Cops Corner: Pelican Press

Nov. 6
Where am I?
4:04 a.m. — 5300 block of Ocean Boulevard. Impaired Person. A caller complained that when he woke up, a man he did not know was in his hotel room. When a deputy arrived, the deputy found the man sleeping in a chair in the room. The man appeared to be intoxicated; the deputy had difficulty waking him. Once he was awake, the man didn’t know where he was or how he had ended up there. He also told the deputy he had no idea where he was staying in Sarasota, and he could provide no phone number for the deputy to call, to reach someone to take care of him. The man said he had drunk 24 beers the previous night, but he would not say whether he was an alcoholic. He did tell the deputy he drinks every day. The deputy invoked the Marchman Act and transported the man to Sarasota Memorial Hospital for treatment.

Nov. 14
A practice run, perhaps
4 p.m. — 4700 block of Gleason Avenue. Residential Burglary. A woman told a deputy someone had burglarized her home between 2 and 4 p.m., while she was away. Someone had forced open the locked bathroom door window, breaking the glass. The deputy also found pry marks on the doorjamb. However, no items appeared to be missing. The deputy contacted the adjacent neighbors, but they said they had heard nothing suspicious.

Nov. 15
Taking the tools, too
11:50 p.m. — 5100 block of Jungle Plum Road. Civil Disturbance. A man contacted the Sheriff’s Office to complain that he had hired a subcontractor to complete work between Oct. 25 and Nov. 11 at a single-family residence. However, the complainant said the work had not been completed in that time frame; in fact, it hadn’t even begun. The complainant provided documentation of the contract he had signed with the subcontractor. As a result of the circumstances, the contract allowed the complainant to use the subcontractor’s equipment, so he had taken possession of it. The complainant also notified the deputy he had requested the subcontractor return the complainant’s deposit in the amount of $12,240.

Nov. 16
Better than a beach chair
9:30 a.m. — 300 block of Calle Miramar. Petit Theft. A man called the Sheriff’s Office to report that someone had taken a futon mattress and assorted pillows from an area beside a house. No witnesses were reported.

Those costly military gadgets
12:45 p.m. — 1200 block of Big Oak Lane. ID Theft. A woman reported that someone had used her personal information to open a line of credit at the Pentagon Federal Credit Union in Alexandria, Va., and $500 had been taken. The Sheriff’s Office had no suspect in the case.

Just too tempting
7:51 p.m. — 900 block of Beach Road. Petit Theft. A woman reported that she was on a date at the Siesta Public Beach when she left her purse on a towel and went for a walk. When she returned, the purse was missing; it contained her cell phone, her driver’s license and credit cards. The responding deputy walked up and down the beach and checked the trashcans and recycling bins, but he found no sign of the purse. He also tried calling the woman’s cell phone number, but no one answered.

Nov. 17
Caught in the act
2:47 p.m. — 6000 block of Midnight Pass Road. Suspicious Incident. A man reported that a contractor hired by one person had stolen property of another person, and the incident had been recorded on video. The contractor was confronted, and the property was returned to the owner. The complainant said he wanted the contractor warned not to trespass on the property. The deputy informed the contractor, who said he understood and would not return.

Nov. 24
From bad to worse
12:40 a.m. — 5100 block of Ocean Boulevard. Resisting Arrest and Disorderly Intoxication. A deputy working a security detail at a Village bar heard a fight was taking place outside. After he found two men arguing, a second deputy helped the first deputy separate the two men. One man alleged that the other had taken his wallet earlier and refused to return it, saying the man owned him money. As the deputies were talking with the first man, the second man began walking toward them in a threatening manner and yelling profanity at the first man. The first deputy ordered the second man to turn around and put his hands behind his back. The man did so, but when the deputy reached for the man’s arm, he began to pull away and whirled around to face the deputy. The second deputy then assisted the first deputy in handcuffing the man. The first deputy charged the man with resisting arrest. During the confrontation, the first deputy also reported a strong odor of alcohol from the man, which led to the charge of disorderly intoxication.