Cops Corner: Longboat Key

Nov. 20
The heat is on
10:59 a.m. — 2600 block of GMD. Fire. Firefighter/paramedics investigated the smell of smoke at a resort. They determined that the smell was emanating from the heating system that had just been turned on for the first time since last year.

No cause for alarm
7:45 p.m. — 1000 block of Bogey Lane. Burglar Alarm. Police were dispatched to a home where a burglar alarm went off and noticed a sliding glass door in the back of the home was open. There were no signs of intrusion, and the open door likely activated the alarm.

Nov. 21
Name dropping
3:53 p.m. — 4500 block of GMD. Phone Call. A man phoned a Longboat Key woman claiming to be her grandson in need of financial assistance. He hung up the phone after the woman became suspicious and asked him to tell her his first, middle and last name. The woman called her family and confirmed her grandson is fine. Police gave the woman information about phone scams.

Dead man talking
5:43 p.m. — 500 block of Bay Isles Parkway. Illness. Police were dispatched to a drug store after a caller reported someone was unconscious or dead inside the bathroom. The store manager told police she overheard a customer talking on his cellphone to someone with an Indian accent who claimed to represent the Treasury Department and threatened to place a call for an emergency response if he did not cooperate. The customer hung up on him.

Nov. 22
Explicit order
6:36 a.m. — 600 block of Cedars Court. Civil Disturbance. A man asked if everything was OK after noticing someone was following him and his wife as they walked to a convenience store with their infant son. The driver said, “It (expletive) might be and it (expletive) might not. You have until Monday to get out.” The couple is being evicted from their unit and said they plan to pay what they owe and leave as soon as they find a place. Police told them they can still occupy the unit until the owner has a court-ordered eviction.

Sunken ship
2:25 p.m. — Off the Key. Boat. Police got a call about a vessel in distress and found a 30-foot sailboat partially submerged with its mast buried into the bottom of the bay. Another boater took the vessel’s passengers on board, all of whom were fine. Friends of the boat’s owners towed the vessel to shore.

Nov. 23
Underwater object
11:21 a.m. — Off the Key. Public Service. The Manatee Sheriff’s Office marine unit contacted police about an object submerged in 8 to 10 feet of water. Police could not determine what the object was but determined it did not appear to be a hazard to boaters.

You’re not from around here
9:39 a.m. — 6300 block of GMD. Dog on the Beach. Police told a man that dogs are prohibited on the beach. The man said he and his family just rented a residence and were unaware of the ordinance.

Nov. 24
Incognito mode
5:44 a.m. — 500 block of Sanctuary Drive. Suspicious Vehicle. A condo guard noticed a blue truck driving slowly up and down a gated road. The guard at the front entrance to the road did not notice the vehicle.