Cops Corner: Sarasota

Oct. 29
SILVER FOX
5 p.m. 1200 block of South East Avenue. Suspicion General. A silver collector posted a listing on Craigslist seeking silver to purchase. Another man contacted the collector and told him he had silver to sell. The collector purchased $3,762 worth of silver from the other man in cash. While the collector was driving home, he looked at the silver and thought the items looked suspicious and overly shiny. The man conducted tests on the silver at home and found them to be counterfeit. The man attempted to contact the seller, but the number he was given went to a fax machine.

Oct. 31
HOT PURSUIT
1:30 p.m. 2300 block of Rose Street. Dispute/Fight. A man said he has had an ongoing dispute with his neighbor since July. On this day, he asked his neighbor’s wife about some beer cans that were thrown into his yard. The neighbor, from the garage, said, “I’m going to get him.” When the man left his house shortly afterward, his neighbor followed him from the county into the city. An officer advised the man to drive to the police station. The neighbor drove away when the man arrived at the station.

DOWNED STAIRS
6 p.m. 400 block of Benjamin Franklin Drive. Criminal Mischief. A person reported an unknown suspect knocked the wooden staircase off a lifeguard tower at the beach. The suspect also knocked off both of the side rails, making the staircase unusable. No witnesses came forward regarding the incident.

Nov. 1
BOARD GAMES
10 a.m. 800 block of Hudson Avenue. Dispute/Fight. A member of a condominium association said the board had been experiencing turmoil for several months, and tenants were upset. He said several neighbors were unhappy with the board’s actions, and he believed people were damaging property at the condominium as a result. Sprinkler heads, air conditioning units and benches were reported as damaged or removed.

PIPE CLEANER
7:11 p.m. 1000 block of 47th Street. Found Property. A woman said her roommate was moving out of her house. In the process of taking his trash out, she found a pipe that she believed to be drug paraphernalia. The pipe was taken by the police to be destroyed.

Nov. 2
FIRED FIGHT
10:25 a.m. 3550 block of South Osprey Avenue. Dispute/Fight. A woman said she fired an employee for his performance, and the next day he began sending her harassing text messages. The former employee called her names and threatened to call the health department on her restaurant. The former employee also mentioned the fire department, but made no specific threat to damage the property.