Cops Corner

Aug. 4

Toss up
7:54 p.m. — 3400 block of GMD. Disturbance. A man told police that he was hit in the head while riding his bike by a water bottle thrown from a silver Chevy Trailblazer or GMC SUV. Police were unable to locate the vehicle.

No sleepovers
10:24 p.m. — 4000 block of GMD. Code Enforcement. Police told two people sleeping inside of a camper parked at a beach access that an ordinance prohibits overnight camping within town limits.

No parking
11:28 p.m. — 100 block of GMD. Trespassing. Three people parked in a black Nissan Pathfinder received written warnings when police found the vehicle in a park after hours.

Aug. 5
Written word
1:30 a.m. — 100 block of GMD. Trespassing. Police gave written warnings to a man and woman who were in a park after hours.

Aug. 7

Screen stealer
7:54 a.m. — 2600 block of GMD. Larceny. A property manager discovered that two, new, flat-screen TVs were taken from the property’s storage area.

Fashion police
5:33 p.m. — 100 Broadway. Vehicle Burglary. A man and woman reported that five credit cards were taken from their rental car. They contacted their credit-card companies and learned that three purchases totaling $816.41 had been made at a local Dillard’s department store, and a purchase of $318.86 had been declined at a Macy’s store in the same mall.

Lock up
9:59 p.m. — Ave. of the Flowers. Security check. Police found the front door of a vacant office unlocked. Nothing appeared to be disturbed.

Fishing expedition
11:08 p.m. — 100 block of GMD. Larceny. An 18-year-old woman was arrested for grand theft after a man reported that his fishing pole, valued at $350, had been stolen. A witness identified the subject, and police found the fishing pole in the back of her vehicle. The woman said that she thought the fishing pole was her own, but she could not describe it.

Aug. 8
Not in the know
10:22 p.m. — 800 Broadway. Discharging Fireworks. Police responded to a call about a group of people who were setting off fireworks near the bay. The individuals were visiting the area and didn’t know about the town’s fireworks ordinance. Police gave them a verbal warning.

Sleep it off
6:18 p.m. — 2000 block of Harbourside Drive. Suspicious Person. A security guard called police when he noticed an intoxicated male, in his 20s, who was sleeping on the sidewalk in front of a condominium complex. The man headed toward Gulf of Mexico Drive when the guard woke him up. Police couldn’t locate the man.

Damage delivered
8:17 a.m. — 3300 block of GMD. Vandalism. A man reported that the flag and front flap had been ripped off his mailbox and that some garden lights had been damaged as well. A neighbor had similar damage to his mailbox. The man told police that he suspects another adult with whom he has had issues.

Dive emergency
1:26 p.m. — Off the Key. Assist Other Agency. Police responded to a call from a marine VHF radio about a diver who was unconscious and discovered by a vessel. Police traveled approximately seven miles by boat and helped officials from the U.S. Coast Guard, Longboat Key Fire Rescue and Manatee County Marine Patrol to load the diver onto a stretcher. The diver was taken by helicopter to a local hospital.

Beach burglary
1:28 p.m. — 1600 block of GMD. Larceny. A teen reported that her iPod Touch was stolen from her beach bag.

Friend finder
2:47 p.m. — 5300 block of GMD. Trespassing, Providing False Information. A manager reported that two men and one woman were on hotel property but were not staying there. The individuals said that they were visiting friends who were staying at the hotel but would not give the friends’ names. They didn’t know which hotel their friends were staying at but said that it had a white fence. One man gave a false name, address and date of birth and left the scene to find a pay phone. He was found and arrested for providing false information to police and an active warrant in Hillsborough County.

Fire fighter
10:10 p.m. — 5600 block of GMD. Code Enforcement. A woman put out a fire on the beach after police told her about a town ordinance prohibiting beach fires.

Aug. 10

Power trip
9:37 a.m. — 6700 block of GMD. Larceny. Condominium maintenance employees reported that a chain saw, power saw and two power trimmers were taken without permission. The total value of the items was $1,200.

Paper trail
1:25 p.m. — 1100 block of GMD. Public Service. Police asked dispatch to contact waste management about a truck spilling large amounts of paper waste. Police returned to the scene and found that all paper had been removed.

Aug. 12
Tag, you’re it
6:58 a.m. — 2100 block of GMD. Traffic Violation. Police arrested a man who had an improper tag on his vehicle. The man said that he bought the Ford van approximately one week earlier but didn’t have the money to transfer the tag.

Dog walkers
10:51 a.m. — 5700 block of GMD. Code Enforcement. Two men and a woman received a warning for walking their dogs on the beach. The individuals were visiting the area and didn’t know about the town’s ordinance that prohibits dogs on the beach.

What a pill
12:02 p.m. — 5300 block of GMD. Fraud. A man attempted to obtain 300 Oxycodone and 60 Xanax tablets from a pharmacy by using a false prescription. A pharmacist called the Tampa doctor who confirmed the prescriptions were fraudulent.

Car casualty
12:17 p.m. — 5300 block of GMD. Property Damage. A man reported scratches on the rear bumper of his vehicle that he believed were caused by flying debris or a weed-eater line from a landscaping company. The company sent a supervisor to look at the damage.