Police say five teenagers, believed to be about 15 years old, were arrested Wednesday afternoon for breaking into a vacant property on the 4900 block of Pine Street. Local residents reported seeing some of the teens “running across roofs” on the block at about 3 p.m. A large police presence was observed at the scene. The teens were charged for defiant trespass, according to police.

A 29-year-old woman was robbed while walking on the 4900 block of Osage Avenue on Tuesday evening. The incident happened at around 7:15 p.m., according to police. The woman told police that three young men, approximately 17-18 years old, approached her from behind and asked her what time it was. When she pulled her cell phone out of her pocket to check the time, one of the men grabbed her from behind and threw her to the ground, according to a police report. Then, the men demanded the pass code for the woman’s phone before one of them grabbed it from her hand.

The woman told police that while she was on the ground struggling with the attackers something resembling a black handgun fell next to her head. She believes the gun was fake because of the hollow sound it made when it hit the ground. The weapon was picked up and all three men fled east on Osage toward 48th. Police say the weapon was never pointed at the victim during the attack.

SEPTA El Station at 60th and Market (Google Street View image).

It was a violent end to 2015 in West Philadelphia, with reports of multiple shootings, many of which were fatal, in the past few weeks. Unfortunately, more shootings have already been reported in the new year. A 35-year-old man was shot multiple times and critically wounded on early Sunday afternoon outside of the SEPTA El station at 60th and Market, bringing the total number of people shot in the same area since Christmas to three, according to police.

Officer Joe Murray of the Southwest Detectives Division, known to many local residents as “the tweeting cop,” says it’s a major problem. He took to social media last night to raise awareness and to call for more police presence in the area, which is a busy El stop, a business area, and “the biggest drug block in SW division.”

@poseidonguy1 everyday. Put one there every single day. That’s how it was when I was a cop out there and there wasn’t an issue.

— Joseph Murray (@PPDJoeMurray) January 3, 2016

According to Murray, whose tweeting efforts were featured today on Philadelphia Magazine’s website, violence in the area can be reduced only through a joint cooperation among police, residents and business owners.

@phillymag @joelmmathis Challenging everyone to step up. Us, business owners, residents, media. You name it. We all want violence reduced.

— Joseph Murray (@PPDJoeMurray) January 4, 2016

If you want more information or want to make your voice heard, the next community meeting with 18th District police officers (PSA 1) will take place on Thursday, Jan. 7, at Christian Compassion Hall at 6130 Cedar Ave. The meeting begins at 6 p.m. Please bring your questions and concerns. If you have questions, please email or call 18th District: police.co_18@phila.gov, 215-686-3180.

UPDATE (1/13/2016): There will be an emergency meeting at the Bryant School at 60th and Cedar on Thursday, Jan. 14, 6 p.m. to discuss the recent spike in violent crimes in the area.

To accommodate New Year’s Eve travel, SEPTA will operate enhanced late-evening schedules on the Market-Frankford and Broad Street lines and Regional Rail (a special customer guide is available online). A number of bus detours will also be in effect on New Year’s Day to accommodate the Mummers Parade.

Thursday, Dec. 31:

• Extra trains will operate on the Broad Street and Market Frankford Lines starting at 7:05 p.m. for travel to the fireworks at Penn’s Landing.
• Broad Street and Market Frankford Line trains will operate overnight service Dec. 31 into Jan 1.
• The Market Street/Convention Center entrance to Jefferson Station will remain open until 2 a.m. to accommodate customers returning from New Year’s Eve fireworks.  Continue Reading

The holidays turned out to be not so happy for some West Philly residents and guests. We received two reports of robberies, including an armed robbery, in the area over the past six days. We’ll start with the more recent one.

A 25-year-old man was robbed and pistol-whipped on Sunday, Dec. 27 on the 4500 block of Spruce Street. The victim told police that he was walking home shortly after 9 p.m. when he was approached from behind by two males, one of whom placed him in a choke hold and forced him to the ground, while the other male hit him in the head with a handgun.

The male with a handgun then took an iPhone from the victim’s pocket and both males ran toward 46th Street, got on bicycles and fled westbound, according to police. The victim’s phone was tracked to the area of May Street and Haverford Avenue before it was powered off. The firearm’s magazine, which fell during the robbery, was turned over to police by the victim. It was determined that the magazine belongs to a BB gun. The suspects are described as black males, 25-30 years old, medium build, about 5’9″-6’0″ tall. One suspect was wearing a grey hoody and light colored pants. The second suspect was wearing a black hoody and dark colored pants and was armed with a black BB gun. Continue Reading

Good news for Philadelphia residents: this year, you don’t have to wait two weeks to dispose of your trash and recyclables if your collection falls on Christmas Day (Friday, Dec. 25). Set out your materials to be picked up on the following day – Saturday, Dec. 26. Fri, Jan. 1 collections will be picked up on Saturday, Jan. 2. UPDATE: Stay tuned for information on how to recycle your Christmas tree and waste from celebrations and presents.

Also, SEPTA has released its Holiday schedule. There will be some changes starting Thursday, Dec. 24 and through Friday, Jan. 1:

Thursday, Dec. 24 – Christmas Eve

• City Buses and Trolleys will operate on a modified weekday schedule. Amended timetables are available online at: http://www.septa.org/schedules/modified/modified-holiday-schedules.html.
• Suburban Buses, Trolley Routes 101/102 (Media Sharon Hill Lines), and the Norristown High Speed Line will operate on normal weekday schedules.
• On Regional Rail, a Midday Schedule providing earlier service from Center City will operate on selected trains. For details, go to: http://www.septa.org/schedules/rail/special/christmas-eve.html.
• The Market-Frankford and Broad Street Lines will operate with overnight train service Dec. 24 into Dec. 25.

Friday, Dec. 25 – Christmas Day: All SEPTA services will operate on a Sunday/Holiday schedule.  Continue Reading