Map Source: University City District (click to enlarge).

Crime dropped in the University City District (The Schuylkill River to 50th Street, Spring Garden Street to Woodland Avenue) last year in comparison to 2011, according to a report issued this week. Specifically, this concerns such crimes as unarmed robberies (down by 30%), aggravated assaults (down by 35%), and residential burglaries (down by 36%).

One area though is a cause for concern – the number of auto thefts dramatically increased in 2012 – by 43%, from 100 to approximately 150 incidents. The UCD is asking residents and visitors to “use common sense when parking or leaving your car for the night” and “make sure you lock up and remove any valuable objects from plain sight.”

Other serious crimes, like armed robberies and thefts from automobiles have slightly decreased (by 6% and 9% respectively). There are still about 100 robberies with a gun per year and almost 250 thefts from cars in the neighborhood (see photo below).

In January, 2013, 18 serious crimes were committed within the University City District boundaries (see the map) and three related arrests have been made, according to the report.

To sign up for UCD’s monthly Crime Update please email: mark@universitycity.org

A neighbor, Vinicio Guevara, snapped this photo last Sunday, at the corner of 44th and Spruce. One of the windows was smashed and a stereo was stolen from this car.

Police have charged a 19-year-old West Philadelphia woman in the abduction of a 5-year-old girl from Bryant Elementary School (6001 Cedar Avenue) with rape, kidnapping and related charges.

Police say Christina Regusters was the woman who donned Muslim clothing and a face veil, impersonated the girl’s mother and took her from the school on the morning of  Jan. 14. The girl was found by a passerby hiding on a playground in Upper Darby the following morning. Regusters and three others were picked up at a home yesterday on the 6200 block of Walton Street. The other three people were released, but police say they have not been ruled out as suspects.

Regusters worked at an after-school program that the girl attended, police said. Video surveillance and the young girl’s description of the street and home have been vital in the investigation.

– Mike Lyons

Last fall we reported that a resident helped prevent burglary when he saw an unknown man standing on his neighbor’s porch and called 911. A similar situation occurred earlier this week, according to police.

On Tuesday, Feb. 12, at about 11:15 a.m., officers from the 18th district responded to a “burglary in progress” call on the 4500 block of Sansom Street.  A witness told police that he had observed a man trying to force his way through the front window. The witness chased the man from the porch and police found him a block away on another front porch on the 4400 block of Sansom.

Police chased the man down Sansom and observed him discard a black handgun before apprehending him after a brief struggle on the 4400 block of Chestnut Street. Police recovered the loaded handgun, which had been reported stolen. The suspect was carrying a bag that contained an Amazon Kindle, two digital cameras, two iPods and a tablet computer. Police say he confessed to burglaries on the 4500 block of Pine Street, the 400 block of S. 45th Street, and the 4500 block of Sansom.

Photos by Vinicio Guevara.

An overnight car chase involving a silver colored vehicle fleeing from police northbound on 46th Street resulted in several smashed parked cars and two people injured inside another car at the intersection of 46th St. and Springfield Avenue. Our readers reported the car chase and sent photos around midnight. The chase started at 45th and Woodland, police said. The man injured in the crash was taken to the hospital and was undergoing surgery, NBC10 reports.

As police search for two suspects involved in the abduction of a 5-year-old girl from a West Philly elementary school earlier this month, the reward for information leading to their arrest and conviction has reached $80,000, according to the Special Victims Unit.

The girl was abducted from the Bryant Elementary school at 60th and Cedar on the morning of January 14 by a woman dressed in dark colored Muslim clothing and taken to a house in the area where she was joined by a man. The girl was held in the house overnight and found by a passerby early the next morning hiding under a slide in a playground at 69th St and Marshall Road in Upper Darby.

Police are also looking for a third “person of interest” described as a 14- to 17-year-old black female who may go by the
name of “China/Chyna”, thin build, light skinned, with long straight black hair. She was last seen wearing a hoody and tights.

Anyone with information about this case are asked to contact the Philadelphia Police Department by calling 215-686-TIPS (8477), the Special Victims Unit at 215-685-3251, or 911. You can also email to: tips@phillypolice.com.

– Mike Lyons

Police have arrested a 27-year-old man in connection with the rash of tire slashings that occurred in the early morning hours of January 7 on the 4700-5000 block of Hazel Avenue and the 5300 block of Chancellor Street.

Harry Gaines from the 6000 block of Angorra Terrace is charged with criminal conspiracy, criminal mischief and related offenses. He was arrested yesterday on the 5200 block of Market Street.

Tires were slashed on some 59 vehicles between 5:30 a.m. and 6:40 a.m. on January 7. Surveillance video showed a man puncturing tires while a woman walked on the sidewalk nearby. The woman turned herself into police on Jan. 11.

Police offered a $10,000 reward leading to an arrest and said they received several useful anonymous tips.