Cops Corner: Sarasota

June 16
Element of surprise
12:21 a.m. — 1500 block of Main Street. Public Drunkenness. A man walking down the middle of Main Street, drinking a can of beer, didn’t notice the police officer approaching him until the officer walked right in front of his path. When the man realized an officer was in front of him, he said, “Oh, snap! You got me!”

Spare change
10:57 a.m. — 1100 block of Central Avenue. Panhandling. A man reported that a woman approached him and aggressively asked him for a dollar while he was walking down the road. She was told to stop asking for money and agreed to do so.

Loud and clear
4:18 p.m. — 100 block of Golden Gate Point. Noise Violation. A man was asked to keep the music down at his party. The man told police his neighbor has been calling the police on him since he filed harassment charges against him.

June 18
Rock steady
4:50 a.m. — 1900 block of Fifth Street. Criminal Mischief. A woman reported a man drinking alcohol outside her home was shouting obscenities and banging on her door. When she didn’t answer her door, he threw a rock through her window. The man was located and arrested.

Bail bummer
12:53 p.m. — 1900 block of Fruitville Road. Schemes to Defraud. A man pretending to be a bail bondsman took $150 in cash from a man who was trying to get his son out of jail.

Premature celebration
9:12 p.m. — 300 block of South Washington Drive. Disturbing the Peace. A man complained that fireworks were being set off near his home. Police spoke to a man renting a house nearby, and the firework activity ceased.

June 19
Kicking up their heels
8:13 a.m. — 1800 block of South Osprey Avenue. Criminal Mischief. A business owner told police someone used his feet to destroy the landscaping in front of his business.

Through the looking glass
9:58 a.m. — 1600 block of Main Street. Suspicious Person. An employee told police a woman was panhandling outside the business and pressing her face on the store’s glass to look inside. When police arrived, she told them she would leave.

Name doesn’t check out
3:03 p.m. — 1100 block of South Tamiami Trail. Suspicious Circumstance. A man, who lost his driver’s license about a month ago, told police someone tried to cash checks in his name.

Unwelcome stay
4 p.m. — 1200 block of North Palm Avenue. Suspicious Vehicle. A white pickup truck parked on the first floor of a parking garage for a long time belonged to the city of North Port. Calls were made for an employee to come and remove the truck.

Pinot Greed-io
5:22 p.m. — 1300 block of South Tamiami Trail. Shoplifting. A man grabbed a bottle of wine in a grocery store, stuffed it in a grocery bag and took it to the customer service counter to get a cash refund for it. He was trespassed from the property.

Meat and flee
7:32 p.m. — 1300 block of South Tamiami Trail. Shoplifting. A balding, unshaven man walked down a grocery store aisle and grabbed four packages of ribs totaling $44.15 and stuffed them in his jeans before fleeing the store.

Down the pants
11:32 p.m. — 1000 block of North Tamiami Trail. Suspicious Circumstance. A convenience-store employee reported seeing a man grab a malt beverage and stuff it down his pants before fleeing the store.

June 20
I’ll drink to that
2:36 a.m. — 10 block of North School Avenue. Public Drunkenness. A man drinking cans of beer on the side of a building took one last swig before agreeing to dump out what he had left.