September 2, 2008
Glen Park to Heather Fong: SOS
After enduring months of brutal muggings, Glen Park residents are now stunned by the attempted murder and kidnapping that took place on August 30th right in the heart of the neighborhood.
A description of the crime was posted on the Glen Park Bulletin Board written by Elizabeth Weise of Glen Park News.
Robbers stabbed Paul Park, the owner of Buddy's Market at about 11 p.m. last night, leaving him for dead. They also kidnapped one of his employees. Park, who had been tied up, managed to get out of his bonds and stagger across the street to Le P'tit Laurent, where owner Laurent Legendre called the police. According to Capt. Denis O'Leary of Ingleside Station, three to four black males, all wearing dark clothing, broke into the Market through the rear door. The men beat and stabbed Park, robbed the store of cash and kidnapped an employee. They escaped by stealing the store's van. The employee was released in Daly City. Many businesses on Chenery and Diamond were open and had customers at the time, and there were numerous people on the street. Park and the employee were taken separately to San Francisco General Hospital for treatment. Park, who almost bled to death, was treated for multiple stab wounds in the hospital's intensive care unit, where his son Jonathan and wife Vivian are at his side. He was in serious condition but is expected to recover. Information on his employee was not immediately available. The van is still missing. It is a tan 2002 Toyota Sienna, California, license number: 4VHN307.
We hate to get all Kanye on Fong, but seriously, it seems that the overburdened Ingleside Station needs more resources.
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While adding resources, don't forget Southern Station - way understaffed for the number of folks trolling around South of Market at all hours of the day. Can we get a DA that makes some heads roll instead of allows the criminals to roll back onto the streets?
Wait a minute here...if this is about protecting owners and workers at Asian groceries, surely it is the Taraval station that must get the additional police resources...more Asian groceries than in other neighborhoods.
This is awful. Buddie's Market is one of the most useful, friendly stores in the neighborhood, and Paul and his family are wonderful proprietors. The people of Glen Park wish him a speedy recovery.
Now let's do something about all the crime over here. We had a man shot to death last month, now this.
Yeah....actually, i think there's a lot of other neighborhoods that are a little bit more under a crime siege than GP.
there's the 'loin and the Mission for example. a couple actual killings every month and nightly gunshots i would say is at least as horrible as what happened to that poor guy in the article, or the love triangle shooting of a few months ago.
then again, there's no majority of brown people (for the most part) in GP, so of course this is not of interest to anyone...
then again, there's no majority of brown people (for the most part) in GP, so of course this is not of interest to anyone...
I don't understand what you're getting at here.
http://www.sfexaminer.com/local/Merchants_mobilize_after_violent_stabbing_robbery.html
Thanks for the link, Beth.
I think there is a huge difference between what goes on most nights in the Mission/Tenderloin, and what happened to that store owner in Glen Park, and that's why the Glen Park stabbing is generating more press.
Let's face it, gangbangers and crackheads shooting each other is hardly news. A guy getting stabbed in his own store during work hours, his employee kidnapped and dragged away? that is some scary freaking news.
"Let's face it, gangbangers and crackheads shooting each other is hardly news. A guy getting stabbed in his own store during work hours, his employee kidnapped and dragged away? that is some scary freaking news."
that's what I'm getting at...
Guy at 20th & Mission killed at noon.
Guy at 19th & Mission - college student - killed at 930pm.
no arrests, no news stories, no up-in-arms.
listen, i think what happened in GP is a fucking travesty.
but so is what happens in the Mission....and if you don't care about the gangbanger knuckleheads and worthless crackheads - neither do i - at least recognize that the neighborhood is made up of mostly nice people, mostly brown people and mostly families....
and the city (And most folks in it) doesn't give a crap what happens to them.
I'm all for the constant berating of our police chief and district attorney (they certainly deserve our ire) but hasn't yield results. The residents of these neighborhoods need take back their streets by organizing together to fight the recent surge in crime. It's dirty and dangerous work, but if we want to live in safer neighborhoods it's worth the effort.
This morning I read on sfgate.com Erin McCormick's article, Surge of robberies in the Bay Area and beyond, and I was struck by a quote from a woman whose purse was stolen in the Marina back in July:
"As a single woman living in the city, I always thought if I screamed loud enough somebody would come and help me," said Terri, who asked that her last name not be used because she fears retribution from the two suspects who are facing robbery charges.
"But the reality is nobody is going to come. It made me see the city in a whole different light."
Would you have come to her aid?
I have a feeling few people commenting on this site would and I think that's partly because there isn't a real sense of community in our neighborhoods, let alone our City as a whole. We don't look out for one another. We don't want to get involved. We certainly don't want to stick our necks out for a stranger.
But what if we did?
Fong and her SFPD is a joke.
whats new?
Good points icbalaam
You know things are getting bad when you have to ask Chief Fong for help.
When I shout for help, I shout "Ross Mirkarimi!"
As a victim of a recent Glen Park mugging, I have to say I thought my neighbors were wonderful and helpful.
They called the police, gave me food and drink, and sat with me threw the police interview. We had never met before but they were kind concerned and helpful. Getting robbed actually strengthened my belief that people are inherently good and caring.
I'm glad your neighbors came through for you, GP dweller. I feel really good about my neighbors in the Sunnyside. Unfortunately, having good neighbors doesn't stop these criminals!!!
By SFPD's own admission, the Ingleside precinct is understaffed. The last numbers I heard -- which are from June -- were that the precinct had 105-110 active officers, well below the 125 that the precinct needed to maintain full operation. It also had the fewest Sergeants (12) of any precinct in the city. In the spring, the Chronicle reported that Fong had promised O'Leary 12 additional officers by May 2, but this increase has not, to my knowledge, occurred.
The result is that crime remains high in the precinct, the city's second largest. There are not enough officers to maintain regular foot patrols, which is unfortunate, given that the easy access to the freeway makes the area a prime target for crimes of opportunity. (For example, Buddies Market and the the rest of Glen Park village is 1.5 blocks from the 280S on-ramp, separated by a single stoplight. It is nearly impossible to stop someone from escaping from the neighborhood, if they have a car.)
The info above is paraphrased from a summary of a community police meeting that was forwarded around the Bernal Heights/Glen Park communities earlier this summer.
@ sf_bikebike: Fong and her SFPD is a joke. whats new?
Oh, with a few wonderful exceptions, SFPD has been a joke for years.
/born & raised.
i used to live in glen park and buddie's market is the best one out of the three right there. i'm guessing that the owner/victim is the asian guy that was always behind the counter. so nice, such a shame :( condolences for him and his family