Saratoga residents thwart real estate scam
Nov. 11
Petty Theft: Between Oct. 22 and Nov. 11, someone stole the rear license plate from a vehicle parked in the driveway of a residence in the 18000 block of Afton Avenue.
Identity theft, forged licenses: Saratoga residents reported that someone impersonated them, creating fraudulent licenses, and then attempted to sell their property in Los Banos. The scam was discovered, and the listing was cancelled. No financial loss was reported.
Disturbing the peace: At 9:40 a.m., deputies responded to a disturbance at McDonald’s on Prospect Road. An investigation revealed the suspect disturbed the peace and challenged the victim to a fight.
Nov. 12
Commercial burglary: Between Nov. 10 and Nov. 12, someone entered a classroom at Foothill Elementary on Lynde Avenue through an unlocked window and stole a laptop for a loss valued at approximately $1,000.
Criminal threats, dissuade victim, resisting/delaying arrest: At 9:37 a.m., deputies responded to a disturbance in front of the Bank Bar on Big Basin Way. An investigation revealed the suspect made criminal threats toward the victim and threatened to kill the victim if he called 911 to report the incident. The suspect resisted but was ultimately arrested and booked into main jail.
Nov. 13
Petty theft: Between 9:30 p.m. on Nov. 12 and 5:30 p.m. on Nov. 13, someone entered an unlocked vehicle parked in the driveway of a residence in the 14000 block of Elvira Street and stole a bottle of perfume for a loss valued at approximately $160.
Residential Burglary At 10:52 a.m., two suspects entered a residence in the 19000 block of Sunset Drive. The house was searched but details of any stolen property were not provided.
Nov. 14
Commercial Burglary Between 11 p.m. on Nov. 13 and 5:55 a.m. on Nov. 14, unknown suspect(s) entered a maintenance shed at Saratoga High School on Herriman Avenue by prying a door open and stole tools of unknown value.
Theft by false pretenses, wire fraud: A Saratoga resident reported transferring money to a fraudulent cryptocurrency brokerage for a loss valued at approximately $60,000.
Nov. 15
Vandalism: At 11:40 a.m., someone scratched the paint of a vehicle parked at the Saratoga Library on Saratoga Avenue. The total amount of damage was about $2,000.
Nov. 16
Organized retail theft: At 5:35 p.m., three suspects entered CVS in the Argonaut Center on Saratoga-Sunnyvale Road and stole merchandise.