2014: The best of Cops Corner

Jan. 3
Slipped away
9:43 a.m. — 6600 block of Oakbrook Circle. Information Only. A woman reported her house slipper as missing. She thinks her neighbor took the slipper. There are no signs anyone entered her home.

Jan. 7
Candid Camera
3:35 p.m. — 36000 block of State Road 70 E. Theft. A man wearing an empty, unzipped backpack entered a convenience store. Two younger females accompanied the man. The man walked to the back of the store and selected a 24 pack of beer. He walked out of the view of cameras. Seconds later, the man reappeared, and this time his backpack was zipped and shaped to the size of the case of beer. The man and the females then exited the store without paying for any items. They fled the scene in a light-colored, four-door vehicle. Later, an employee at the store reviewed surveillance video and saw the trio steal the items. The employee asked an unidentified person to view the video. The person recognized the suspects in the case but would not cooperate with the police.

Feb. 24
Wedding Crasher
1:18 p.m. — 6200 29th Street E. Theft. A man last saw his wedding band on the hazard switch in his vehicle. He had given his car keys to somebody to wash and detail his vehicle. The man’s co-worker reported that he also had his wedding band stolen while his vehicle was being washed and detailed.

March 11
Changing Story
3:25 p.m. — 8200 block of Stirling Falls Circle. Information Only. A person reported that her vehicle was stolen. She awoke at 3 a.m. to find her white Mercedes-Benz station wagon missing from her driveway. She also found a note left inside her house. A person she is involved with — but not dating — has been staying in her house for a week. The woman believes that person took her car to drive to see his wife in Venice. After filling out an affidavit, the woman changed her mind and said she didn’t know if the man had stolen her vehicle. She said the man might have asked her if he could take the vehicle. She said she hopes the man doesn’t get in trouble. In the end, the vehicle was not registered with the Sheriff’s Office as stolen.

March 27
Message board
7:21 a.m. — 10100 block of Cherry Hills Avenue Circle. Criminal Mischief. An unknown person(s) wrote graffiti on a person’s white garage door. The drawing includes a marijuana leaf and the words “legalize it” written in black ink or paint. An attempt to remove the drawing was not successful.

April 23
Paper Trail
6:28 p.m. — 8400 block of Lockwood Ridge Road. Burglary. An unknown suspect(s) entered a vehicle through the unlocked driver’s side front door. The person stole paperwork from the glove compartment.

May 31
Family Matters
1:56 p.m. — 14800 block of Sundial Place. Battery. A man’s stepdaughter arrived directly out of a rehab center with her boyfriend to retrieve her car. When the man let the air out of two of his stepdaughter’s tires to prevent her from taking the car, the boyfriend approached the stepfather and they began to argue. The argument led to the stepfather punching the boyfriend in the face. The boyfriend didn’t wish to press changes, and the couple agreed to pick up the car another day.

June 6
Hidden Agenda
7:15 a.m. — 5200 block of 32nd Street East. Trespassing. A woman told a man to pay her $250 and take her to a Bradenton address or she would not tell him where she hid his dog. After the man paid her and drove her to the address, the woman told him the dog was somewhere in his house. He found the dog unharmed in his dryer.

July 9
Beer Bond
2:53 p.m. — 16000 block of State Road 64 E. Defraud Innkeeper/Less than $300. The patron ordered two beers at the restaurant. He then went outside, got into his vehicle and attempted to leave the establishment without paying for the merchandise. The bartender and manager witnessed the incident. The deputy arrived and detained the patron. The suspect said he would have paid for the beers ($6) if he had the money. The deputy waited about 30 minutes for the suspect to locate any money, which yielded negative results. The deputy collected a sworn affidavit from the bartender and arrested the patron without incident.

Aug. 21
You Dirty Rat
2:10 p.m. — 8300 block of Lockwood Ridge Road. Robbery. A woman was waiting for the bus when a man grabbed her purse and tried to run away with it. The woman, though, held on tightly to her purse, and the man finally let it go. Refusing to give up, the thief then grabbed the woman’s bag, which contained $11 worth of rat traps. After a struggle, the man fled with the rat traps and sat down on a bench in front of Walmart to check out his stolen loot. Police arrested the man and returned the rat traps to the woman.

Sept. 8
That’s Not The Ticket
2:29 p.m. — 5900 block of Lakewood Ranch Boulevard.Battery. A woman blew her horn at the driver in front of her because he was holding up the car wash line. When he didn’t move, she drove around him to the front of the line. He approached her car and grabbed the car wash ticket out of her hand and tore it up. He tore off two of her false fingernails in the process.

Oct. 11
Dancing Disaster
10:42 p.m. — 6600 block of River Club Boulevard. Battery. A couple was dancing during a wedding reception at a country club when the man accidentally spilled his beverage on the floor and other dancers. When the man attempted to mop up the dance floor with his soggy beverage napkin, dancers became irritated. Three men approached him with closed fists when he tried to get another drink. The couple fled the country club.

Oct. 22
The dog ate my cable
9:35 a.m. — 3700 block of 80th Drive East. Suspicious Circumstance. A man saw a dog digging up flowers and eating the cable wires out of his outdoor cable box before running away, leaving him with no cable.

Nov. 19
Overprotective Relationship
4:09 p.m. — 8500 block of Cooper Creek Boulevard Trespassing. A store manager told police a couple went into the same bathroom stall and stayed there for a long period of time. The man told police he follows his girlfriend everywhere because he’s very protective of her wellbeing. The manager requested they be trespassed. from the property.

Dec. 2
Photo Finish
10:39 a.m. — 2900 block of 53rd Avenue East. Theft. A man entered a store, grabbed a 32-inch television set off a shelf and tried to run out of the store with it. He was caught by a loss-prevention officer and asked to be released, explaining he hadn’t been arrested for stealing before. When he was shown a picture of himself stealing from a nearby store the previous day, the man said, “Well, I haven’t stolen anything except for yesterday and today.”