Mystery Beating: Yikes, talk about a bad night. Police first encountered the suspect in this case on S. Lois Avenue as he was trying to escape from a private security officer and the wail of an alarm. The 19-year-old had been in a fight with someone, and "was very intoxicated and belligerent to the officers." After he refused to say who had beaten him up or listen to the cops and obey their orders, the officers attempted to place him under arrest. The kid was not thrilled about being arrested and put up a struggle, even managing to wrap his legs around the head of one of the cops after he was taken to the ground. The officers finally went to the Taser. They then transported the drunken, beaten suspect to Tampa General for treatment of "the injuries he received prior to police arrival." Any injuries received post-police arrival will have to be taken care of on his own time.
They Crack Me Up: Some crimes crack me up because of their senseless nature. Case in point: Someone cut the phone lines to Rose Drugs on Nebraska Avenue. I hear cut phone lines and I think someone's pulling some real spy-movie shit. My grand scenario is undercut somewhat by the fact that Rose Drugs is a vacant building and no one tried to break in. Some criminals crack me up by their senseless nature. Case in point: The thief who stole a car out of the owner's driveway using a set of keys given to him by the previous owner. Brilliant! Now he can sell the car again … or he could crash the car into a mailbox, ditch it and quickly get picked up by police. Duh.
Nice Moves: A Tampa police officer attempted to pull over a man on his bicycle. The rider refused, yelling back to the cop that he was not stopping. The chase continued for several blocks until the cyclist ditched his ride and attempted to get away on foot. The officer attempted to grab the man, but the guy busted out a slick move. Per the report, "the def[endant] made an evasive maneuver sliding over the hood of a parked vehicle occupied by two females." Unfortunately for the suspect, the cop then busted out a move of his own, hitting him in the arm with a Taser prong and taking him into custody.
From the files of the T.P.D.
This article appears in Apr 25 – May 1, 2007.