned them statewide. The cameras were reauthorized in 2007 but stayed dormant in Arlington.

Now, the county is installing a new generation of cameras with the vaguely Bono-inspired name of ‘PhotoRED.’

The cameras will monitor eastbound Lee Highway at North Lynn Street, westbound Lee Highway at Washington Boulevard, northbound North Glebe Road at Fairfax Drive, and southbound Ft. Myer Drive at westbound Lee Highway.

The PhotoRED cameras are expected to come online on Monday, June 14. They will issue warnings for the first 30 days, police said. After that, drivers who run red lights or violate Virginia’s right turn on red law will receive this notice of violation and a $50 civil fine (like a parking ticket, it will not go on the driver’s record).

The system will cost the police department $14,900 per month, although the county will keep a portion of the fines collected. (Updated at 3:55 p.m.)

The county says that red light photo enforcement can reduce crashes at monitored intersections by roughly 40 percent.

Diagram courtesy of Arlington County Police Department.

Crime Report: Rude Behavior Edition

By ARLnow.com

It’s generally considered good manners to hold the door open for strangers. We’re pretty sure, however, that Miss Manners would not approve of pummeling someone who fails to partake in such common courtesy.

ASSAULT AND BATTERY-ARREST 05/26/10, 1200 block of S. Eads Street. On May 26 at 9:30 pm, one woman assaulted another after the victim did not hold the door open. Atiba Ayala, 19, of Washington D.C., was charged with Assault and Battery. She was held on a $1,500 bond.

Elsewhere, some jerk(s) slashed the tires on at least 20 cars this week.

DESTRUCTION OF PROPERTY (SERIES) 05/29/10, Lyon Park Neighborhood. Between 11 pm on May 28, and 7 am on May 29, an unknown subject vandalized at least 12 cars in the neighborhood. There is no suspect description.

DESTRUCTION OF PROPERTY (SERIES) 05/31/10, 1800 block of N. Roosevelt Street. Between 11 pm on May 30, and 7 am on May 31, an unknown subject vandalized at least eight cars in the neighborhood. There is no suspect description.

The full Arlington County Crime Report after the jump, including more cell phone robberies.

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Beware the Courthouse Creeper

By ARLnow.com

He is apparently known to Metro employees as “the guy who stands at the bottom of the escalators every morning looking up girls’ skirts.” And Erica Walters, the local blogger behind Books Are My Boyfriend, says she had an up-close, personal and very disturbing encounter with this creepy dude at the Courthouse Metro station this week.

Erica writes that she was going up the escalator at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday when the man suddenly took a photo up her skirt with a cell phone camera, grabbed her and walked away.

To make matters worse, as tears were streaming down her face she asked a “nicely dressed older woman” for help. The woman’s reaction? To shake her head and keep on walking.

Erica goes on to say that she spotted the man on the Courthouse escalators again on Thursday. This time, she had the presence of mind to turn the lens on him. She snapped her own cell phone camera photo, then filed a report with Arlington police (who she says have been “immensely helpful”).

She also talked to a Metro employee, who said she recognized the man in the photo as someone who has a track record of sexual harassment in the station (see the quote above). It’s not clear whether anybody at Metro has ever tried to do anything about it.

Photo via Flickr. No association with the story is implied.

Crime Report: Cell Phone Thefts on the Rise?

By ARLnow.com

It may not be a sustained trend, but there were at least three instances of people having their cell phones forcibly taken from them this week. That follows an incident last week in which a woman who was talking on a cell phone was pushed to the ground and robbed of her phone.

ROBBERY 05/25/10, 1800 block of N. Moore Street. On May 25 at 9:45 pm, an unknown woman and man approached a man waiting at a bus stop. The male suspect asked the victim if he had a cell phone. When the victim pulled it out, the suspects stole it and fled on foot. Both suspect were African American and in their early 20’s. The male suspect was 5’6″ and wearing a black jacket, black jeans and a black head covering. The female was 5’5″ with a heavy build, and was wearing blue jean, a blue jacket and carried a purse.

ROBBERY 05/26/10, 4300 block of N. 4th Street. On May 26 at 12:30 am, a man was talking on his cell phone outside an apartment building when a group of men approached him. They surrounded him and stole money and his cell phone. The six suspects were African American males.

ROBBERY 05/26/10, 200 block of N. Piedmont Street. On May 26 at midnight, a man was carrying a case of water and was approached by a group of six unknown subjects in their early 20’s. Two men assaulted him and stole money and a cell phone from his pocket. The suspects then fled. The first suspect is described as an African American male, 5’6″ with a large stomach wearing only pants. The second suspect is a female with a dark complexion, 5’5″, with dark spiky hair, partially dyed green. The third suspect is described as a “short and fat” African American female wearing dark clothing. The fourth suspect was a “tall and skinny” African American female wearing a white t-shirt. The other suspect descriptions are unknown.

The rest of this week’s Arlington County crime report, after the jump.

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The Unusual Case of the Stolen Wig

By ARLnow.com

Police are looking for a a 6’2″ transsexual who ran from a South Arlington beauty store with a pilfered wig, hopped into a car and sped off onto Columbia Pike.

Usman Minayar, manager of the Crystal Beauty store on South Edgewood Street, said the suspect tried to stealthily put the $17 ten inch honey blond wig in a purse while her friend, a local stripper, distracted him.

When Minayar saw what was going on, the suspect made a mad dash for the door. He didn’t try to stop her.

“I was a bit scared… [s]he’s a big guy… [s]he might knock me down, you know.”

The suspect was wearing a black shirt, a bandana and “booty shorts” at the time of the theft, Minayar said.

He said he’s confused by the theft because both the transsexual woman and the stripper, a biological female, have bought items at the store before.

Men In Ski Masks Try Unsuccessfully To Break Into Apple Store

By ARLnow.com

A group of men in ski masks threw a cinder block into a window at the Apple Store in Clarendon overnight, but they didn’t break the glass.

The men reportedly fled after they were unable to break into the store. Police set up a perimeter and searched the area after the apparent burglary attempt, but they could not locate the suspects.

A large gash is visible where cinder block hit the window, we’re told.

Crime Report: Guy Punches Bus, Exposes Himself

By ARLnow.com

From this week’s Arlington County Police Department crime report:

DESTRUCTION OF PROPERTY/EXPOSURE-ARREST 05/13/10, 3800 block of Wilson Boulevard. On May 13 at 6 pm, a man attempted to flag over a transit bus. When the bus did not stop, the suspect punched a window on the bus, breaking it. The suspect then exposed himself to the driver. Brian Lavoie, Jr, 28, of Arlington, was charged with Destruction of Property, Indecent Exposure and Drunk in Public. He was held on a $3,500 bond.

If your only goal is to get a bus to stop, then punching out one of its windows and exposing yourself to the driver is actually probably a good strategy. We’re guessing the bus stopped at that point.

However, if your strategy is to get the bus to stop and not go to jail, then it’s probably a bad idea. Plus, last time we checked bus windows are pretty thick, which could be painful if you punch one with enough force to break it.

The rest of the report, including the arrest of some guys accused of doing creepy things, after the jump.

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Pool House Sex Assault Suspect May Have Struck Again

By ARLnow.com

Arlington Police believe a man who assaulted a woman in her apartment complex’s pool house may have struck again just before 11:00 Friday night.

Investigators say a 5’7″ Hispanic man grabbed a woman from behind as she was walking behind a restaurant on the 2000 block of Wilson Boulevard in Courthouse. The man restrained the woman as he touched her sexually. She fought back and eventually got away.

The attack was similar in nature to an assault that occurred in the pool house of a Rosslyn apartment complex on May 8, police said. The victim of that assault was able to fight off her attacker, who she also described as a 5’7″ Hispanic male.

The composite image seen here was generated after the May 8 assault.

Anyone with information about either incident is asked to call the Arlington Police Tip Line at 703-228-4242. Witnesses can also call Arlington County Crime Solvers at 866-411-TIPS (8477).

Man With Gun Walks Into Crystal City Hotel Lobby

By ARLnow.com

A man dressed in all black and armed with a silver handgun entered the lobby of the Crystal Gateway Marriott (1700 Jefferson Davis Highway) just after 2:00 last night. Hotel employees fled as the man jumped a front counter in an apparent robbery attempt.

After a short time the suspect left the building and headed south on Eads Street. No one was hurt.

When police arrived, however, they believed the man may have still been in the hotel. In a tense scene, officers surrounded the front of the building with shotguns and handguns drawn.

After security tape revealed that the man had exited the building earlier, officers split up to look for the him in the surrounding area. He was not found.

Police Use Taser on Man in Columbia Pike Parking Lot

By ARLnow.com

Police used a Taser on a man in the parking lot of the Arlington Coin Laundry store just before midnight last night. It’s the first known use of a Taser by Arlington officers since the April 30 incident at a Columbia Pike apartment building where a man died after being Tasered by police.

This latest incident happened at 4821 Columbia Pike, just down the road from April’s incident. Police had been called to the location for a report of intoxicated men trying to break into the laundromat. Shortly after police arrived an officer reported that a Taser had been used on one suspect.

Paramedics were sent to the scene immediately afterward to assess the man’s condition. They left after apparently not finding any life-threatening side effects from the electric jolt.

So far it’s not known what the man did to provoke police. It’s also not known whether he will face any charges.

Police Comb Ballston For Purse Thief

By ARLnow.com

Police combed part of Ballston this afternoon looking for a man who broke into a car and stole a woman’s purse.

Police were able to track the man after a witness reported the crime, but he ran from officers and was able to escape.

No other details were immediately available.

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