Minneapolis - the Fallujah of the west

We know that crime occurs all the time on the north side and the Phillips neighborhood in general. What people should be aware of is that the previously insulated folks in southwest Minneapolis (where the middle to upper middle class, mostly white live) are being targeted with personal violence at an alarming rate. Yes, murders are down citywide, but robberies, rapes, and other violent crimes are up. And they are shifting toward previously safe areas.

Following are some recent cases in point (and by the way, you won't read these in the Red Star).

"Sonny of Sonny's Crema Café mugged, incidents worry Lyndale" from the Southwest Journal.

Seventy-nine-year-old Sonny Siron, the patriarch of Sonny's Crema Café, 3403 Lyndale Ave. S., was robbed during his morning walk on Monday, Sept. 5. Two black males asked him for directions downtown and then begged for money. When Siron indicated that he didn't have any cash on him, they appeared to walk away. An instant later, they delved into his pockets - wrapping their hands around his neck and stealing his wallet that contained cash, credit cards and keys. Siron wasn't injured, but he was shaken, according to Crema Café's Carrie Gustafson.

This is a highly trafficked area, frequented by normal people.

Said Gustafson, ”We haven't seen it this bad since we opened the café almost 12 years ago.“ She said her concern isn't about how many police officers patrol the area, but added, ”It's the fact that, once people get caught, they're back on the street and they just do it again. We have to get tough on crime.“

God bless her. Let's get these animals.

There's more.

"Shots fired in Tangletown, arrests made" also form the Southest Journal.

On Sept. 26 at 11:15 p.m., approximately seven gunshots were fired in the Tangletown neighborhood near West 47th Street & Wentworth Avenue. Two suspects were arrested shortly after the incident. In an alert sent to residents via e-mail, Minneapolis Police Crime-Prevention Specialist Jennifer Neale stated, ”No one was hurt in this incident, and all involved parties were immediately located and arrested. None of the arrested parties lives in the neighborhood or precinct.

“According to Neale, an officer found no weapons, guns, drugs or anything wrong, she said. Neale added that one juvenile male was arrested for a curfew violation and another suspect was taken to jail for an outstanding gross misdemeanor warrant.

There's even more.

"Elderly woman robbed in Windom, police urge crime prevention", also in the Southwest Journal (and not the Red Star).

On Sept. 23 at 1:30 p.m. on the 6100 block of Dupont Avenue South someone robbed an elderly woman of her purse and then fled.

Minneapolis Police Crime-Prevention Specialist Jennifer Neale said in an e-mail crime alert that the elderly woman was in the garage with her husband, getting out of the car, when a suspect crept up from behind and snatched her purse.

Neale describes the suspect as a white male, 18 years old, with brown hair and a medium build.

And if that weren't enough, a triple shooting on the north side, one dead:

"One dead after Minneapolis triple shooting", per the Channel 5 News site.

As three woman lay bleeding in a North Minneapolis neighborhood, Charmaine Cross waited for a text message reply that would never come. One of her friends,18-year old Nicole Harris, was shot and was struggling to live. "It's scary because I just talked to her. I was the last person to talk to her," Cross told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS. Police say the shooter also wounded La Crecha Hollie and killed her mother, 43 year-old Sheila Hollie.

Let's get all these dirtbags and lock them up, shan't we?

And in other news, boy-Mayor Ryback is running for re-election. Here's hoping his potential voters read Rambix and the Red Star on their way to the polls.