Police order trespasser down from a construction crane

Wednesday, Feb. 7

Nothing to see here

6:56 p.m., 1500 block of 20th Street

Dispute: A woman told police that a man with an alliterative name that sounds like a cartoon character that may or may not have been real — officers were perhaps skeptical as the name was bracketed by quote marks in the incident report — attempted to run over her with a pickup truck after she asked him to move it. 

The report also states “when (the complainant) described the motions that (the subject) made, it did not appear that (he) attempted to run her over.”

The complainant stated that she was standing on the sidewalk in front of her home while the subject was parked on the street, when he became upset regarding her request. As the officers put the testimony together, they determined the subject put the truck in reverse and then left the area. They found no tire marks, nor was the dirt disturbed in the area where the subject allegedly aggressively backed up the truck. 

With neither evidence nor witnesses, no further action was taken.

A lesson in locking

12:37 a.m., 700 block of Cocoanut Avenue

Suspicious incident: Law enforcement constantly reminds people to keep their car doors locked. That advice paid off for several vehicle owners parked along Florida Avenue near Cocoanut Avenue. 

A complainant advised an officer that as he was reviewing camera footage around a residential building when he observed an unknown subject riding an electric bike on Florida Avenue pulling door handles on cars as he rode by them around 12:16 a.m. The video footage showed the subject attempting to open three vehicles before continuing northbound on Florida Avenue.

None of the vehicles on the video were broken into and their doors were locked. A BOLO was issued in an attempt to locate the subject, who was wearing red pants, a dark-colored long-sleeve shirt and a helmet. Officers canvassed the area with no results.

Friday, Feb. 9

Bored daredevil

10 p.m., 300 block of Quay Commons

Trespassing: Passersby noticed a male standing on top of a construction crane in The Quay and called law enforcement to investigate. An officer met with a witness who advised a man was standing at the edge of the crane and was unaware whether he was in distress. 

By the time officers spotted the subject, he was sitting near the stairs portion of the crane. They made several demands for him to come down safely, and after the third such pronouncement he was observed descending the stairs of the crane. There were several "No Trespassing" signs posted around the construction site, additionally stating that it was a felony to trespass on the property. 

The subject told officers he was not having a mental episode and is not suicidal, only that he “was simply bored and wanted to climb the crane,” according to the report. The man was charged with trespassing and was arrested.

Sunday, Feb. 11

Dodged a bullet

8:05 a.m., Bay Street

Property damage: Suspecting his ex-fiancé’s new man is responsible for damaging his two pickup trucks, a complainant called police about an incident that occurred between midnight and 4 a.m. 

The first vehicle, a black Chevrolet truck, had both the front and rear driver's side windows and the rear panel window over the bed of the truck smashed by an unknown object, and all four tires slashed. The complainant estimated that the tires were worth $450 each and the total value of the damaged windows to be at least $4,000.

The second damaged vehicle was a white work truck with both front tires slashed, as well as both dually tires on the rear driver's side of the vehicle, with what appeared to be the same knife or blade. 

When asked by the officer, the complainant identified who he believes is the suspect — the new boyfriend at the request of the ex-fiancé. After breaking up with his formerly betrothed “several weeks back” she began dating another man. He said he has been having issues with both of them for several weeks as they have been calling him from the new man’s phone and both have been driving past his house. He said he believes the issue to be related to the fact that she told her new boyfriend that her ex-fiancé, the victim, was engaging in intimate relations with the new boyfriend’s ex-girlfriend.

There were no cameras that captured the incident and there are no known witnesses. The complainant was provided with a victim's rights brochure and case number.