A breakdown of top offenses in Issaquah Highlands from May to December 2022
With the new addition of a Block Watch program to our community, crime prevention is a hot topic in Issaquah Highlands.
According to data from the City of Issaquah, crimes related to noise complaints, non-injury collisions, vandalism, thefts and vehicle prowls are consistently recording the largest number of offenses and remain relatively steady over the last 90 days.
From September to December 2022, there were 68 instances of theft in Issaquah Highlands. This is compared to 66 offenses from May to August 2022. Additionally, non-injury collisions increased from 15 in the first period to 25 in the second.
The City of Issaquah recently brought on Crime Prevention Analyst Ryan Smith to track offenses and statistics across town. She says the Upper Highlands tend to see more thefts, vehicle prowls, noise complaints and minor collisions with no injuries. Meanwhile, a majority of thefts are centered around the shopping areas in the Lower Highlands.
“For the vehicle prowl cases, many of them tend to include either unlocked vehicles or those who left items on display in the vehicle where they can be seen, which makes them potentially preventable crimes,” she said.
According to these trends, Tuesday is the most popular day of the week for thefts, vehicle prowls and vandalism. Thefts also tend to increase on Fridays and Saturdays.
Noise complaints record the highest volume of offenses on Saturdays, Sundays, Mondays and Wednesdays. Thefts are most common in Issaquah Highlands between 12-8 p.m., but they spike again from 6-9 a.m. A majority of the noise complaints are recorded between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m., while offenses related to vandalism, non-injury collisions and vehicle prowls vary by the hour.
See the graph for a rundown of criminal offenses from Sept. 1 – Dec. 1, 2022, compared against numbers from the previous 90 days.
The Lighter Side of the Blotter
Explore some of the less than typical calls to police from your neighbors
1400 BLOCK 10TH WAY NE, Issaquah: On Nov. 25, around 10:10 a.m., a resident reported seeing “very nice sneakers” near a retention pond. Officers responded and searched the area but found no evidence of anyone entering the pond or still being in it. They were nice shoes, though.
900 BLOCK NE HIGH ST, Issaquah: On Dec. 10, around 12:11 p.m., a caller reported being trapped inside the trash chute room on the second floor of their building. Eastside Fire and Rescue was able to free the caller. Inquiring minds want to know if a ride down the trash chute led to the predicament.
1400 BLOCK HIGHLANDS DR NE, Issaquah: On Oct. 23, around 8:50 p.m., a local resident accidentally backed into another car in a parking lot. They reported concern for leaving a note in the rain and decided to wait 30 minutes for the owner of the vehicle to return to exchange information. When the owner did not return, the good Samaritan called our officers to report what had happened. The situation was resolved peacefully and the good Samaritan probably scored highly on the Good Neighbor quiz! (See page 8).
For the full Issaquah Police Department blotter, visit: issaquahwa.gov/3370/Data-and-Statistics
Block Watch on Facebook
Join the Block Watch group on Facebook to discuss trends and issues in Issaquah Highlands: facebook.com/groups/issaquahhighlandsblockwatch/.
