A reader alerted us to some car vandalism incidents that recently took place in the area around Malcolm X. Park. Chris T. writes that two nights ago his car along with at least two other cars between 50th and 51st were “marked with black spray paint, keyed, and/or had corrosive substances poured through the rubber of the side windows.”

Chris says that he has lived on that block for a year and this is the first time he personally encountered vandalism to this extent. It looks like the cars were chosen randomly – they were not parked in a row nor were they on the same side of the street.

“I know it’s no tire-slashing and thankfully mine was not broken into, but crimes of opportunity like these are really troubling,” Chris wrote. His neighbor’s car had a window smashed out and was presumably broken into a few days ago between the 50th and 51st block of Osage Ave.

The 19-year-old man who pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a woman at gunpoint last September near 48th and Springfield and about two dozen other crimes will be sentenced tomorrow.

Kareem Drayton negotiated a plea deal with prosecutors in April on charges stemming from the highly publicized sexual assault and robbery of a 32-year-old teacher. Police say Drayton held a gun to the woman’s head and assaulted her as her boyfriend stood nearby. Drayton also pleaded guilty to other robberies and burglaries in the city. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for 9 a.m. tomorrow in courtroom 802 at the Criminal Justice Center (1301 Filbert St.).

Drayton’s accomplice in the robbery of the woman and her boyfriend, 19-year-old Tyshanek Presley, also negotiated a plea arrangement and will be sentenced in August, according to court records.

The sexual assault and robbery took place at about 10 p.m. as the couple returned home from a restaurant. The crime shook many residents in the neighborhood and 100 people attended a monthly police meeting days after the crime to discuss what could be done to curtail crime in the area. The crime also spurred renewed interest in neighborhood watch groups, including the 48th Street Neighborhood Town Watch.

A reader, Christina, reports that goods from two packages were stolen from her front yard yesterday. She lives on 46th Street between Locust and Spruce. Packaging and invoices were left behind.

Similar issues were reported last fall and in the spring. Christina notified police about this incident and encourages others who may have missing packages to do the same. She said that the companies the packages were sent from were very helpful and are replacing the items. A police report can be helpful should the carrier want to investigate the stolen property.

Police charged two men in connection with an alleged marijuana growing operation on S. 48th Street yesterday.

James Lippert, 49, and David Eisenstadt, 50, were charged with possession with intent to manufacture or deliver, which is a felony, and other drug-related charges, after police raided 1123 S. 48th St. (near Chester Ave.) yesterday afternoon.

Lippert is being held on $1.5 million bail, according to court records. Eisenstadt’s bail is $1 million. Both are being held at the Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility.

Witnesses say they saw police removing large trash bags and planting pots from the home, which property records show is owned by Lippert.

Police are investigating robberies of two 7-Eleven stores and an attempted robbery of another 7/11 store in the area – at 42nd and Walnut Streets, 58th Street and Whitby Avenue, and 73rd Street and Elmwood Avenue. Police are still looking for the suspects.

The robbery spree started right after midnight at the 58th and Whitby store when a man walked in the store, pointed a long silver revolver at the clerks and demanded money. Both clerks were able to run into secured rooms at the store and the suspect fled without taking anything.

The store at 42nd and Walnut Streets was robbed about 15 minutes later, at approximately 12:15 a.m. by a person whose description matches the first attempted robbery. In this case the suspect also pointed the gun at the clerks, then went behind the counter, pulled out the entire register drawer and fled from the store with approximately $2,000.

The third robbery took place at about 1:30 a.m. at the 7-Eleven store located at 73rd Street and Elmwood Avenue. This time there were two suspects, one of whom was armed with a large silver handgun. The robbers removed cash from the registers (about $320), some scratch off tickets, the clerk’s phone, and also robbed one of the store customers (took his phone and car keys).

No injuries were reported.

The suspect with a gun is described as African American male, dark complexion, 6’2” to 6’4”, slight facial hair, 20 to 25yrs, thin to medium build. He was wearing a dark gray hooded sweat jacket, an orange brimmed baseball cap and dark blue jeans.

Police are investigating this unsettling incident reported by one of our readers.

“I was riding my bike home from work at 5:45 PM this past Wednesday, June 13th, when a car approached me from behind at a high rate of speed and someone leaned out of the passenger window and pushed me into the back of a parked car. I was pushed with enough force that I thought I had been hit by the car and a witness later told me what had happened. I broke my scapula and separated my shoulder bad enough to require surgery.

The car did not stop and no one attempted to rob me, so it appears this was done for fun. This happened on the 4600 block of Larchwood. Please get the word out there for cyclists to watch their backs.”

Police said that the vehicle involved in this incident is an older brown Buick LeSabre. The car fled west on Larchwood after the attack. Description of people in the car was not available.