So what ever happened to those 23 rabbits stolen from the Portland Meat Collective last week? I know, I know, I've kept you waiting.

Turns out there were only 18 — which doesn't make it any less important and insulting — lifted from Levi Cole's property Saturday evening. Of the 18, the Portland Police recovered 17 on Friday, after the long-eared posse was dropped off at a rabbit rescue shelter early in the week. However, one rabbit in particular, dubbed "Roger", remains in hostage by the unknown perpetrator.

However, the thief's attorney has made it clear that her client intends on buying Roger from the Portland Meat Collective. A pretty ridiculous request in my opinion. "Hi I'm going to steal your property and then request to buy it from you." Backwards? Yes.

According the PPB, no aressts have been made — yet.

Stay tuned for the impending fate of Roger Rabbit.

A man presumed killed by serial killer/amateur clown John Wayne Gacy has turned up, very much alive, 35 years later in Beaverton.

Take it away, Associated Press!

“My family thought I was dead. That hurt when I heard that,” the 59-year-old carpenter told The Associated Press on Wednesday. “There’s a difference between being murdered and running away, and I basically just ran away.”

Szal was 24 when he parked his car at Chicago's O'Hare airport in 1977, threw his keys down a sewer grate and got on a plane to Colorado Springs. He abandoned his relatives after the turmoil of a divorce and a bitter family feud.

He intended to never look back, Szal said. But it wasn’t that easy. Holidays and birthdays were tough, and his wife pleaded with him to reconnect, he said, but he was too stubborn to make the phone call.

Who says nothing exciting ever happens in Beaverton?

Ugh. In a stark reminder that one in five American women experience sexual assault, Portland Police are investigating the sexual assault on a Portland State University student.

From their announcement:

On Tuesday December 20, 2011, at 3:20 p.m., Portland Police officers assigned to Central Precinct responded to the report of a female screaming in the lower area of the Portland State University Academic and Student Recreation Center. As officers were enroute, Portland State University Public Safety advised that they were enroute to the call also.

Officers learned that an unidentified male suspect followed the 27-year-old female victim into the restroom, exposed himself and sexually assaulted the woman by touching her in a sexual manner. The suspect then fled the area on foot. The victim is a student at Portland State.

The suspect is described as an unknown race male, lighter skinned, described as in his 30s, approximately 5'08" to 5'09" tall, medium build.

Good on the victim for reporting the crime. Hopefully they can catch the guy. Police have gathered surveillance video of the suspect—it's a little hard to really see what he looks like from the footage, but keep an eye out.

More bunny capers! As Alex Z reported yesterday, a Portland woman is searching for her pet rabbits, after coming home to find a passive-aggressive note from alleged animal rights activists who felt her bunnies should not be living in a hutch outside.

The bunny-nappers wrote that they had stolen the bunnies in order to provide them a better home: "They will be given a roomy home indoors during this cold, wet weather."

BUT. Bunny owner Fiona Petra emailed today with an update:

Truly (the brown bunny) was found dazed, exhausted, and traumatized on a street corner in Milwaukie. I am furious, and hoping his brother will be returned soon. A woman found him and then saw the KOIN feature and contacted me. I guess that was their idea of a better home?
Thanks for the help finding my friends,
Fiona

Old Money, the white rabbit, is still missing. I repeat. Old Money is still missing.

Last weekend, some mysterious animal rights gang stole Fiona Petra 's rabbits from their cozy outdoor hutches. WHAT.

All they left behind was a short rather condescending note:

"I'm sure you care about your bunnies, but for whatever reason are unable to provide proper housing at this time. They will be given a roomy home indoors during this cold, wet weather. I'm sorry for the shock you may receive at finding your rabbits gone. Please try not to worry about them. I know you want the best for them — they will be well loved and taken care of. — The HALO League (Helping Animals Living Outside)"

Now, for some background. Petra says that the pair of rabbits (Old Money and Truly) lived in separate hand crafted hutches outdoors, equipped with multiple insulated rooms and nooks and a study lock to keep raccoons away. She decided to keep them outside after last winter, when they lived indoors and developed respiratory problems. Also, after extensive research, she learned rabbits are well suited for the outdoors, especially cold weather.

• Fiona Petra

Insulted and upset after the weekend's rabbit-snatching, Petra called around to other local animal rights groups to see if they knew anything about HALO. None of them had heard of the group. Additionally, they agreed that this tactic was a bit ridiculous.

"It's about as revolutionary as tagging a bathroom stall," says Petra. "It really gives animal activists a bad name."

CUTE BUNNIES & MORE AFTER CUT!

Continue reading »

• Faith Cathcart/The Oregonian

The message stressed that the leading reason for this act was to be in solidarity with, "...everyone on the receiving end of the daily violence of the Portland Police." The email was signed, "Some angry proles," which I'm guessing stems from proletarians. Although there is no evidence linking these folks to Occupy Portlanders, it seems to be a clear response to the police/occupy clash of the previous day. Police are currently working to unfurl the scenario.

Okay, I get it. You're robbing me. You're looking for something, anything of value. But did you have to make such a fucking mess?

Honestly, the contents of my glove compartment were so evenly distributed around the cabin, it seemed almost by design... like you were topping a pizza. I mean, it must have taken more effort scattering my belongings than searching through them. And all you got for your effort was two dollars in quarters and a ballpoint pen. (You took my pen? Really? What for? To write yourself a reminder note? "Check back: this guy keeps quarters!") Meanwhile, you missed the gorilla suit in the trunk, which is actually worth something.

Also, next time, how about fully closing the door so that the cabin light doesn't drain my battery? Just because you're a thief doesn't mean you have to be an inconsiderate asshole.

The Portland Police Bureau is reporting that yesterday afternoon a man stole the idea for my Halloween costume. Apparently a deranged person was spotted walking around waving a hacksaw and trying to cut random things with it. (Thought of it first.) Police responded to the 911 call from the Silver Dollar Pizza on 225 NW Broadway who claimed the man was trying to hacksaw their front door—but something happened along the way...

As officers were enroute, dispatch broadcast that the man was going up to cars in the street, nearly getting hit, then began sawing at a car with the hacksaw. Officers contacted the victim and witnesses at Silver Dollar and learned that the suspect attempted to cut one of the employees.

Officers located the man at Southwest 6th Avenue and Oak Street and challenged him to drop the hacksaw. The man refused and was Tased. He then dropped the saw and surrendered to police.

Alright Taser, you win this round! But next time you face hacksaw, you might not be so lucky!!

52-year-old Richard Tomlinson was arrested and charged with Attempted Assault in the Second Degree, Menacing, Disorderly Conduct in the Second Degree, and Harassment. Tomlinson was booked into the Multnomah County Jail.

• via WikiCommons
• HACKSAW!!

I've been following the coverage of the tragic disappearance and murder of Portland area 19-year-old Cody Myers, but today's news adds several new, disturbing details to the case.

White supremacist and suspected murderer David Pedersen summoned a reporter to his Northern California jail cell and told her that he had killed his father, stepmother, and also "a negro" in Eureka, California. Court documents obtained by FOX 12 say that Pedersen and his girlfriend told detectives that they killed Myers because his name sounded Jewish. They also said they were traveling to Sacramento to "kill more Jews."

All of this is strange and terrible.

Prosecutors in the case have not said whether they'll pursue the case as a hate crime.

• kittiefae

The Portland Police Bureau is on the hunt for the "Pug Bandit" — not a dog thief, but a man who robbed two Southeast Portland banks. On both occasions — one on Sept. 16, the other on 22— the man said he had a bomb on him. This proved to be an empty threat.

Why labeled the Pug Bandit, you ask? Just ask PPB spokesperson Pete Simpson:

"The suspect resembles a Pug."

Agree? Have a gander at the suspect:

• Crime Stoppers of Oregon

I mean, maybe. It's a stretch. But clearly apparent enough for PPB to knight him with such a eye-catching title. I feel like they're ignoring a more serious issue: What the hell is coming out of his ear?

It's a classic drugs on the table meth bust! But instead of a carefully coordinated SWAT team swooping into the home of a drug lord, Portland police report that they just stopped this dude walking down SE Stark near 158th Avenue, asked to search his bag, and found six pounds of meth worth $268,000.

• Alex Z: "It looks like sushi!"

The guy looks really sad about it.

Just another danger of being a pedestrian in Portland. The police could stop you and take your meth collection AT ANY TIME.

UPDATE 5:40PM—Oh Gods! On the heels of this, the Portland Police made the biggest drug bust in Portland history today with the type of coordinated warrants and house-sweeps kind of action I was talking about. From three homes, they seized 28 pound of heroin, 2 pounds of cocaine, $156,000 cash, 6 handguns, one rifle and (inexplicably noted in the press release) one horse trailer and six saddles.

Which raises the alarming question: Are people dealing drugs by horse these days? Heroin Pony Express! There must be a market for that. Anyway. This is no time for jokes. Lots of hard drugs are off the streets of Portland! Here's a literal drugs on the table photo of the loot.

Which raises another question: Whose job is it to fan the money across the table? Nice bills-arranging work. I like a cop with a flair for aesthetics.

Today in Crimesville, the Portland Police Bureau tells the tale of a carjacking that occurred last night around 7:30 pm at Albertson's grocery store on NE Prescott and Cully. The deets:

Officers arrived and spoke with the victim, a 45-year-old male, who told police that he'd agreed to meet the suspect in the Albertson's parking lot to look at an iPhone the suspect was selling on Craigslist. When the victim unlocked his car door, the suspect pushed his way into the car and pointed a handgun at the victim. The suspect demanded money from the victim, but the victim moved over to the passenger side of the car before opening the passenger door and fleeing the car. The suspect drove away in the victim's car and was last seen driving northbound on Northeast Cully Boulevard.

Portland police and Mayor Sam Adams called a press conference this afternoon in North Portland to release more information about a tragic shooting that occurred last night and ask the public's help in preventing retaliatory violence.

A group of teenagers were hanging out on the front porch and yard of an abandoned house near the corner of North Albina and Jessup at 11:20 last night after attending a Jefferson High School football game. Suddenly, someone walking by opened fire on the group, shooting six of the teens ages 13 to 16, and running off. As of this afternoon, luckily, none of the victims are in life threatening condition.

Police described the incident as a "gang style" shooting and Assistant Police Chief Eric Hendricks says this is one of the worst incidents of gang violence this year in Portland. The shooting is not related to the football game or Jefferson High School, says Hendricks, except that some of the victims are students there.

Mayor Adams, dressed in shorts and loafers appropriate for Labor Day weekend (and his birthday, which is today), said the most important thing now is preventing future violence.

"The best way to stop inevitable tit-for-tat retaliation is to solve this crime," said Adams, noting that his recent changes to the city's gun laws were an effort to prevent shootings like this. The new rules set a 7 PM curfew for youths convicted of gun crimes.

The city has 10 paid outreach workers who do foot patrols of gang violence hot spots in Portland, including the area around Penninsula Park where the shooting occurred. The workers will be walking around the North Portland neighborhood this weekend, talking with neighbors and keeping their eyes out for potential violence. A volunteer group also regularly meets at Holladay Park on Friday and Saturday nights at 4:30 and 8:30 for a similar foot patrol.

"If there's any one thing that's going to slow down gang violence, it's working with the community," says Hendricks. "We'll be in contact with folks from the community, there's been a lot of folks from Northeast Portland walking the parks and streets."

So far in 2011, the city has seen 65 serious gang-related assaults, about on pace with the 94 incidents the city experienced last year. While that's a steep decline from the worst years of gang violence in Portland in the 1990s, gang issues persist in the city. The Portland police's official record of gang members is over 800 names long.

Police and the mayor are urging anyone who knows anything about this terrible shooting to talk with the detectives on the case. You can call 503-823-HELP or the detectives' cell phones at 503-793-2790.