Travis Valentine and Joe Castiglione have lived near the intersection of Haight & Ashbury for ten years now. Last Friday, their apartment was robbed while they were inside it.
They have a dog, but she didn't bark. The culprit took over $1,000 worth of stuff, including wallets, jackets and bags. He also took Travis' cell phone.
This is where the story takes a surprising turn. The thief took the phone to the market at the corner of Haight & Masonic and asked if he could charge "his" phone. Jerry, the owner of the corner store, who's known Joe and Travis for ten years now, saw the picture of their dog on the home screen and immediately realized who the phone's real owner was. He confiscated it and the phone was returned to Travis the next day.
A former employee of the shop below Joe and Travis' apartment got in touch with the owner of their building, who was in Egypt at the time. They gained access to the building's security cameras and were able to identify the robber, who, it turned out, had gone up the back stairs to get into their apartment. The video was turned over to Park Station.
On Saturday, Joe was working at Skunk Funk when he spotted the suspect hanging out on the corner. He immediately called the police, who showed up right away and arrested him.
The officers at Park Station seem to know the suspect as "Moe," and they say they've been dealing with him for years.
Thanks to multiple businesses and neighbors, this incident ended with a modicum of closure and a sense of community. We think Travis put it best:
Granted, we will probably never recover most of the items he took from us, nor ever feel 100% safe in our home previously referred to as Fort Knox, but knowing that I have the most amazing community of people around me who found this Rocket Scientist, stopped him dead in his tracks, brought Joe and I food, paid for us to have a well-needed drink and were there for us every single step of the way makes me feel so safe. I am walking on sunshine today knowing that I have my life and that nothing happened to my most precious angels. Things could have gone terribly wrong. Again, thanks for your support, and an extremely special thanks to my neighborhood community who has my back!
We'll keep following this story and let you know of any further developments. In the meantime, stay safe!
