Cops Corner: East County

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

July 18
Double take
9:32 p.m. — 5800 block of Ranch Lake Boulevard. Suspicious Incidents. Two people at a department store loaded a plastic bin with items for which they didn’t pay. They noticed an employee watching them and abandoned the plastic bin. A deputy responded to the scene. The store employee who reported the incident said no crime was committed, and he didn’t want the people arrested. The deputy prepared to leave. As the two people exited the store, the deputy followed them to a maroon Buick. The deputy wrote down the vehicle’s tag for investigative purposes. The deputy soon learned the two people had been at the same location earlier that day and had stolen two bins with merchandise in it. The deputy questioned witnesses. He learned one of the people in question was a skinny male with short hair who wore camouflage pants. He also had facial hair. The other person wass a female, who is also thin with short hair.

Aug. 11
Dog’s worst friend
12:01 a.m. — 5800 block of Ranch Lake Boulevard. Abandoned Animal. A person parked her vehicle in the parking lot of a department store. She left her two dogs in the car for an extended period of time.

Aug. 22
Weapon watcher
11:54 a.m. — Country Park Way and University Parkway. Information Only. A deputy responded to a vehicle crash at the request of the Florida Highway Patrol. The owner of the vehicle was being transported to the emergency room, and he needed someone to secure his weapons. The deputy placed the weapons — a firearm, ammo, magazines and a tool bag — into evidence for safekeeping. The firearm was legally owned.

Aug. 23
Certain ring to it
4:20 p.m. — 6200 38th Street E. Theft. While a man spent time with his ill wife at a nursing home, he hired a maid to clean the home during this time. He gave her full, unsupervised access to the home. On this day, he returned home to find his fake diamond ring missing. It is valued at $2,000. He suspected the carpet cleaners or maid had stolen it. An investigator ran a pawn record search under the maid’s name. The investigator found a transaction under her name from the same time period. A ring on the pawn ticket matched the ring described by the victim. The victim joined the investigator at the pawnshop. They both agreed the rings matched.

Aug. 26
Credit closed
1:33 p.m. — 6100 9th Avenue Circle N.E. Fraud. Unknown person(s) used the victim’s personal information to make an account with the Navy Federal Credit Union. The account has been closed due to an investigation into possible fraud.

Dodging traffic
6:50 p.m. — 7800 block of Lockwood Ridge Road. Confiscated Property. A deputy conducted a traffic stop. The man had a suspended driver’s license for failing to pay traffic fines. The deputy issued the man a traffic citation for speeding and seized his license to be destroyed.

Aug. 27
High jacked
12:20 a.m. — 6000 block of State Road 64 E. Theft. A person concealed items at a department store and then exited without paying. Items were valued at $47.26. The person was arrested. Upon a search of the person, deputies found three broken glass pipes with burn marks and drug residue. These pipes are commonly used to smoke crack cocaine. The pipes tested positive for cocaine.

Lock it or lose it
7:20 p.m. — 4900 block of 72nd Court E. Burglary. Unknown person(s) entered a vehicle through an unlocked door. The person(s) went through the glove box and took items before fleeing by unknown means.