Rainier Valley, Columbia City seeing ‘significant’ increase in car prowls



SEATTLE – There is a new warning for a Seattle neighborhood where car prowls are on the rise.

“These prowls are happening 24/7,” Pat Murakami, president of the South Seattle Crime Prevention Council, said Friday.

Murakami said the Seattle Police Department warned that car prowls are up significantly in the Rainier Valley and Columbia City areas.

“There was this huge jump and they wanted to let residents know and be aware and prevent them by not leaving things in their vehicles,” she said.

The Police Department's own crime maps show a slew of smash and grabs just since the beginning of March.

Murakami credits the new top brass at SPD for getting information like this out to the public more quickly than the department used to.

She just hopes her neighbors heed the warnings.

“Now with our new chief and with SeaStat, it’s making a difference,” she said. “We’re actually getting calls from police and getting warnings in advance.”