Monthly Archives: November 2009

Stealing Beauty: International Art Heists

Are you under the impression that the theft of works of art is the stuff of fiction? Films like The Thomas Crown Affair, Entrapment and Ocean’s 12 have been fictional representations of art theft though the practice is very real and just as interesting. SpotCrime’s archived crimes can help shine a light on true life Thomas Crowns and Danny Oceans in the world. In the past 23 years some of the world’s most precious works of art have been stolen in daring heists by skilled criminals.
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This famous painting, “The Scream” by Norwegian painter Edvard Munch is just one of many precious works of art that have been snatched from their owners or galleries in recent years.

Click here for a list featuring the crimes and the specific details of the heist.

SpotCrime is Mapping Crimes in Hardee County, Florida

Hardee County was created in 1921. It was named after former Florida Governor, Cary A. Hardee who served from 1921 to 1925. As of the year 2005 the county had a population of 28,286.

SpotCrime is proud to feature up to date information direct from the Hardee County Sheriff’s Department on our maps.

Please click on the following link to see a fully interactive crime map.

http://spotcrime.com/fl/hardee county

As always, SpotCrime provides free crime alerts by email and text messages.

Know your neighborhood with SpotCrime.com

Serial Bank Robber in Denver, Colorado

This is an alert from the Denver Police Department regarding a serial robber :

“The Denver Police Department would like to make the community aware of a robbery suspect who is believed to have committed at least 6 robberies in Denver over the past 7 weeks. In most of the cases the suspect entered the business and inquired about products or services and then left business. The suspect re-entered the business a short time later. He brought items to the counter and then he simulated a weapon or showed a knife and robbed the establishment. In 3 of the robberies the suspect was seen leaving the on a black bicycle with red lettering. The Suspect is described as a Black male, 30-35 years old, 6’00, 200 lbs, dark brown complexion, brown eyes which are described as having lazy eyes or not being able to focus eyes forward, wearing white pants, dark jacket and carrying a backpack, with a ball cap, which appeared to have the tag on the brim, black shoes.”

Below is a map pinpointing the locations of his robberies:



Click here for a crime list

If you have any information regarding the identity of the serial robber contact the Denver Police Department at 720-913-2000.

Shootings Don’t Take Weekends Off In Baltimore

While uploading data this weekend the SpotCrime team noticed an interesting trend in Baltimore crime patterns. It is a known fact that the City of Baltimore is no stranger to gun violence. Below is a map containing all incidents of shootings from September 2009 up to yesterday Sunday, November the 15th. In total 273 have occurred since September 1st.

This is a map containing shootings from Monday November 9th to Friday November 13th:

There is a total of 6 shootings. 1 on Monday. 1 on Wednesday. 2 on Thursday. 2 on Friday.
Below is a map containing the shootings for Saturday and Sunday:

There are a total of 7 shootings for a 2 day period. Through this comparison we are able to deduct that gun violence is more prevalent in the Baltimore area during weekends; although any reasons we can give are merely speculative.

As always, SpotCrime provides free crime alerts by email, text messages and through the SpotCrime iPhone application for Baltimore. Know your neighborhood, stay safe with SpotCrime.com.

Facebook provides alibi: The Facebook defense?

Facebook provides alibi: The Facebook defense?: “Luckily, his father discovered that son Rodney had updated his Facebook status a minute prior to the crime. Well, maybe he updated, then ran all the way to Brooklyn to commit the crime. Plausible, if the crime happened right outside his front door, which it didn’t. No, the crime was in Brooklyn, and the update was made in Harlem. There’s absolutely no way Rodney could have committed the crime. Thus, his attorney subpoenaed Facebook to provide documentation that would prove the account was updated from his Harlem location. It worked, and the case was thrown out of court.”

Hip Hop Talents Silenced By Gun Violence

In the world of hip hop music references to criminal activity such as robbery, drug dealing and even murder are commonplace.

Unfortunately in some of these cases art imitates life and the very activities occasionally referenced in the music of certain artists are reflected in real life violence.

Tupac Shakur, already the victim of one shooting, was gunned down in Las Vegas on September the 7th 1996. The murder has never been solved.

Christopher Wallace better known to the world as the Notorious B.I.G. was gunned down in what perhaps was a retaliation for the murder of Shakur on March the 9th 1997 in Los Angeles. This murder has also remained unsolved to this day.

In a separate, but no less tragic incident; the closest friend of famed Detroit rapper Eminem, DeShaun Dupree Holton (alias Proof) was gunned down in Detroit on April the 11th 2006. The shooting resulted from an argument in a club on Detroits 8 Mile stretch.

Below is a map of the shootings:

A detailed crime listing is available by clicking here

Unsolved Murders in Dothan, Alabama

Some might recognize Dothan, a city in Houston County, Alabama as the peanut capital of the world as it produces one fourth of the world’s peanut crop.

But what most people don’t know about Dothan is that the town has been host to 23 unsolved murders from 1976 to 2008.

Here is a map of the crimes:

Do you have any information regarding these crimes? If so contact the Dothan Police Department at (334) 615-3000.

Click here for a detailed crime listing

Spot Historical Crime: The Beltway Sniper Shootings

In addition to providing the most accurate and up to date crime maps and reports daily, SpotCrime also features archived cases and reports on our maps pertaining to famous historical crimes. In this first addition of Spot Historical Crimes, we will investigate the Beltway Sniper Shootings of 2002.

In October of 2002, Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia were terrorized by a series of sniper attacks. 17 people were murdered in the terror that ensued. The culprits, John Muhammad and Lee Malvo shot their victims at a distance from the trunk of their Blue 1990 Chevrolet Caprice with a .223 caliber rifle equipped with a red-dot sight at ranges of between 50 and over 100 yards. The culprits left tarot cards at some of their crime scenes, one of which can be seen below.

The pair was arrested October 24, 2002, sleeping in their car at a Maryland rest stop.

Malvo eventually testified against Muhammad and is serving life in prison. Muhammad is currently scheduled for execution by lethal injection later this month.

Here is a map of their crimes:

Click here for a crime listing

SpotCrime Mapping Crimes in Auburn, New York

Auburn, New York is the county seat of Cayuga County, New York.

As of the year 2000 the city had a population of 28,574 and the town has had many famous resident including escaped slave and famed abolitionist Harriet Tubman.

SpotCrime is proud to feature up to date information direct from the Auburn Police Department on our maps.

Please click on the following link to see a fully interactive crime map.

http://spotcrime.com/ny/auburn

As always, SpotCrime provides free crime alerts by email and text messages.

Know your neighborhood with SpotCrime.com