Page One

Police Briefs

Wednesday August 15, 2001

An incident between a cyclist and a motorist raged out of control late Sunday night, leaving a man and his bike banged up. 

According to Lt. Russell Lopes, a bicyclist was riding north on Arlington Avenue around 11 p.m. when the passenger in a mid-1980s blue Jeep Cherokee yelled at him to “get the … off the road” as the auto whizzed past the bicycle. The bicyclist, angered by the remark, allegedly sped up to the car and followed it as it made a left on Yosemite Road. 

According to Lopes, when the driver of the Jeep realized that the biker was following him, he slammed on the brakes causing the bicyclist to swerve to avoid ramming into the car. The driver then allegedly sped up causing the cyclist to fall to the ground. According to Lt. Lopes, the driver then ran over the bike and then backed over it before driving to the next intersection, making a U-turn and running over the bike again. 

After the motorist ran over the cyclist’s bike the third time, the cyclist allegedly jumped onto the roof of the motorist’s car. The motorist then sped in reverse causing the cyclist to tumble off the roof and hood of the car before finally driving away. 

The bicyclist suffered cuts and bruises on his face and arms but refused medical attention. 

••• 

Two robberies at gunpoint were reported to the Berkeley Police Department over the past five days. 

Three female UC Berkeley students were robbed Saturday night near the corner of Bowditch and Haste streets, according to Lt. Lopes. 

According to Lopes, two men in their early 20s approached the victims while walking on Bowditch around 10 p.m. One of the suspects allegedly had a gun in his hand and was pointing it at the ground when he demanded that one of the women give him her bag. According to Lopes, once the victim handed her backpack over, the suspects ran off. There were no injuries. There are no suspects. 

Early Monday morning a couple in their early 20s were walking home on Dwight Way when two men between the ages of 18 and 25 approached them, according to Lopes. One of the men allegedly asked the victims if they knew what the time was before showing them a semi-automatic weapon and demanding their wallet and purse. According to Lt. Lopes the victims obliged and the suspects ran off. There were no injuries. There are no suspects. 

 

— compiled by Kenyatte Davis