A Bremerton cop who reluctantly accepted a “believe in miracles” plaque on the beat hung it up in the squad room as an “attempt to foster a sense of encouragement to my fellow officers.” All that and more in this week’s edition of the Bremerton police blotter.

Here’s my report from the line-up board at department headquarters:

Welfare check, 1100 16th Street: Police were called the night of Oct. 22 to Olympic College to check up on an allegedly intoxicated male. They found a man who was “carrying bandages and had all sorts of monitor connections on his chest and stomach.” The man evidently had just gotten out of the hospital and was concerned about someone who he said had just crashed a car in a ditch. Police offered the man a ride back to the hospital. He agreed.

Theft and a warrant, 2900 Wheaton Way: Police went to the Midway Inn the night of Oct. 22, where a man said he had about $5,000 in cash stolen out of the Inn’s computer room. He said he had all the money because he was moving to Reno, where a job was waiting for him. Police reviewed the surveillance at the hotel but it proved inconclusive. However, the man had an arrest warrant for assault in Bremerton Municipal Court and so he was taken to the Kitsap County jail. Police have no other leads as to what might have happened to his cash.

Vehicle prowling, 100 Lilac Lane: A woman reported that a man was inside her car on Lilac Lane just before 5 a.m. Oct. 23. Police converged on the area to only find one man, who was “acting nervous,” was “panting heavily” and had soaked shoes, pants and coat. The man initially gave police a false name but came clean about it eventually. He had a felony warrant for probation violation. He said he was prowling to help feed his wife, and that the pair live below the Madrona Inn in a tent by the highway. She came up to take possession of his stuff and he was taken to the Kitsap County jail.

DUI, Wheaton Way at Sheridan Road: An officer stopped a woman driving for malfunctioning brake lights early Oct. 24. The officer smelled intoxicants coming from her person. She was found to have a .15 blood-alcohol level. An open container of beer was found inside her car. She was taken to the Kitsap County jail.

Welfare check: Police were called the night of Oct. 24 to check on elderly woman who’d been inside the Bremerton ferry terminal for about eight hours. The woman also had a bag full of Christmas presents with her. The woman seemed confused to police but said she lives in a home where there’s construction going on. She was friendly but seemed to have no one to pick her up. So the officer gave her a ride home. For the gesture, the woman insisted on giving the officer a gift. Despite the officer’s efforts to refuse, he relented and took the gift, which was a plaque that reads “Believe in Miracles.” “I hung it in the line-up room in an attempt to foster a sense of encouragement to my fellow officers,” the cop wrote in his report.

Burglary, 100 South Summit: Officers were called the night of Oct. 24 for a burglary at someone’s attached garage. A thief or thieves broke in through a sliding door and took a table saw and some tools. Police have no suspects.

Hit and run, 11th Street at North Callow Avenue: A man told police early Oct. 25 that he’d been driving on 11th Street headed east when a car came through the red light on Callow and struck his vehicle. The damage included a broken axle on the truck. A headlight of the car that hit the truck fell off at the scene. Police searched the area for the car but could not find it.

Criminal trespassing, 4300 Wheaton Way: Police ultimately found six people inside the Old Lowes building, near Wheaton Way at Riddell Road, late Oct. 25. Some of the suspects claimed they were bored and it was during a power outage, so they went with a friend who had a key to the building. Only after officers surrounded the building and then went inside did the six come out. They were all taken to the Kitsap County jail for trespassing.

Road rage, 3400 Kitsap Way: A road rage incident nearly turned violent the afternoon of Oct. 28 in the parking lot of Papa Murphy’s. Two cars were headed east on Kitsap Way, with one, driven by the suspect, swerving toward the alleged victim’s, who then flipped the suspect the bird. The alleged victim heard a “thud” on his car and then called 911. While the alleged victim waited in the parking lot of Papa Murphy’s, the suspect came to the lot, pulled a baseball bat and allegedly threatened the other driver. Then the suspect left. Witnesses confirmed the threats and the bat. Police drove to the suspect’s nearby home and arrested him. He was taken to the Kitsap County jail.

Vehicle prowling, 600 Fourth Street: A man reported that his truck was broken into Oct. 28 while parked in the SEEFlim Theater parking lot. The man, who worked from 5 a.m. to 4 p.m., came out to find what he thought was his locked truck unlocked and numerous items missing, including two cell phones. Police have no suspects.

DUI, 2900 Wheaton Way: Police stopped a driver on the road for speeding shortly before 2 a.m. Oct. 31. The driver had a strong smell of alcohol coming from her, officers said. She blew a .14 blood-alcohol level, almost twice the legal limit. She said she’d consumed three beers; officers were skeptical but she said they were “strong beers. 2/11s.” She was booked into the Kitsap County Jail.

Bremerton Police Chief Steve Strachan’s weekly update included a few incidents worth noting as well:

This Would Have Done George Costanza Proud:  We received information that a suspect in a serious felony was at an address in West Bremerton.  He had five (5!) misdemeanor warrants and a felony arrest warrant for Rape of a Child.  Officers surrounded the residence and knocked at the front door.  The man opened the back window and began his exit when he was confronted by Officer Brandon Greenhill.   The man then ran to the front door and almost knocked over a pregnant woman trying to get out.  Officer John Bogen deployed his Taser at the man while he was at the front door, and he made his first good decision of the day, giving up and being taken into custody.  He went to jail.

Dave’s Not Here Man…:  We have been looking for a man wanted on a Burglary warrant all week, and Officer Jordan Ejde went to an address seeking this ne’er-do-well.  We had information the man had been living at an empty house outside of our city.  While being assisted by Officer Jacob Switzer, Jordan observed a bike leaned up against a shed.  The officer knocked on the shed and heard a male’s voice inside.  The officer said he was “Greg” and “had his $20 bucks.”  The suspect opened the door and was taken into custody.   The man has 233 contacts and 29 separate booking photos. He is in jail thanks to some good police work, and another strong message sent by our department.

Also, this week Officer Chris Faidley located a car that had crashed into the steps of the Synagogue at 11^th St and Veneta Ave.  The driver had suffered a seizure while driving, and fortunately had only minor injuries.  The damage to the building was also minor, but the man’s vintage 1966 Mustang did not fare so well.

Strachan also has info about a new scam:

We sent out a message on our Twitter account this week about a scam being perpetrated nationwide, in which people receive calls from someone saying they are with the IRS, and demanding payment for back taxes owed.  We have reports of several people in our city receiving this call, and unfortunately one man sent $16,000 to the scammers.  It is infuriating to think that someone lost that much of their hard-earned money to these criminals.  Here is more information on the scam: http://www.irs.gov/uac/Newsroom/IRS-Warns-of-Pervasive-Telephone-Scam

And finally, the High 5 criminal list is out: