SFPD calm Ingleside community after sixth homicide hits in two weeks

 

 

By Sara Bloomberg and Emma Winkles
The Guardsman

The San Francisco Police Department held a town hall meeting Tuesday evening at the Wellness Center to address the concerns of the Ingleside community after another homicide hit the quiet, residential neighborhood.

It has been just over a week since a family of five were killed in a home across from City College’s Ocean campus.

A panel of seven representatives from the police department and the district attorney’s office were present to answer questions from an audience of around two-dozen community members.

After introducing the panel, Police Chief Greg Suhr asked everyone in the room to observe a moment of silence for the victims.

Suhr said that both incidents were isolated and that Ingleside remains a safe neighborhood.

“I can assure you that what happened on Howth Street had nothing to do with Louisburgh,” Suhr said.

He was referring to the name of the street where another homicide occurred on April 1, just a few blocks away from the home at 16 Howth St., where five people, including at least one City College student, were killed on March 23.

Captain Daniel Mahoney said the police department regularly patrols the Ingleside district.

May Wong, an Excelsior resident, said that she feels safe.

“Patrols are adequate,” Wong said, but “they can’t be everywhere at every moment.”

Another woman, who wished to remain anonymous, said she was concerned about changes in the neighborhood over the past ten years.

“People who troll the streets are not from the neighborhood,” she said.

City College Police Chief Andre Barnes said that campus police regularly communicate with the SFPD about safety issues.

 

One of the victims was “Chantel” Chia Huei Chu, 30, a City College student since 2007, and a full time student for the Spring 2012 semester. You can read more about Ms. Chu in this previous article by The Guardsman.

One suspect, Thai Binh Luc, 32, has been arrested in connection with the quintuple homicide so far. According to news reports, he has plead not guilty to all counts.

According to Chief Suhr, the victims were killed by blunt force and edge trauma, meaning they were bludgeoned and cut.