Cops Corner 11.12.09

Oct. 31
Follow that smell!
3:22 p.m. — 6500 block of South Tamiami Trail. Grand Theft. A cosmetics-store manager said two women walked into the store, placed 13 bottles of perfume into a basket, dumped the basket into their purses and walked out the door. The manager said she would give detectives a surveillance tape of the incident.

Nov. 2
Shadow man
9 a.m. — 1 block of Lemon Avenue. General Suspicion. A man told police that someone appears to have been following him for the past few days as he walks from the bus station. He got a tag number off the follower’s car, which has appeared every day at about 8:45 a.m. Police say the car is registered to a man from Boca Raton. There’s no known connection at this time between the two men.

No locksmith required
11:30 a.m. — 1000 block of Euclid Avenue. Petit Theft. During their workout, someone stole a woman’s wallet and her husband’s wallet from the woman’s locker. She did not place a lock on the locker, and there are no surveillance cameras in the locker room.

Nov. 3
Appearing act
12:45 p.m. — 8400 block of Woodbriar Drive. Burglary. The victim returned home from work and noticed several items missing from his son’s room, including a videogame system, iPod and cell phone. The man immediately suspected one of his son’s friends, because he believes the friend previously stole a laptop computer from his home. He did not report that theft, because he felt he could get the computer back without getting the boy into trouble. The victim went to the friend’s house and told his father about the incident. The father defended his son, saying he didn’t steal anything. A short time later, the father gave the victim’s son the stolen laptop computer, without saying how he got it. A deputy called the suspect’s father, who immediately stated that he was an attorney in Michigan and that “he doesn’t talk to cops.” He refused to say where he had gotten the computer and said no charges could be filed against his son, because there was no proof. The deputy told him that the investigation would continue until they returned all the stolen items.

B.Y.O.B
1 p.m. — 1400 block of Main Street. Theft. A bar manager said one of his bartenders saw a woman steal three kegs of beer from the bar. Surveillance video shows the woman placing the kegs into her car and driving away. The manager called a food store on Swift Avenue to inform them of the theft, because he knew the food store bought beer kegs from customers. Sure enough, the woman went to the food store and tried to sell three kegs. She was caught and was taken to jail.

Smoke break
2:20 p.m. — 2100 block of Siesta Drive. Fight. The victim called police to report a woman ran up to her, screamed at her and punched her in the face. Officers found the woman and asked her why she attacked the victim. The woman said a few minutes earlier, she was driving and had to stop her car in the middle of the road. The victim was behind her and honked at her, before passing. The woman followed the victim into the parking lot to confront her. The woman told the officer that she had just quit smoking and was already agitated. She said the honking horn put her over the edge.