COPS CORNER: East County

The following information was gathered from incident and arrest reports obtained from the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office. 

Aug. 1
EXTREME MEASURES
5:57 a.m. — 8500 block of State Road 70 E. Criminal Mischief. A suspect threw a tape measure at the victim’s vehicle. It hit the dashboard. When the victim arrived at work, the suspect then threw an unknown object, which struck the driver’s side door. A deputy observed a minor scratch to the side of the vehicle. The victim estimated damages at $150.

Aug. 5
Big mistake
2:11 p.m. — 5000 block of Lakescene Place. Information Only. Unknown person(s) used a woman’s Social Security number for the person(s)’ child on the person(s)’ taxes. The victim said she discovered the information when her accountant called her and said she could not electronically file her taxes for that reason. The victim thinks this might be a case of fraud, but it also might be a tax mistake.

Aug. 7
Free for all
3:55 a.m. — 13300 block of Purple Finch Circle. Burglary. A deputy patrolled the listed location. He observed an unknown person entering a vehicle. The deputy later made contact with the vehicle’s owner. The vehicle’s owner was not the person entering the vehicle. The unknown person rummaged through the glove compartment and center console. Items were taken. Fingerprints turned up negative results.

Aug. 10
Overseas prank
4:46 p.m. — 4400 block of Murfield Drive E. Information Only. A woman reported a suspicious phone call. A man left a voicemail saying a package needed to be delivered to a man the woman knows to be dead. After researching the phone number on the Internet, the deputy found people had made similar posts regarding the same message. The phone number is listed as a scam. The deputy tried to call the number, but it was disconnected. The phone number is based out of Jamaica.

Aug. 10
Open offender
11:56 p.m. — 8300 Legacy Boulevard. Marijuana Possession. While conducting normal patrol, a deputy saw a vehicle parked outside of a closed business. The deputy approached the vehicle and smelled marijuana. The man inside the vehicle had marijuana in his pocket. The offender also admitted he had a bag in the back of the vehicle that contained a “large amount of marijuana.” The deputy arrested the offender, who was transported to jail without incident.

Aug. 11
Crack open the case
9:04 a.m. — 3000 43rd Avenue E. Criminal Mischief. A man said someone broke a window to his vehicle. The man said his daughter’s ex-boyfriend could have been involved in the incident. A deputy responded and found pieces of a vodka bottle on the ground. It appeared the bottle was used to break the window. The deputy also found a beer can.

Wanted bicyclist
10:39 p.m. — 1300 block of Morgan Johnson Road. Warrant Arrest. While on routine patrol, a deputy saw a person committing several violations while riding his bicycle. The deputy stopped the bicyclist and determined he had a warrant out for his arrest. The man was taken into custody without incident. Upon a search, the deputy found three bottles of pills inside the man’s bag. The bicyclist said the medicine was prescribed to him, but, nonetheless, deputies destroyed the pills. Deputies also found ammunition and an unloaded BB gun in the bicyclist’s backpack.

Aug. 12
Crude text
2:33 p.m. — 3200 block of 54th Drive E. Transfer Electronic Information. Unknown person(s) sent numerous pornographic videos to another person’s cell phone. The mother of the person who received the porn contacted law enforcement.

Aug. 17
Power trip
12:32 a.m. — 3000 block of 26th Avenue E. Vehicle Burglary. Unknown person(s) entered a storage facility inside a mobile home by cutting a lock on a fence. The person(s) then cut the power cord to the mobile home and fled in an unknown direction.

Aug. 18
Run for it
7:17 a.m. — 3400 block of 27th Street Court E. Burglary. A deputy conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle that was stolen. The vehicle’s driver gave the deputy a false name and fled north. The deputy followed him. When the driver reached a dead end, he stopped the vehicle, exited it and fled by foot. He then jumped a fence into a person’s backyard. The culprit exited the backyard and continued to flee west into a wooded area. The culprit could not be located. The deputy obtained the culprit’s correct information from the registered owner of the vehicle.

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