Daly City has experienced a wave of crime over the holidays, with nine robberies, one residential burglary, and four commercial burglaries in the last two weeks of December, as detailed in a recent crime alert bulletin from the Daly City Police Department. Victims faced threats from guns, knives, and physical violence during robberies that spanned various locations in the city, including Southgate Avenue, the Colma BART Station, and the Serramonte Shopping Center. Among the stolen items were phones, electronic devices, and clothing, with several of the robbers described as young males, often wearing dark clothing and facial coverings.
The string of robberies began on December 20, when a suspect allegedly brandished a gun and took $60 from a victim on Southgate Avenue and Dorchester Drive. During another incident on December 22, a suspect forcefully took an iPhone worth $1,000. That suspect has since been arrested and booked into jail. The most egregious of these incidents may have been a coordinated attack outside the Colma BART Station on December 22, where robbers brandished a knife to take nearly $3,600 in electronics from their victim, according to the crime alert bulletin. In several cases, suspects threatened victims with violence when confronted, as occurred at Walgreens and the Serramonte Shopping Center on December 31.
The last fortnight of December also saw several burglaries. On December 19, a suspect broke into a storage facility on Lake Merced Boulevard, making off with stereo equipment valued at $3,000. A known culprit burglarized a residence in a separate incident, destroying a television. Commercial establishments were not spared either, with incidents at Planet Fitness, Nordstrom Rack, and AT&T on Washington Street, where numerous vehicles were burglarized on New Year's Eve.
The spike in vehicle-related crimes didn't stop at burglaries, as twelve vehicles were reported stolen, and two attempts were made, with six cars subsequently being recovered. One notable theft on December 28 led to the arrest of a 22-year-old Oakland resident. Crimes weren't singly monetary; Daly City also reported vandalism, involuntary psychiatric holds, and a variety of narcotics cases. Amidst this surge in crime, the Daly City Police Department reached out to the community for volunteers for the 2024 One Day Homeless Count, as noted on their official website.
Daly City residents are urged to remain vigilant and report suspicious activities to local authorities as investigations into these crimes continue. Currently, no further details on the suspects or progress in the ongoing investigations have been provided by the police department.
