Bootleg parasailing prompts police response on Longboat Key

Saturday, Oct. 4

Bootleg parasailing

3:04 p.m., 4052 Gulf of Mexico Drive

Suspicious person: Cops were called to a public park on Sarasota Bay after an anonymous caller told dispatchers they saw a surfer holding a rope being pulled by an electric bike. Not quite parasailing, the officer attempted to locate the biker surfer duo, but could not locate either. The case was closed.

Monday, Oct. 6

Laptop down

11:57 a.m., 6695 Gulf of Mexico Drive

Lost/found property: A man was driving north on Gulf of Mexico Drive when he noticed a handbag in the middle of the road. The man got out of his vehicle and retrieved the bag in hopes of identifying who the bag belonged to. He found a silver MacBook, but no identifying information. Police inventoried the bag, finding jewelry and an envelope from a nearby resort with a last name written on it. Also in the bag was an airline ticket to Las Vegas, a flight already in the air. Police contacted the resort, which provided the number to the outbound guest. Police left multiple voicemail messages, entered the purse with its contents into the station and closed the case.

Tuesday, Oct. 7

Not the government-issued laptop!

9:23 a.m., 5100 block of Gulf of Mexico Drive

Citizen assist: A man called police after leaving his backpack in an Uber with some important things inside. The man told officers that he ordered an Uber from the airport the night before because his license was suspended, and while unloading his luggage and bicycle, forgot to grab his backpack. Inside were his government-issued laptop and credentials. He was unable to reach the Uber driver, so he called the police for assistance. When police arrived, the Uber driver returned and gave the backpack back to the man, all important belongings intact. The case was closed.

Thursday, Oct. 9

Walking around in a suspicious nature

3:13 p.m., Bayou Sound

Suspicious person: The owner of a house in a gated community called the police when they saw two young men walking around on a property while the homeowners were out of town. The caller stated that two men in their late 20s or 30s could be seen walking around on security cameras, with one holding a tree trimmer in their hand. The caller said there was no work scheduled and requested police check the premises “due to the suspicious nature of the subjects’ presence,” according to the police report. When police arrived, they saw a yard maintenance crew conducting work in the vicinity, checked the residence in question for signs of forced entry, saw none, saw no suspicious persons on the property, determined there was no need for law enforcement activity and closed the case.