A sampling of police reports from October 12 through October 21 in Gulfport, South Pasadena and St. Pete Beach.
Sources: Gulfport Police Department, Media Alert and Pinellas County Crime Viewer
Gulfport
10-12 – Suspicious fire in the 5700 block of 17th Avenue South. Officer Novak located a detached garage on fire at 4:30 a.m. The fire department responded and put it out, which damaged the wall and roof of the garage as well as a vehicle that was parked inside. The garage was locked when Officer Novak discovered the fire but the resident later told officers that her keys had been stolen in a separate incident.
10-12 – Hit and run in the 4900 block of 17th Avenue South. Officers responded to a light pole down on the West side of 49th Street South. Officers discovered tire marks where the light pole is located indicating a vehicle was turning right from 17th Avenue South and cut the turn too sharp then ran the light pole over. Duke Energy came out to turn the electric off to the light.
10-12 – Theft in the 5400 block of Shore Boulevard. Two bar patrons were caught on camera stealing a case of beer each and exiting the back of the bar. One suspect has been identified and the investigation is ongoing.
10-13 – Burglary to a vessel in the Gulfport Marina. The victim reported that some time during the last three days a suspect entered his boat and stole a $4,000 Garmin GPS system.
10-13 – Theft at the Boca Ciega Nursing Home. Administrators reported that one of the nurses had stolen several oxycodone pills that were supposed to be administered to patients. The nurse was confronted and fired by the nursing home. The investigation is still ongoing.
10-13 – Animal call in the 5300 block of 14th Avenue South. Officers responded to an animal call regarding a dog bite. Officers arrived on scene and met with the caller, who stated his dog was bit in the face by a neighbor’s dog. The caller stated he was out walking his dog around 7 p.m. when his neighbors went to leave their house and then their dog ran out the front door and across the street and bit his dog leaving bite marks causing minor bleeding. The caller only wanted to report what had happened just in case something happens to his dog later on.
10-13 – Hit and run in the 5300 block Dellett Avenue South. Officers responded to a report of a hit and run. While speaking with witnesses who only heard the initial crash, officers traced drip marks and skid marks from the crash scene and were able to find the at-fault vehicle. The vehicle had crashed into the curb and damaged a small fence. Officers recovered open and half-full beer bottles from the front driver’s seat of the vehicle. The vehicle was impounded and attempts are being made to find the driver of the vehicle.
10-13 – Stolen vehicle in the 2100 block of 56th Street South. A citizen left his car running with the keys in the ignition. A man got out of another car, jumped into the running car and took off. The vehicle was located several minutes later dumped at Town Shores without the keys. The vehicle was returned to the owner.
10-14 – Ordinance violation in the 2800 block of Beach Boulevard. An employee at Siri’s Gourmet Pizza and Burgers left an animatronic Halloween decoration inside the front door overnight which repeatedly activated the alarm motion detector while the business was closed. This resulted in nine false alarms that the police had to respond to. City ordinance prohibits false alarms and prescribes that a citation be issued for each one in excess of three in a twelve-month period. Discretion was used, however, and the business was only issued one citation.
10-14 – Warrant arrest in the 3100 block of Beach Boulevard. Officers made contact with a juvenile who had two probable cause affidavits for grand theft auto charges. Officers placed the juvenile into custody and he was transferred to the Pinellas County Juvenile Corrections Facility.
10-14 – Felony driving while license suspended at the corner of 15th Avenue South and 49th Street South. Officers responded to a crash. During the investigation it was discovered that one of the drivers had a suspended license and, because of prior convictions, it was a felony. Curtez blocker was arrested for driving with a suspended license.
10-15 – Retail theft in the 1700 block of 49th Street South. A man was seen by an employee putting something from the store into a backpack without paying for it. An officer arrived and while investigating what occurred, the suspect ran out the door and was last seen going over a fence in St Petersburg.
10-16 – Petit theft/criminal mischief in the 5000 block of 25th Avenue South. A resident reported that someone stole a pumpkin and knocked over a pelican statue in her yard overnight causing minor damage.
10-16 – Grand theft in the 2300 block of 56th Street South. A new resident arrived from the airport by taxi and briefly went inside her house leaving her luggage on the lawn. When she walked back outside, all of the luggage had been stolen.
10-16 – Felony driving while license suspended in the 5000 block of Gulfport Boulevard South. Officer Marshall saw Timothy Wallace operating a scooter without a tag on the roadway. Wallace got off the scooter and fled the area before Officer Marshall made contact with him. The scooter was impounded and there is probable cause for his arrest for driving while license suspended.
10-17 – Theft at the Dollar General store. A man entered the store and filled a hand basket full of unknown items and grabbed a case of beer. He ran out of the store and got into a white sedan and fled the area.
10-18 – Hit and run near Gulfport Elementary school. Office staff called to report that they had a child in the nurse’s office who had been struck by a car 20 minutes earlier while walking home. There were no apparent injuries and the child was unable to provide a description of the car.
10-18 – Recovered stolen vehicle in the 3000 block of 49th Street South. The St. Petersburg Police Department requested assistance in locating a stolen vehicle that could possibly be at the location. The vehicle was located and returned to the owner.
10-18 – Assist other agency at the University of Florida, Gainesville. Detective Pham and Officer Priest were assigned to assist the Gainesville Police Department with security during a scheduled speech by a self-declared white supremacist. The university reached out across the state seeking assistance to ensure security during the event.
Burglary – residence
10/19, 5:28 a.m., 2600 block of 52nd Way S
Burglary – structure
10/15, 2 p.m., 5000 block of 9th Avenue S
Burglary – vehicle
10/21, 9:30 a.m., 1400 block of 61st Street S
Theft – grand
10/15, 2:15 p.m., 2300 block of 56th Street S
10/18, 12:02 a.m., 2900 block of Beach Boulevard S
10/18, 3 a.m., 700 block of 58th Street S
10/20, 9:11 p.m., 5100 block of 17th Avenue S
Theft – petit
10/15, midnight, 1400 block of 56th Street S
10/15, 8 a.m., 5000 block of 25th Avenue S
10/15, 6 p.m., 5700 block of 21st Avenue S
10/17, unknown time, 900 block of 58th Street S
Theft – recreational vehicle
10/17, 6:30 p.m., 3000 block of 49th Street S
Shoplifting
10/16, 10:04 a.m., 4900 block of 17th Avenue S
10/19, 8:40 p.m., 5000 block of Gulfport Boulevard S
South Pasadena
Burglary – vehicle
10/19, 9 p.m., 1000 block of Pasadena Avenue S
Vandalism – criminal mischief
10/16, 7:45 a.m., 1800 block of Shore Drive S
St. Pete Beach
Battery
10/17, 7:30 p.m., 5500 block of Gulf Boulevard
Theft – grand
10/15, 8 a.m., 500 block of 55th Avenue
10/15, 1 p.m., 5500 block of Gulf Boulevard
Theft – petit
10/19, 7 a.m., 5900 block of Gulf Boulevard
Theft – vehicle
10/18, 11:15 p.m., 6th Avenue S and Zanesville Street S
Trespass
10/17, 10:49 p.m., 6200 block of Gulf Boulevard
