Category: Crime

An initial investigation by the Highland Park Department of Public Safety hasn’t determined a motive for a drive-by shooting involving three houses in the 3300 block of Beverly Drive on the evening of Jan. 9.

Between 9:24 and 9:49 p.m., a vandal fired bullets through windows of three houses. At one house, two separate bullets caused additional damage to a set of curtains and a lamp shade before becoming lodged in a law book and a Gulbransen piano. One witness saw a car speeding eastbound on Beverly, toward North Central Expressway, shortly after hearing gunshots.

HPDPS Sgt. Lance Koppa said the shooting appears to be “a random, reckless act,” although investigators are still trying to gather evidence. Nobody was injured, and there are no suspects.

“There’s nothing to tie the offense to one specific property or one person,” Koppa said. “Somebody thought it would be fun to drive down the street and fire a weapon.”

It started at 5:07 p.m. on Saturday, when a resident of the 3400 block of Purdue Street reported a suspicious maroon 2004 Lincoln Town Car in the alley. University Park police found the car, which was reported stolen out of Irving, but it sped away.

By the time officers caught up, the car had crashed into a tree and stop sign in the 3200 block of Southwestern Boulevard. The accident caused $5,000 in damage to the car, and $1,000 to the sign and tree. Meanwhile, the two suspects fled on foot, but were apprehended in a yard in the 3200 block of Greenbrier Drive thanks to tips from witnesses.

Jaimie Lucien Harrell, 21, of Irving was arrested on charges of driving a stolen vehicle and reckless driving. Harrell’s mother, Jennifer Renee Kesterson, 38, of Dallas was the passenger and was arrested on a charge of possession of drug paraphernalia.

SKULDUGGERY OF THE WEEK: Heavy Lifting

At 1:15 p.m. on Nov. 13, a burglar broke into a red 2009 Chrysler 300 at Miracle Mileand stole a Tom Ford purse, a Nancy Gonzalez purse, and two Prada purses with a combined value of $10,950. While trying to flee, the perpetrator ran into a parked black 2009 Cadillac Escalade, causing $1,000 in damage.

HIGHLAND PARK

Torey Harris

There’s an update on the imprisoned Dallas man who was charged earlier this fall with a sexual assault in University Park, near the SMU campus.

The Dallas Morning News reports that Torey Jamal Harris, 23, has now been charged in another aggravated sexual assault case stemming from an incident in Grand Prairie in April. He also faces charges from September assaults near SMU and Navarro College in Corsicana.

Apparently DNA evidence connected him with the third crime. He remains in the Navarro County Jail.

SKULDUGGERY OF THE WEEK: Smashing Pumpkins

At 2 a.m., masked vandals used a machete to cause $40 in damage to pumpkins on the porch of a house in the 3500 block of St. Johns Drive. The homeowner saw two miscreants commit the act on his security camera, including one wearing a Highland Park High School letter jacket. A neighbor also had some damaged pumpkins.

HIGHLAND PARK

At 8:55 p.m., officers began chasing a burglary suspect after spotting a suspicious blue 1990 Dodge Dakota in the 4400 block of Bordeaux Avenue. The driver tried to evade police along Lomo Alto, Armstrong, Arcady, Roland, Mockingbird, Douglas, Fairfield, Preston, Beverly, and Eastern. After numerous traffic violations, the pickup headed southbound on the Dallas North Tollway, and the chase reached 110 mph before police lost sight of the suspect and ended the pursuit.

7 FRIDAY
At 3:30 a.m., Aaron Rashaad Williams, 34, of Arlington was arrested in the 5100 block of Hillcrest Avenue on a charge of driving while intoxicated.

At 2:20 p.m., a contractor in the 3800 block of Shenandoah Avenue reported the theft of a $400 backpack-style Echo leaf blower from the bed of a 2012 Ford F-350 pickup.

At 1 p.m., a shopper looking at neckties stole an iPhone 6 from a table inside Q Custom Clothier at Highland Park Village while an employee was distracted.

SKULDUGGERY OF THE WEEK: Locker Larceny

Between 2 and 3 p.m., a thief broke into a locker at Park Cities YMCA and stole a $2,500 Apple laptop computer, a $300 Samsung cell phone, a $100 ring, a $40 wallet, a $20 pocketknife, a $10 flashlight, and the keys to a white 2011 Ford F-150 pickup, valued at $35,000, which also was stolen.

HIGHLAND PARK

27 MONDAY    

At 2:35 a.m., Victor Alfonso Alarcon, 29, of Dallas was arrested in the 3400 block of Knox Street on a public intoxication charge.

Between 5 p.m. on Oct. 24 and 7 a.m. on Oct. 27, a thief stole 30 sheets of particle board from outside a residential construction site in the 4300 block of Arcady Avenue.

At 10:47 a.m., Michael Sterling Curry, 25, of Fort Worth was arrested in the 4700 block of Drexel Drive on two charges of assaulting a family member.

At 11:26 a.m., a resident of the 4300 block of Edmondson Avenue reported the overnight theft of a $1,300 Louis Vuitton handbag and an $800 Louis Vuitton wallet containing $200 in cash from an unlocked white 2014 Audi Q5 inside an open detached garage. By the time the victim discovered the larceny, the perpetrator already had used two of the enclosed credit cards.

SKULDUGGERY OF THE WEEK: Easy Pickins

Between 6 a.m. on Oct. 21 and 7:45 a.m. on Oct. 22, a thief stole a $500 Prada wallet from an unlocked gray 2007 Lincoln Navigator in the 4000 block of Miramar Avenue. The driver left the windows rolled down, but the perpetrator didn’t take a $3,500 Chanel purse, a $1,200 diamond bracelet, or the car keys on the center console.

HIGHLAND PARK

20 MONDAY
At 5:44 p.m., Matthew Joshua Smith, 26, of Dallas was arrested in the 4100 block of Lomo Alto Drive on a criminal trespass charge.

21 TUESDAY
At 4:07 p.m., David Andrew Swain, 24, of Plano was arrested in the 3200 block of Mockingbird Lane on a charge of driving while intoxicated.

Between 7 p.m. on Oct. 19 and 8:30 p.m. on Oct. 21, a thief stole the license plates from a black 2014 Mercedes E350 in the 4200 block of Lakeside Drive.

22 WEDNESDAY
At 1:58 a.m., Bryce David Smith, 31, of Dallas was arrested in the3700 block of Armstrong Avenue on a charge of driving while intoxicated.