BUSTED: This week in police reports: Thursday, Jan. 29

+ Fool Me Once

12:35 p.m., Jan. 23 / 3800 block of S. Tamiami Trail

Suspicious Incident

A caller contacted police to report overhearing a phone conversation that sounded like a scam. The woman was on the phone with someone claiming to be from Haiti who was requesting $1,700 to prevent her grandson from being transported from Mexico to Haiti to stand trial for drug charges.

When the officer explained to the woman that this was a common scam, she didn't believe him. He had her contact her daughter to verify her grandson was not in Mexico. She then called her grandson to further verify that he was not in Mexico and did not need money.

+ I Always Feel Like Somebody's Watching Me

7:00 p.m., Jan. 24 / 400 block of S. Shade Ave. 

Suspicious Incident

A man called the police to express concern that several late-model vehicles with dark-tinted windows had been driving by his home a lot lately. He was concerned they were undercover police officers looking for him, so he called to find out.

The officer told the man he wasn't wanted by police and it was possible just new residents in the area driving to and from work. The man stated that he was not afraid of them, just curious as to why they'd been constantly driving by his house.

+ Slasher

11:19 p.m., Jan. 24 / 1400 block of 18th St.

Criminal Mischief 

A caller advised police he'd been in a verbal dispute with his ex girlfriend after he returned from the grocery store. The woman had already packed her bags before he returned, and when he went into his bedroom, he saw that she had slashed his mattress multiple times with a box cutter. He didn't want to press charges; he just wanted the incident documented for future reference.

+ Spittin' Mad

11:00 a.m., Jan. 23 / 2600 block of Hyde Park St. 

Dispute/ Fight

An officer met with a woman regarding her ongoing dispute with a neighbor, which began several months ago when she accidentally ran over the woman's cat with her car.

Since then, the cat owner has called the woman names, flashed obscene gestures at her and spit at her. On this day, the woman was driving when she saw the woman come running toward her car to spit on it.

The officer went to the aggressor's house, but he said it was difficult to get her story due to her thick Russian accent and poor English. She said that she's mad at all her neighbors, not just the caller. The officer advised her to leave the woman alone.