Robert Koch
Unidentified vandals went on a break-in spree in the Marcy Holmes neighborhood June 7, shattering windows and stealing property from nearly a dozen vehicles.
The break-ins occurred in the early morning in a relatively small area bounded by 5th Avenue S.E. and Interstate 35W, said Minneapolis police Lt. Steve Kincaid.
“There were eight or nine incidents reported,” said Kincaid. “Four or five of them were thefts. Some of them just had broken windows.”
A witness flagged down a University Police squad car at 6th and University avenues after 2 a.m.
Witness Michael Watry told officers two males were breaking into cars in a parking lot behind 600 University Ave. S.E., according to the police report. The suspects fled before police arrived.
The two male suspects took everything from spare change and sunglasses to compact disc players, police said.
“It basically covered anything that anybody might leave in a car,” Kincaid said.
One broken-into vehicle was a van belonging to Rapid Key Recovery Inc., an automotive locksmith service.
A night technician had taken the van home for the evening and discovered the damage, as well as a business card left behind by police, when he left on a 4 a.m. call.
Robin Olson, president of Rapid Key, said the suspects took a pickset, a gas card with $5,000 credit at Super America stations and a key card for the company’s office at 3989 Central Ave. N.E.
Fearing the perpetrators intended to burglarize the business and steal key-making equipment worth thousands of dollars, Olson cancelled the entry card by 5 a.m.
“We didn’t think it was vandalism until we saw the other cars,” Olson said.
Kincaid said it didn’t look like the suspects were sophisticated thieves. “Somebody was having a one-night spree,” he said. “It was just smash and grab.”
On average, the entire 2nd Precinct reports 10 to 12 vehicle break-ins during any one-week period, Kincaid added.

In other police news:
ù Two St. Paul women and an Alabama man were arrested June 7 at 3171 5th St. S.E. after allegedly engaging in prostitution.
The 43-year-old man reportedly struck one of the women in the face, according to the police report. All three were taken to the Hennepin County jail and booked.
ù A 33-year-old man arrived at the emergency room of Fairview-University Medical Center on June 6 and told hospital staff he had been stabbed.
The man told the nurse not to call police, according to the report. The man fled before police arrived.
Neither the medical center nor police would release details about the incident.

Robert Koch covers police and courts and welcomes comments at [email protected].