Features

Fuzz Get Charity Clipping 

Officers and civilian staff members from Berkeley’s finest gave up their hair Monday for the best reason of all—so that it can be woven into wigs for indigent children suffering from cancer and other ailments that lead to hair loss. 

The lengths of lost tresses ranged from seven to 14 inches, and the lone male contributor was a dispatcher, said Berkeley Police spokesperson Officer Joe Okies. 

The event was organized by Officer Jessica Navozny. 

“I’ve had several friends and coworkers who have been afflicted with cancer and I felt it was time to step up to the plate and do something for people suffering from these kinds of ailments,” she said. 

The Hermosa Salon at 2703 College Ave. donated their services for the drive. The hair will go to the Locks of Love program, which weaves the locks into wigs and distributes them to afflicted youngsters.  

Ripped Off, But When? 

Weatherford BMW called police late Thursday afternoon that they’d been ripped off for a sizable amount of cash, but they could only date the theft to sometime during the previous ten days, reports Berkeley Police Spokesperson Officer Joe Okies. 

Family Dispute Escalates 

What started as a case of battery involving two members of the same family took a more serious turn at 5 p.m. Thursday when one of the disputants pulled a pistol on the other and threatened to shoot. 

By the time police arrived at the Russell Street residence, the pistol-packer had departed. 

Branch Beating 

Berkeley Police arrested a 41-year-old Berkeley man on charges of assault with a deadly weapon after he battered a 21-year-old man with a tree branch near the corner of Piedmont Avenue and Stuart Street Friday afternoon. 

Stabbing Heist 

Two men in their thirties confronted a Berkeley man in the street in front of the Jack-in-the-Box restaurant in the 2100 block of San Pablo Avenue shortly before 11 p.m. Saturday. 

One of the pair stabbed the victim, after which the robbers fled with his cash, said Officer Okies. 

No information was available on the victim’s condition, he said. 

Student Injured in Accident 

As a UC Berkeley student lies in Highland Hospital in critical condition, the vice president of the Berkeley Chinese Students and Scholars Association is seeking witnesses to the Wednesday evening accident. 

Jai Wang, a chemistry student from Shanghai, was broadsided by a car fleeing from Albany Police as he attempted to drive across the intersection of San Pablo and Ashby avenues. 

Renbin Yan, of the Chinese students organization, said witnesses are needed to confirm what happened when Wang was broadsided by a 1996 Honda driven by Adam K. Jones of Albany. 

According to Albany Police, Jones fled when officers attempted to question him about a drug deal they believed they had witnessed inside the Honda as it was parked near the Albany waterfront. 

Officers set out in pursuit, following the Honda onto Interstate 80. A police spokesperson said they soon lost sight of the vehicle. 

The pursuing officer took the Ashby Avenue freeway exit, where he soon spotted what he believed to be the suspect vehicle. 

Albany police said their officer was not involved in a chase when the accident happened, a position endorsed by the California Highway Patrol officers investigation the crash. 

Jones’s vehicle ran through the red light as it was traveling eastbound on Ashby, striking Wang’s car. 

Yan is not convinced it wasn’t a chase. 

“We want to know if the car was being chased when it struck Jai Wang’s car,” he said. 

Yan asked anyone with information about the crash to call him at 847-6929. 

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