Cops Corner

May 24
Don’t bite the hand that feeds
8:45 a.m. — 1400 block of Main Street. Animal Bite. A man in a pickup truck stopped a police volunteer to ask her about the new downtown parking meters. When she reached in his truck to hand him a brochure, his dog clamped down on her arm. The man gave the woman his information. The volunteer received hospital treatment for a minor laceration. There you have it — the unintended consequences of parking
meters.

No second helpings
Noon — 3800 block of South Tamiami Trail. Petit Theft Shoplifting. A shoplifting team had been hitting several supermarkets in town. The manager of the supermarket at the above address saw the two women enter his store. Once they realized they were being watched, they walked over to the deli counter and ordered a box of chicken tenders and rolls and a soda. When they thought they weren’t being watched, they walked out of the store without paying. The manager caught them, though, and got the food back, before the women fled.

Doesn’t look quite right
2:48 p.m. — Bahia Vista Street and Tuttle Avenue. Suspicious Person. The complainant spotted a man with a long gray beard, who was wearing a dirty white shirt. He was pulling two children in a wagon. The complaint felt something was fishy, because the man was filthy and the children were clean and well dressed. The complainant wanted police to check on the welfare of the children.

May 25
Dog days of summer
2:29 p.m. — 2200 block of Ringling Blvd. Animal Abandonment. The complainant reported a dog locked in a vehicle appeared to be in distress. By the time an officer arrived, the pet owner had returned to the vehicle, and the complainant had given the dog some water. The owner was apologetic and said he thought because he had cracked the window, the dog would be OK. The officer gave the man a warning, but said, under certain conditions, he could have been arrested.

Role models
2:53 p.m. — 1 block of Bayfront Drive. Suspicious Person. Parents at the children’s water fountain at Bayfront Park were complaining, because several homeless people were smoking some kind of drug and passing it back and forth to each other.

High-speed chase
3:55 p.m. — 100 block of South Pineapple Avenue. Attempted Theft. Two police officers were eating lunch in a restaurant, when they saw a young man bolt past the window. A couple of seconds later, they saw another man run by. Sensing something was wrong, the officers joined in the chase. The second man, who is a church employee, yelled to the officers that the first man had just tried to steal a television from the church. They finally caught the suspect three-and-a-half blocks from the scene of the crime. The employee said he had walked out of the church office to see the suspect in the hallway and holding the flat-screen TV. The suspect dropped it and ran. When police searched the suspect, they found a TV remote control in his pocket.