MILK IT: Tampa P.D. received reports that Sunny Florida Dairy had repeatedly had "its delivery trucks burglarized and large quantities of dairy products stolen at night." In response to these reports, Squad 311 set up a stakeout, taking positions "that afforded maximum coverage" of the cheerfully named dairy while still staying out of sight. After a few hours, two men approached in a 1991 Dodge Dynasty, checking the area several times before entering the loading dock. Once inside, the men cut the lock off the door of a delivery truck, entered the vehicle and began stealing merchandise. At this point, the cops moved in and took the milkmen down. The suspects admitted that they had been stealing from the dairy for some time, selling the milk to local businesses "as part of an ongoing criminal enterprise."
WHERE CAUTION MEETS THE WIND: It's difficult for me to work up a whole lot of sympathy for the victim of this next crime, who pulled into a Citgo gas station on Hillsborough Avenue around 4:30 p.m. on March 24. Per the report: "The victim exited her vehicle with the doors unlocked, windows down and the keys … in the ignition with the engine running." Oh, and just to make the car more enticing for a potential thief, she "left her purse in plain view on the right front passenger seat." Her giant "Rip Me Off" banner must have been at the drycleaners. A man exiting the store as the victim entered immediately noticed the purse on the front seat and quickly moved his car to an empty space next to the victim's. After a quick peek into the Citgo to make sure the coast was clear, the man grabbed the woman's purse and took off, making a clean getaway.
BOMB TRACK: A couple of bomb scares stirred up the Bay area recently. The Law Offices of Joyce & Reyes got a phone call on March 21 from a female caller who reported: "All I have to say is there is a bomb in front of the firm and tell Roxanne it is for her." No "suspicious device" was located. The other scare was at the federal courthouse in downtown Tampa, where a "suspicious bag" was found. This necessitated quite a governmental response, with a major, a captain, two lieutenants, a bomb team and the ATF responding to the scene. The bag was empty.
From the files of the T.P.D.
This article appears in Apr 11-17, 2007.