Cops Corner: Pelican Press

Aug. 4
Breaking the chain
10:45 p.m. — 6400 block of Midnight Pass Road. Criminal Mischief. Victim told a sheriff’s deputy that he had been in an argument from afar, with another man. The victim was standing on his seventh-floor balcony and was in a dispute with the suspect, who was standing on a boat dock. At one point, the suspect walked up to the victim’s condo unit and knocked on the door. The victim’s girlfriend answered the door, but she kept the safety chain latched. The victim and suspect continued arguing, which led to the suspect kicking open the door and breaking the chain. The suspect stayed in the hallway, but kept yelling. The victim was able to close and lock the door. A sheriff’s deputy arrested the suspect.

Aug. 7
Abracadabra
1:30 a.m. — 5100 block of Ocean Boulevard. Grand Theft. A woman inside a nightclub put down her purse, turned away for a second and, poof, it had disappeared. The nightclub staff said it would check to see if the surveillance tape had captured the theft. The purse was worth $200; inside were a $400 cell phone and $300 in cash. Is David Copperfield in town?

Call the glass doctor
9:25 a.m. — 5200 block of Calle Menorca. Criminal Mischief. A woman left her vehicle parked in front of the above address all night. When she awoke, she walked out to her vehicle and noticed the rear window had a hole in it. It appeared someone had smashed the window. Deputies don’t believe it was a burglary attempt — just an attempt to annoy the vehicle owner. Mission accomplished. The woman had no idea who the culprit might have been. The damage was estimated at about $280.

Play Misty for me
6:18 p.m. — 4000 block of Radnor Place. Suspicious Incident. A musician was playing a set at a restaurant when a senior citizen requested some songs. After the performance, the man struck up a conversation with the musician, and the two exchanged numbers. Big mistake. The senior citizen began repeatedly calling and emailing the musician. He also began showing up at the musician’s girlfriend’s office, creating disturbances. A deputy tried calling the man, but he did not pick up the phone.

Aug. 9
A few = one
9:43 p.m. — Higel Avenue and Midnight Pass Road. Driving Under the Influence. A deputy saw a car speeding through Siesta Village and began following it. The car swerved across the double-yellow line more than once, so the deputy performed a traffic stop. The female driver was asked to undergo a routine sobriety test. After she had trouble following the deputy’s finger with her eyes, he instructed her to walk a straight line. She told the deputy, “You’re asking me to do a lot of crazy stuff. I don’t think I could do that if I was completely sober.” When asked if she had been drinking, the woman said she had “had a few.” The deputy asked specifically how many drinks she had had, and she replied, “One.” Another sign of intoxication — poor math skills.