Hotel guest evicted for taking too many paper plates

All you can eat breakfast does not mean all you can take plates. This and other Sarasota Police Department reports in this week's Cops Corner.


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Sunday, May 21

Too many paper plates

5:59 a.m., 1800 block of North Tamiami Trail

Dispute: A motel guest taking an excessive number of paper plates resulted in a dispute with an employee who called police for assistance. The employee stated the guest took too many paper plates from the complimentary breakfast, and when confronted became irate. 

The employee said she would like the officer to speak to the guest and tell him he must check out at 11 a.m. The guest agreed to leave and no further action was taken.


Shear misunderstanding

11:56 p.m., 3700 block of Rilma Avenue

Domestic disturbance: An officer who was unable to locate any parties involved in a reported attempted stabbing made phone contact with the complainant who stated that he and his wife were in a verbal argument when she became visibly upset and reached for her book bag. 

The complainant said he knows she keeps a pair of scissors in her bag and thought she might be trying to reach for them. He said he took the scissors and threw them in a ditch, but at no point were they used in a threatening manner. He added that the incident occurred near the 3500 block of Old Bradenton Road and that his wife walked away in an unknown direction. Officers were unable to locate the woman and no further action was taken at the time of the report.


Monday, May 22

Bus-ted glass

9:55 a.m., 100 block of North Lemon Avenue

Criminal mischief: A man known to Sarasota County Area Transit employees broke a glass panel on a county bus. The act was captured by onboard security cameras. SCAT wishes to press charges for criminal mischief for damage between $200 and $1,000. 

The bus driver who called police explained he was traveling eastbound on 12th Street when he stopped to let passengers out at the rear door when he saw a man he knew from previous incidents to be aggressive approach the front door of the bus. The suspect knocked on the door but was refused entry. The man proceeded to punch the door until breaking the glass, then walked away. The suspect was identified by video and the driver agreed to participate in a lineup at a later date. The damage to the bus is estimated at $500.


Dog day afternoon

1:50 p.m., 1200 block of East Avenue

Civil dispute: A customer at an auto service shop called police, accusing the manager of possessing his dog, a pit bull. The complainant told an officer he spotted one of his 14 dogs that has been missing for six months and asked the shop manager for his dog back, which the manager refused. 

The complainant had a photo of his missing dog, which appeared to be similar if not the same, according to the police report. The complainant said he had no ownership documents nor was the dog chipped. He was advised that he could take the matter to civil court and that law enforcement was not permitted to take the dog from the shop manager and give it to him.


Fences make bad neighbors

8: 55 p.m., 2000 block of Bougainvillea Avenue

Disturbance: Allegedly rambunctious guests partying at an Airbnb brought police to a house that is rented to new tenants weekly, according to the complainant who stated a party of 12 to 15 people was underway when “a blonde woman and a shirtless tattooed man climbed on his fence and broke it.”

Officers examined the fence, which had two of the panels lying on the grass but did not appear damaged other than being pulled from the frame. He also mentioned the alleged female fence climber had previously knocked on his front door. In their defense, the two accused of damaging the fence said the homeowner next door had gotten into a confrontation with them and climbed the fence himself, which fell back onto his own property. 

Unable to determine who damaged the fence, officers could not bring any charges. The blonde woman and shirtless tattooed man were advised to avoid contact with the neighbor. An officer contacted the property owner and advised her of the dispute. She told the officer she has had complaints from the neighbor, and that he has confronted guests, in the past.

 

author

Andrew Warfield

Andrew Warfield is the Sarasota Observer city reporter. He is a four-decade veteran of print media. A Florida native, he has spent most of his career in the Carolinas as a writer and editor, nearly a decade as co-founder and editor of a community newspaper in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina.

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