Cops Corner: East County

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

July 3
THAT TAKES THE CAKE
2800 block of University Parkway. Theft. A loss-prevention officer of a supermarket reported the theft of a cake. Two unknown suspects had gone to the bakery to pick up a pre-ordered cake. After receiving the cake, the suspects selected two items from the deli. They then split up and paid for the deli items separately. They told the cashier they already had paid for the cake and exited the store. Loss prevention obtained receipts from the transaction and reviewed DVD footage. Staff called the suspects’ phones and left messages. Staff did not know the names of the suspects. One of the suspects sent in a photo of the cake from his cell phone, as the bakery manager had requested.

July 4
GONE IN A FLASH
5:16 p.m. — 6400 block of State Road 64 E. Theft. A man lent his duffle bag to a friend. When he got the bag back, he discovered a camera, which had been stored in the bag, was missing. His friend left the area before the complainant was able to confront him about the camera.

July 9
THE DAMAGE IS DONE
1:21 a.m. — 5300 block of 31st Circle E. Criminal Mischief. A woman reported her car was keyed on the driver and passenger side of her vehicle. She also found white powder sprinkled all over her vehicle. Her back window also was shattered. The victim does not know who could have violated her vehicle.

July 15
CAN'T STOP ME
2:53 a.m. — Intersection of 37th Street E. and 53rd Avenue E. Assist. The deputy canceled the traffic stop. When he did, the vehicle he was attempting to pull over crashed into two other vehicles. The driver fled the scene, before the deputy apprehended him.

July 16
EVEN THE KITCHEN SINK
10:07 a.m. — 3900 block of Lena Road. Information Only. The tenant of a rental home moved out without notifying anyone. The person who reported the incident had checked the residence July 11. He discovered many items had been removed from the home, including outside garage lights, a garage door opener, ceiling fans and lights, the kitchen faucet, toilets, showerheads and a deadbolt. The responding deputy determined no crime had been committed. There is no lease to review, and it is strictly a landlord/tenant issue, the deputy said.

POWDER PUFF
1:26 p.m. — 2700 block of 71st Drive E. Property Found. A woman’s son found a small bag of white powder in an unknown location. Deputies destroyed the powder.

July 17
LIFESAVER
 7:22 p.m. — 10700 block of Rodeo Drive. Trespass Warning. An ex-employee of a restaurant visited its bar to have a few drinks. Initially, he did not pay the bill for the drinks, but complied after staff members told him to do so. The person who reported this incident felt the ex-employee had had too much to drink. The ex-employee said he felt fine to drive and told the reporting person to call law enforcement, if she felt it necessary. She did. A deputy sat the ex-employee down on a bench and told him he could not drive. The deputy held the ex-employee by the shirt and pushed him against the wall. The man then cooperated. He called a friend to pick him up. The ex-employee said he felt violated and wanted to file a complaint against the deputy and the restaurant.