Cops Corner: Pelican Press

Feb. 29
Mischievous manatees?
9 p.m. — 600 block of Sandy Nook Street. Criminal Mischief. A 77-year-old man called the Sheriff’s Office to report damage to his 29-foot boat, which he kept on a lift along the canal, at the rear of his property. He said that in the past two days, he had noticed the rope holding down a tarp covering the rear seating area had been cut. He said he also had seen some greasy spots in the cabin area, but he was unsure of their source. He told the responding deputy that he had repaired the rope the first time it was damaged by tying a knot in it, only to find it cut again. He said he would repair it one more time. When the deputy suggested that someone was boarding the boat and cutting the rope, the man told the deputy he never had thought of that. The man said he had found nothing missing. The deputy suggested he keep an eye on the boat that night. If he saw the rope had been cut again, the deputy said, the man should not approach the boat but, instead, call the Sheriff’s Office.

March 2
wash dishes? Yes!
6:33 p.m. — 5200 block of Ocean Boulevard. Defrauding an Innkeeper. A security employee of a Village restaurant and bar called the Sheriff’s Office to report that he was following a 33-year-old man who reportedly had not paid his bill. When the deputy arrived on the scene, the suspect told the deputy he had been at the restaurant with two other people whom he did not know and that they had offered to pay the bill. When the deputy talked with the group’s waitress, she said the suspect and two other people had ordered dinner and alcoholic beverages. After they finished their meal, she said, they stood up and walked out, without paying the $104.81 bill. She ran down the street after them, she added, and when she caught up with them, the two people the 33-year-old suspect said he did not know ran off. The suspect asked her, “What do you want me to do? Wash dishes? I don’t have any money.” The suspect then walked away from her, she said. At that point, the security person from the restaurant arrived on the scene and began following the suspect, she added. When the deputy searched the suspect, the deputy found a total of $8 on his person. The deputy arrested the man for retail theft, because the man knowingly and willfully had ordered and consumed food and beverages with no means or intent to pay for them, the deputy reported.

March 3
He learned A lesson
1:01 a.m. — 5200 block of Ocean Boulevard. No Endorsement for Operation of a Motorcycle. A Sheriff’s Office lieutenant stopped a 30-year-old male motorcyclist after observing him driving recklessly. During the traffic stop, the lieutenant discovered the man did not possess a motorcycle endorsement on his Florida driver’s license.

It’s that time of year
8:21 p.m. — 5100 block of Ocean Boulevard. Disturbance. The general manager of a Village bar asked a deputy to trespass a 22-year-old man from the establishment, because the man had created numerous disturbances.

A few too many
5:39 p.m. — 5200 block of Ocean Boulevard. Disorderly Conduct. A deputy responding to a call from a Village convenience store found a 49-year-old man who appeared to be extremely intoxicated. Numerous witnesses told the deputy the man had been in the area for hours, causing a disturbance. A manager of a nearby Village restaurant reported that the man had asked all the girls in the restaurant to show him a certain part of their anatomy. The manager had asked the man to leave, but the man had refused. After the man finally left, the manager saw the man relieving himself at the side of the building.

March 7
Forgot the food
2:55 p.m. — 400 block of Beach Road. Impaired Person. A deputy found a 44-year-old man passed out on Siesta Beach. After the deputy woke him up, the man said he had drunk 12 beers, but he hadn’t eaten anything in the past two days. The deputy was unable to contact any members of the man’s family, or any of his friends, so the deputy took him to a local agency for assistance.

He said it
4:23 p.m. — 5200 block of Ocean Boulevard. Driving Under the Influence. A deputy stopped a sport utility vehicle traveling north on Ocean Boulevard after seeing the driver was not wearing a seatbelt and that the vehicle had a cracked front windshield. The 25-year-old driver climbed out of the vehicle when the deputy walked up to him. The deputy ordered him back into the vehicle, noting that the driver’s eyes were bloodshot and his speech was slurred. The deputy also reported the driver was not wearing a shirt; he had on shorts, which appeared to be sandy, and boat shoes. The deputy added that the driver was polite. The driver said he had not drunk any alcoholic beverages, but he exhibited difficulty performing sobriety exercises; therefore, the deputy took him to jail. Once there, the driver admitted he had had three beers at the beach with friends. They had started drinking about 1:30 p.m., he said, but he had had nothing to eat since 8:30 a.m. Asked whether he blamed anyone else for his actions that day, the driver told the deputy, “No, I &%$#ed up.”