A woman was robbed Saturday (Oct. 1) while jogging on Palm Drive near El Camino Real, the Stanford University Department of Public Safety said.
The robbery occurred at noon. The man bumped the victim and forcibly stole her keys and cell phone, according to campus police.
The victim notified police about the attack. She described the robber as a bi-racial male (possibly Hispanic-African American with lighter skin); between 40-49 years of age; 6’02” tall; 220 pounds with a strong build. The hair on his head was short, straight, dark (black or brown) with some grey highlights. He had stubble on his chin and had noticeable body hair on his arms, legs and knuckles, according to campus police.
He wore a black, fitted T-shirt, red basketball shorts with a black stripe down the side, black athletic shoes, a blue baseball cap with writing on it, and ear-bud style head phones. He has a tattoo of a cross on his right forearm.
He also wore a stud earring in his right ear and had a mark or scar across his right cheek, noticeable body odor and dirt under his fingernails, police stated.
After the attack, he ran toward Palo Alto.
Stanford police sent out an automated alert after being notified of the robbery.
Anyone with additional information is encouraged to contact the Stanford Department of Public Safety at 650-329-2413.
The latest info from Stanford is different than what is reported in this article. It states the suspect is of African American mixed race & has noticeable body odor.
Is there any way to prevent people from stealing bicycles at the Stanford campus? This is an epidemic! My sister has just had her THIRD bicycle stolen from the campus.
It seems that thieves are fast and efficient…and rarely caught on campus.
It is disappointing that such disgusting human beings walk around stealing and committing crimes like this.
I hope that this thief…and the last person who stole my sister’s bike…are caught and thrown in prison. If they would do this, they would do even worse things if they didn’t think that they would get caught.
They are embarrassments to society, their families and their parents/children. Hopefully, thugs like this will be removed from the streets so that their “give me” attitude no longer affects those of us who know how to interact and live like human beings.
I have found that the only way to really prevent someone from stealing from you is to not have anything worth stealing. However, that is highly impractical. But you can reduce the theft-rate for yourself by not having the best and most expensive thing. If you want a $3000 bicycle to ride, you keep yourself chained to it. If you must leave a bicycle unattended for a while, leave an old beater and park it next to a nice shiny expensive bicycle. Don’t have bike parts that can be easily removed without tools, like seats and wheels. Don’t leave it in remote areas where someone could work at a lock un-noticed.
I understand your frustration with the segment of humanity that stoops to such things as bicycle theft, and worse, but they exist, and there is not much we can do about that. We are currently looking at releaving prison over-crowding by granting early release to non-violent offenders, and that will include bicycle thieves, and worse.
In theory, in a perfect society, one should be able to walk down any dark alley with $100 bills hanging out of one’s pockets and not be bothered. In practice, it does not work that way. The perfect little world we lived in under our parents care, with their carefully-chosen friends and associates does not extend much farther than their front door. When we leave home, even to a place like Stanford, we must suddenly learn to protect ourselves and our belongings. With the economics of areas surrounding PA, with the homeless shelter on Stanford’s doorstep, and with all the “less fortunate” (even drug addicted) people passing you constantly, perhaps Stanford should teach a course in Self Preservation.
Also Nayeli, please remember that while you rail against those people, there, but by the grace of God, go you.If you were raised the way they were raised, if you were survival-challenged as they often are, if your options were so circumscribed, would you be any better? We would like to think we would be, but until you are there, you don’t really know how you would react to those circumstances. When I lived in EPA years ago at below poverty level, I always at least had hope because I could see a path to a better life. What if there had been no path?
We all hate thieves, but I noticed that Nayeli never utters a word against Wall Street’s crimes against humanity which have caused unimaginable misery to untold millions of innocent people in the US and abroad.
@Posted by JustMe, a resident of the Duveneck/St. Francis neighborhood, 47 minutes ago
Also Nayeli, please remember that while you rail against those people, there, but by the grace of God, go you.If you were raised the way they were raised, if you were survival-challenged as they often are, if your options were so circumscribed, would you be any better?
YES. I WOULD. I have been so broke, that I didn’t know where my and my child’s next meal was coming from. I DID NOT GO OUT AND STEAL. AND IF I DID, I WOULD HAVE STOLEN FOOD. I DID NOT USE THAT AS AN EXCUSE TO GO OUT AND STEAL. How DARE you use your perception of social injustice as an excuse for petty thuggery? A study released last week, (I wish I could find the link) by a prominent university researcher categorically stated that a rise in crime is not exponential to a straitened economy.
It appears that Stanford police need to proactively check the campus, which is quite vast in size and complex in design, especially for someone in an automobile thanks to closed traffic blocking everywhere. It will be challenging to resolve theft (and now robbery) issues quickly.
With regard to socioeconomic comments, “crime is crime” and a person’s unfortunate history does not excuse their actions but does warrant a discussion about help for people. When I lived on campus I rode such a lousy bike I didn’t need to lock it during the daytime. Looking back, I think that walking was better. The fewer items of value you can have as a student, the better!
daniel, really??!! You are drinking too much of the kool-aid! 🙂 Don’t allow yourself to be too quickly led to water. It really is tainted! Not to mention this has nothing to do with the article!
Interesting that when questioned about why they are there, the vast majority of WS “protesters” can’t answer simple questions – very suspicious, in my opinion.
This story is about ROBBERY of a woman, not theft of a bike left outside a campus building. Really, those are two very different situations…though neither is great, the robbery is far more serious and a personal threat.
I think police ought to be on high alert.
Stanford and Palo Alto are likely perceived as deep pockets ripe for the picking, that is scary. We do hear of theft out of cars parked at Stanford Shopping Center.
Question: what is the story with all those cars parked on the edge of Stanford land along El Camino Real? I don’t mean sports people who go to the fields near there. I am not affiliated with Stanford so not all that informed about it, but those cars look suspicious to me. I think they are for sale, but perhaps some people live in them?! Where this woman was robbed is not far from where I am describing.
Most of the cars parked along El Camino belong to people who work at Stanford but who can’t afford the high priced parking – lower income workers at the University.
Here’s a great web page on how to secure your bike against theft http://bikeclass.swent.net/Locking.htm Thieves are not a new phenomenon. If you can’t afford to lose it, lock it up!
The police do a good job, but they need each of us to practise a little common sense. Doing what you reasonably can to prevent theft helps a lot. I’m always amazed at how many expensive bikes I see with cheap cable locks (easily compromised by wire cutters) or no lock at all.
Also, you can paint your bike–personalize it so that it will be easily identified if stolen. That is a good deterrent. Make sure your bike is licensed (bike licenses are REQUIRED in Palo Alto. For information about how to get a bike license, go here http://www.cityofpaloalto.org/depts/pln/news/details.asp?NewsID=214&TargetID=288 .)If a stolen bike is licensed, police can easily locate the owner and return it if it is recovered.)
It’s interesting how quickly the initial story was lost.
A woman was assaulted and robbed at high noon on Palm Drive.
The thief was clearly described, presumably on foot, and
there is always traffic on Palm, so the police should have
been quickly alerted. The guy escaped.
The comments immediately turn to bicycle theft on campus!
Someone points out that with the upcoming release of nonviolent
prisoners, things are only going to get worse. Then some joker
says you shouldn’t blame the thieves because it’s not their fault
(they were born in a relatively poor neighborhood), and another
joker exclaims that it’s dumb to complain about bicycle thieves
when you’ve got Wall Street screwing everyone with
“crimes against humanity.”
Back to the original story. As people have suggested on
multiple occasions, robberies in Palo Alto would be greatly
curtailed (especially during the day) if we had video cameras
distributed throughout the city. We would catch the bastards,
and they would know it and ply their trade elsewhere.
Why did he take her keys?
Barron Parker, video isn’t as helpful as you might think. I have a lot of experience working in law enforcement. Once the thieves know they’re being watched, they just wear dark hoodies. Ever try to identify someone wearing black and a hoodie? Virtually impossible – they all look alike! Most of them are smart enough to hide their distinguishing marks, clothing, etc. – if they know there is video in the area.
@ JustMe:
Thanks for the advice.
The first bicycle that was stolen was one purchased here in Palo Alto. We had never spent more than $100 on a bicycle before, but we bought the cheapest one we could find here in Palo Alto ($299). We even used Sharpies to mark it up up, writing my sister’s first name is big, bold letters on the frame…and carving the last four digits of her social security number on the bottom of the frame. It lasted all of three months at Stanford…even with a Kryptonite lock in a dorm with heavy people traffic.
The next bicycle was given to us for free. It was an ugly bike with a rusty seat. We had a nice lock, but it too was stolen from right outside of her dorm.
This latest bicycle was an old one obtained from Craigslist. The seat was ripped and the wheels were a little wobbly (but still usable). It was also locked up with a good lock…and stolen outside of a heavily trafficked building.
While I understand your comments about “self-preservation,” it doesn’t quite fit with my story. I was born in Mexico to a very large but very poor family. Our family immigrated (legally) to the United States while I was about to enter intermediate school. We spent the greater part of my childhood performing migrant farm work throughout the United States. We were extremely poor — with my parents and nine siblings living in a travel trailer and taking showers outside behind a blanket. We typically lived in very poor areas too…some that would make East Palo Alto look very desirable.
But, you’re right. It is by the grace of God that I had good parents who were properly able to teach me the difference between right and wrong. However, it is unfortunate that many criminals like this were unable to have realized through childhood upbringing at home, at school, through society, through the media, through other means and through COMMON SENSE that it is WRONG to steal, rob, or harm others.
Unfortunately, I can say with firsthand experience that many “poor” have an “entitlement” mentality where they actually believe the “class warfare” nonsense that “daniel” uttered (hopefully with sarcasm).
There are many “poor” (and I use that word loosely, because most have never experienced the level of hardships that my siblings and I did as children) that people who are successful in life have only been able to do so by culpable means. So, they feel “entitled” to take what does not belong to them.
When I was in college, I was assigned to attend an “anger management” meeting for a Sociology class. In that meeting, there were some low income individuals who had been required to attend the class.
In the group, several individuals said that there was nothing wrong with taking from people who were “rich” (which they defined as anyone who was middle class or higher). They believed that those who “have” were only able to succeed because they did so on the backs of those who “have not.”
One man was in the class because he stole a bicycle from someone’s yard. He still defended his action by saying, “They didn’t need it. Besides, if they want another one, they can buy it. And, if they did need it, they should have locked it up better.”
I was astonished.
These people truly believed that “class warfare” rhetoric and saw themselves as egocentric Robin Hoods. They felt that there was nothing wrong with taking from others because of their position in life. They weren’t even embarrassed to say so!
The teacher of that class made a good point: He said, “There is NO EXCUSE for burglary. There is NO EXCUSE to steal a bicycle. There is NO EXCUSE for violence. Poverty is not an excuse. Bad parenting is not an excuse. Low education is not an excuse. Racism is not an excuse. The fact that you think that you got the bad end of the stick is not an excuse. THERE IS NO EXCUSE FOR CRIME!”
Sadly, some of those sitting in that meeting simply rolled their eyes. I was surprised at the level of “entitlement” thinking that goes through the minds of criminals. Of course, it gave me plenty of things to write about in my paper.
As poor as we were growing up, we never engaged in criminal activity. We never “blamed” anyone — including the “rich” — for our economic condition. Rather, our parents taught us to be thankful for what we had from honest means…and to aspire to greater success in life…and to do so through education, hard work and effort. As a result, all of my siblings have graduated from college with at least a bachelor’s degree (with the exception of the youngest, who is still a student at Stanford). While none of us are “rich,” we are content with living an honest life.
There is ALWAYS a better path. I suppose that it is possible that there are some people who may never know that there is a better and more noble “path” through life. However, every person has common sense too. Stealing is something that people should know apart from parents’ instruction. After all, society, schools, police, and the media (along with many other venues) have taught that it is wrong. Unfortunately, many people have painted it with a “faceless victim” brush mingled with an entitlement mentality where the criminal blames the victim for having caused them to resort to such criminal activity.
BTW, this is an epidemic at Stanford. I have spoken with MANY students who have had their bikes stolen on campus. When we filed a police report for the first bike, the officer admitted that it happens very often (he used the word “daily”). I understand that the police are limited in their ability to handle this. However, there has to be some way to stop thieves from arriving on campus and then riding away with the bikes of students, faculty and staff.
On a personal level, we cannot even afford purchasing another one right now. My sister is working her way through school…and she literally counts her change just to make ends meet. As the winter begins (with the accompanying cold and rain), my sister will be forced to walk around this large campus all because a heartless thief wanted what did not belong to him.
And, anonymous, I also understand that there is a different crime when a thug ROBS a woman of her keys and cell phone and a thief steals bicycles. However, they are BOTH thugs who need to be punished for their actions. Hopefully, the campus can come up with a way to prevent such things from happening in the future.
</rant>
@ Enough! Relax dude, I didn’t resort to theft either. My point is that you don’t know how they will react to that kind of stress until they are in that kind of situation. Some pass that test, others cave very easily. The key question if whether they refuse to steal because it is wrong to, or because they are fearful of getting caught. For those fearful of getting caught, increase the stress and/or their confidence level on getting away with it, and they make the grab, bikes or Wall Street or banking. Those who answer to a higher calling are often belittled by those who do not understand it. And of course, EVERYONE claims to answer to that higher calling.
@Curious: “Why did he take her keys?” I wondered at that myself. What value were they to him? Was her car or home exposed, did he somehow obtain the identity of them? Was there something apparently valuable on her keyring, gold or diamonds?
@ Bikin’ mom:
We did try to make the bikes “undesirable” for potential thieves. Each bike was locked properly (with frame locked). Each bike was properly registered too. Unfortunately, the police said that registration doesn’t prevent theft and stolen bicycles are rarely recovered.
Still, I agree that video cameras might help prevent thugs from robbing people in broad daylight or stealing. However, I think that greater patrolling methods (perhaps by police officers on foot or bikes or some who are not wearing uniforms) would be even more beneficial.
This latest crime happened in broad daylight on the most visible street on campus. As such, this is especially troubling.
I ask again:why is it that when a common thief commits a felony, so many are up in arms, but when trillions are embezzled by Wall Street and corporations, which are the real enemy of this country, the same usual suspects are silent?
@ daniel:
“Trillions” are “embezzled” by Wall Street and corporations?
The answer to this problem lay in a need to stop believing propaganda. Get a job with a corporation and invest in companies.
Then, you would know with a good degree of certainty, that money is not typically “embezzled” but INVESTED by companies that still provide the vast majority of goods, services and innovation in this nation. You will also learn that socialism is a flawed economic scheme that does not work (literally).
Besides, those “evil” companies that you speak against have nothing to do with a thug who robbed a woman on the Stanford campus.
🙂
Daniel, the reason is that things like stealing a bicycle are very personal, your personal property is taken, you are violated, and you cry out. When others are similarly violated or feel threatened they add their voices to the chorus.
The crimes you speak of on Wall Street have more nebulous victims, it is not an attack by an individual on an individual. The people there were all pretty-much there doing legalized gambling in the first place, and the individual crimes are harder to define, you only see them as a mass. Finally, with corporate cimes, remember that the inmates are running the asylum, so they tend to ignore the problem. Like they said in the move Wargames, “The only winning move is not to play”.
It only took five comments to get totally off the subject: robbery on campus to Wall Street. I don’t think this is the record. Some of the frequent PA Online commentators need to start their own blogs.
Nayeli needs to get a grip. Bikes have ALWAYS been ripped off at Stanford. That isn’t close to being the same as a strong arm robbery, which is terrifying.
Thrown in prison for stealing a bike? Nayeli doesn’t need to get a grip, she needs an IV of reality.
The description of this guy is wrong. We also received email with updated info on the robber. Unfortunately, he wasn’t caught.
As a mother of a college student, this article is really scary! The question is why does ANYONE feel they have the right to steal from anyone else? I agree about Wall Street, but this particular crime was a personal theft that could have turned violent – quite a different matter!
Most likely he didn’t steal in order to feed his kids – most likely it was to feed his drug addiction. If her keys have an electronic lock it is easy to figure out which car is hers – just hit the alarm button!
I’m not a traditionally religious person, but I think what is missing in society is any sense of morals, ethics and thought for other people! This should be taught in school – not as a religious lesson but as a life lesson. Obviously kids aren’t being taught this at home, so teach it at school! There are so many unhealthy role models in the media, tv, movies, violent video games, rap music, etc., it’s no wonder kids grow up without any sense of what is right and what is wrong! Especially crimes against women – turn on the tv any night and you’ll see show after show about women being raped, murdered and victimized – it’s time something was done about THAT!
@ HawkeyePierce:
Do you really need to resort to silly cheap shots?
I do have a “grip” on reality. And, if you had actually read my posts, you would know that I am not equating my sister’s three stolen bikes (and the daily theft of bikes at Stanford) to someone being robbed in broad daylight.
That robbery must have been a horrifying situation. That thug needs to be arrested and face the same level of thuggery that he inflicted upon that woman (that will probably follow her for the rest of her life).
However, I was simply pointing out that crime happens often on the Stanford campus. A person feels violated when they are robbed…and also when someone breaks into their home (it happened to me)…or when some thug steals a bicycle (which is, as the Stanford police officer told me, a “daily” occurrence).
Now that I have explained that there is a difference between a robbery and theft, do you think that the theft of bicycles every day on campus is a problem? Bicycles are expensive. It almost sounds like you are making excuses for the disgusting criminals who steal them.
I was simply suggesting that something needs to be done by the Stanford police to better patrol parts of the campus that can’t be accessed by a car. In the countless times that I have visited the campus, I rarely see police officers patrolling anywhere other than the streets accessible by cars. Much of the campus — including the dorms — are accessible only by foot or bicycle. A more visible police force might cause certain characters to think twice about engaging in criminal activity.
BTW, my parents cannot offer financial assistance to my sister. My dad works part time at a Wal-Mart in Texas and my mother is a homemaker. We cannot go out and purchase another bicycle and lock every time some disgusting thug wants to steal one. My sister has had three bikes stolen in three years…and we know many other students who have had the same unfortunate experience. However, the difference is that we just don’t have as much money to buy a bike as many of the other students.
Yes, still all about Nayeli and family, still with emotions out of proportion to what she’s dealt with (bike theft).
@ HawkeyePierce:
What on earth are you talking about? This isn’t about me or my family…except that my sister had THREE BIKES STOLEN on campus.
I never made a comparison between this woman’s robbery and my sister’s three stolen bicycles (and the daily stolen bicycles).
If you think that it is unreasonable to be upset about it, then I don’t know what to say. You do seem awfully upset at the notion of preventing or punishing bicycle theft. However, stronger patrol by Stanford police on foot or bike might help protect students AND their property from criminals.
I asked a question to you about what should be done to prevent theft…or what should be done to criminals who steal them. You didn’t respond.
“Thrown in prison for stealing a bike?”
No, I would not see someone thrown in prison for stealing a bike. But how about two bikes? How about two bikes a day? How about if he makes his living stealing and reselling bikes?
I remember a house in an old neighborhood where they were clearing out the trash from the kid of the house and piling it in the front yard, and it was a small mountain of bicycles, hundreds, presumably all stolen. What do you suggest for him, send him to a new neighborhood with a fresh supply of bikes to be stolen? I would say he was slightly beyond the “steal a bike, go to jail” stage. Where are you going to draw a line? What if they make a carreer of it?
This thread is NOT about bikes being stolen at Stanford or what to do w/bike thieves. It’s about robbing a jobber. She’s not the worse for wear, even though was happened was wrong & scary. The biggest news about it is that they got the subject description wrong, or at least one of the reported descriptions is wrong, which likely contributed to them not finding the guy.
@ JustMe,
Yes, that would make the thief a felon (based upon the value of the property that he stole).
Personally, I feel that if a person steals a bike, they should go to jail (even if they aren’t convicted of a felony). Put them in jail for a limited amount of time (for a first conviction) and stress that they will NOT be given such an easy sentence the next time around. Such repeat offenders (or individuals who stole MORE than one bike) should be BANNED from areas where bicycles are kept (schools, colleges, parks).
If it is a “career” thief, then they need to be convicted of a felony and sent to the land of thieves (prison) and robbers — along with the horrible thug who terrorized this young runner on Saturday. Such thugs shouldn’t be sent to another neighborhood to cause the same problems.
@ Hmmm…
I brought up the bikes stolen from my sister simply because it hit close to home and it happened on the same campus as this latest robbery.
There are “bad” people walking around on the Stanford campus. Within a week, the PaloAltoOnline included articles about sexual assaults, a forceful robbery and other issues…and I mentioned the DAILY theft of bicycles on campus.
It would be great if the Stanford police can take the appropriate steps to respond accordingly. I have a lot of faith in the officers on campus. I just hope that they can patrol areas outside of roads…and be a little more vigilant in noticing people who might be up to no good.
When we first moved to Palo Alto, my husband called the police regarding a man snooping around behind our apartment. He was a middle aged man who didn’t live here…and the man was riding a young girl’s bicycle. My husband was debating about whether to call or not. Although suspicious, my husband didn’t see him commit a crime. My husband reasoned that the man might have been searching for recyclables to sell. However, the man simply was looking into the cars, and suspiciously searched around the storage units and carports. After this went on for quite some time, my husband finally called the police.
Sure enough, the man was arrested. The bicycle was reported stolen and he had stolen merchandise on him. The police officer thanked my husband for reporting him and commented that there is obviously something suspicious about a large grown man who is riding a young girl’s pink bicycle and peering into vehicles and scrummaging around carports and storage units where he does not live. The police officer said that he wished that all people were as diligent to report suspicious activity.
If the police do not regularly visit areas outside of the range of a police car, then criminals feel empowered to pull off their crimes. I just think that regular patrols on foot or by bicycle might help.
It would certainly make students feel more secure.
I was impressed that the woman robbed could identify so many characteristics of the person who robbed her. And all in a probable space of 5 or 10 seconds? She should apply for a job in a police department.
And then there was apparently a less comprehensive description. It would help us to know what the person really looked like on the chance we saw him later.
I agree with most of the bloggers. There is no reason to commit a crime unless one is too lazy to make the effort (as some recorded above)to find help. Violence of any kind is unacceptable.
According to the latest Stanford Safety Report, there were 145 bicycle thefts in 2008, 190 in 2009, and 175 in 2010. Whereas, there was only one incident of robbery for 2008-2010. The number of structure burglaries for 2008 is 117. With 78 burglaries in 2009 and 145 similar crimes in 2010.
Maybe this thread is about a lady getting ripped off while jogging, but the most important information coming out of the posts has to do with the other forms of theft and stealing that goes on this campus.
Thanks Bill and William!
Good points.
Bill, I am not completely sure, but I do think that this may have lasted more than 5 or 10 seconds though. I had a college friend who had a similar experience while interning in San Francisco, and she still has vivid nightmares about the man’s face.
William, do you have a link for that report? I know that many students don’t even report their stolen bicycles because they find out too late (the next day…or after a leisure activity) and the police have already told many students that there is almost no chance of ever retrieving them.
I don’t know the university police department’s patrol policy, but I just haven’t seen many police on foot or on bike. So much of Stanford is inaccessible to vehicles, so it only makes sense to have a very notable police presence in such places.
The public universities that I attended had police patrols that were highly visible during the days and nights — especially near the university’s residential buildings and buildings that were open late at night (such as dorms, libraries, labs and cafeterias). Those university officers were easily seen patrolling on foot, Segways, golf carts and bicycles. Consequently, the crime rate (including sexual assaults and theft) was remarkably low.
It may be worth looking into.
@ William:
According to the following article, there were actually 329 bicycles stolen at Stanford last year (in 2010) and 375 in 2009.
http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_19010116
Oddly, this article was published last week (Friday) in the Mercury News — the day before this latest robbery on Saturday.
Some of the more serious crime stats are startling too. There were 21 forcible sexual assaults reported in 2010. In addition to the 329 bicycles stolen last year, there were 81 vehicles broken into, 180 buildings burglarized and 14 stolen cars.
http://www.stanford.edu/group/SUDPS/safety-report/Stanford.pdf