Longboat Key Cops Corner: One car too many

Feb. 6

One car too many

11:44 p.m., 500 block of Bay Isles Parkway

Suspicious vehicle: While conducting a routine security check of a retail area, an officer became curious of a vehicle left in the parking area. A look-around of the area revealed no one connected to the vehicle and a check of its registration indicated nothing out of the ordinary.

Just checking

8:06 p.m., 2100 block of Harbour Oaks Drive

Citizen assist: A man called police to check on the authenticity of a new home health aide. An officer arrived to check the aide’s credentials and assured the man all was OK. Additionally, the officer spoke via phone to a relative.

Feb. 7

Where’s the fire, bub?

11:04 a.m., 300 block of Gulf of Mexico Drive

Traffic citation: While monitoring traffic, an officer spotted a car driving rapidly and confirmed its 63 mph speed with radar. When asked why the driver was 28 mph over the speed limit, the driver replied he was in a hurry to get somewhere. The driver was ticketed.

Leashed but still wrong

3:58 p.m., 4400 block of Gulf of Mexico Drive

Dog on the beach: Police issued a written warning to a person walking a leashed dog on the beach in violation of town ordinances.

All alone

10:11 p.m., 5300 block of Gulf of Mexico Drive

Suspicious vehicle: An officer on patrol became suspicious of a vehicle in a retail area’s parking lot after hours. The owner was not to be found and a check of the vehicle’s registration revealed nothing untoward.

Who called, then?

10:53 p.m., 400 block of L’Ambiance Drive

Rescue assist: Police assisted fire-rescue personnel with a report of a stuck elevator. When police arrived, an officer was told there had been no one in the stuck elevator.

Feb. 8

Making a report

10:17 a.m., 400 block of Broadway Street

Information report: An officer was flagged down by a woman wishing to report an incident that had taken place earlier. She said she had tried to make a left turn in her car but was hit by a bicycle crossing in front. She said the cyclist yelled and hit her car several times, scaring the driver. The woman said she sought to report the incident in case the bicyclist made a police report.

Power to the people

12:25 p.m., 6300 block of Gulf of Mexico Drive

Rescue assist: An officer was sent to the scene of a downed power line and directed traffic in the area until Florida Power and Light workers made repairs.

Where did that come from?

6:22 p.m., 7000 block of Longboat Drive East

Citizen assist: Police were called about street flooding in a neighborhood. An officer arrived to discover about an inch of water on the road, apparently flowing from a nearby cross street. A team from the town’s Public Works Department was already on the scene working on the problem. The original caller was informed of that information.

Feb. 9

Inclined to assist

11:08 a.m., Linley Street

Boating call: A complaint to police alerted officers about the presence of a barge at a public boat ramp, blocking the path for other vessels. An officer asked the crew of the barge why they were there and was told the crew was waiting on a supervisor to arrive with more work materials. The officer asked the crew to follow town regulations and move their vessel unless they were actively loading or unloading. The barge crew complied.

Trek into the woods

12:37 p.m., 6800 block of Gulf of Mexico Drive

Found property: Police were called after a business operator’s family member reported finding a bicycle in the woods behind their building. The bicycle was taken into safe-keeping and its serial number checked through a crime-information database.

Feb. 10

Making waves (illegally)

12:45 p.m., Linley Street boat ramp

Boating: The town’s marine patrol officer watched as a boat headed west from the Intracoastal Waterway at speed while creating a wake in the area of numerous anchored or moored boats. The boat eventually slowed to a no-wake speed as it came to a stop at the ramp. The officer recognized the vessel and its operator from an incident in which a verbal warning was issued. This time, the operator was given a citation for violating a slow-speed, minimum-wake zone.

No idea

3:51 p.m., Broadway Street

Traffic: An officer issued a speeding citation to a driver clocked on radar at 30 mph in a 20 mph zone. The driver told the officer the car’s speedometer did not indicate that speed.

It’s OK

6:30 p.m., Longboat Pass bridge

Suspicious person: A caller alerted police to the presence of a suspicious person underneath the bridge near one of the structure’s bumpers. Police determined the person was the bridge tender at work.

Taken care of

6:45 p.m., 100 block of North Shore Road

Fire assist: Police responded with fire-rescue to a report of a small fire near the west end of the street. Fire department personnel were already on the scene, extinguishing the flames with sand.

Missing, not missing

7:26 p.m., 2300 block of Harbour Oaks

Missing person: On the way to a report of a missing child, police learned the child had been accounted for. Police learned the child left a home via a back door without saying anything to go outside, resulting in a 911 call when adults couldn’t find the child. The adults said they would speak to the child about going outside without saying something. 

Feb. 11

Missed the flashing lights

11:40 a.m., 1000 block of Gulf of Mexico Drive

Traffic: The driver of a vehicle was ticketed after a police officer spotted it drive through a crosswalk with pedestrians waiting and activated flashing yellow lights. The driver told the officer she had not seen the crosswalk or the flashing yellow lights.  About an hour later in the same location, another vehicle was similarly cited, though that driver also received a citation for not wearing a seat belt.  A third and fourth driver were also cited there later in the day.

Helping out

7:20 p.m., 900 block of Spanish Drive South

Suspicious incident: A caller to police was concerned about a front door that might have been tampered with. An officer examined the locking mechanism and discovered some screws that needed tightening, allowing the deadbolt to again operate properly. The resident said the concern arose from an incident weeks earlier in which the keyless and wireless lock system alerted to a possible tampering attempt.

Feb. 12

Boat on the loose

8:55 a.m., 500 block of Kingfisher Lane

Boating call: A resident called police to report a 25-foot boat drifting in a residential canal. A neighbor managed to tie the boat to a dock, but there was no answer at the boat owner’s nearby home. A neighborhood representative said they would attempt to reach the boat’s owner.