The Stupid Crimes & Misdemeanors Thread

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#401 Postby TexasStooge » Thu Dec 23, 2004 12:09 pm

Man Accused of Stealing Day Care's Gifts

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) - A father was charged with burglary and grand theft after he took presents from underneath a day care's Christmas tree, police said.

Carl M. Griffin was arrested Wednesday after police believe he stole the presents intended for 44 children from the Little Foxxes Daycare in Gainesville.

Griffin told police he took the presents to feed an alcohol and drug habit, and that he also wanted to buy gifts for his 7-year-old daughter, who celebrated her birthday on Tuesday, authorities said.

Detectives felt sorry for the girl and collected stuffed animals and games for her.

Police officers, high school students and area residents donated gifts to replace those stolen at the day care center.

Griffin was being held at Alachua County Jail without bond. Information on his lawyer wasn't immediately available.
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#402 Postby sunny » Thu Dec 23, 2004 12:10 pm

That is just low.
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#403 Postby TexasStooge » Thu Dec 23, 2004 12:18 pm

Police Track Down Robber for Being Nice

ZAGREB, Croatia (AP) - A man who robbed 26 stores and betting offices over a nine-month period was tracked down by police because he was nice to his victims.

The 25-year-old man called the people in the stores "honey" or "kitten," and told them: "You are very dear," "This is a tiny little robbery" and "Take some of the money yourself, babe."

Zagreb police said Wednesday informants identified the man by the kind of language he used.

The suspect, a drug addict who was not identified, was arrested and subsequently confessed to the robberies, police said. He told them he used a plastic revolver.
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#404 Postby TexasStooge » Tue Dec 28, 2004 11:54 am

Pot Packages Found Inside Bales of Hay

VAN BUREN, Ark. (AP) - A Massachusetts man was arrested the day after a state trooper found 27 packages of suspected marijuana nested in bales of hay inside a horse trailer.

State police say Everton Garriques, 45, of Hingham, Mass., was a passenger in the pickup truck pulling the trailer during the Christmas Day stop. Police said they found more than 800 pounds of what they believe is marijuana hidden inside the trailer.

Police stopped the truck for speeding and having no license plate light, according to a state police dispatcher. After receiving conflicting information from Garriques and the driver, Dale Barrett, 23, of Lithonia, Ga., the trooper asked for and received consent to conduct a search, the dispatcher said.

When he looked inside the trailer, he saw two horses, several bales of hay and a plastic wrapper inside one of the bales. At that point, Garriques took off running and eluded searchers Saturday night, the dispatcher said.

Garriques was discovered the next day at a rental house and was arrested after a short pursuit, Van Buren police officer Steve Grizzle said. He was booked into the Crawford County Jail on suspicion of possession of marijuana with intent to deliver, possession of drug paraphernalia, fleeing apprehension, burglary, breaking or entering, criminal mischief and two counts of cruelty to animals.

Barrett also faces charges of possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, possession of drug paraphernalia and two counts of cruelty to animals.
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#405 Postby TexasStooge » Tue Dec 28, 2004 11:56 am

Paper Trail Leads to Alleged Grinches

COLUMBUS, Miss. (AP) - It wasn't tough for police to thwart two would-be Grinches — they just followed the telltale trail of wrapping paper.

Two unidentified boys, ages 14 and 12, were charged with burglary after they were accused of stealing Christmas presents from a family home, police said.

Authorities say Stanley Adams discovered someone had broken into his Columbus home late Friday. Two juveniles who lived nearby were suspected.

Police followed a trail of paper, ribbons and gift tags that led them to one of the boys' houses. One boy told authorities that he stole the presents. The gifts — which included an E-Z Bake oven, a set of Legos and a Pac-Man video game — were returned.

"It being Christmas and all, I took this kind of serious," officer L.C. Cockrell said. "It just didn't seem right for this family not to have their Christmas."
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#406 Postby TexasStooge » Tue Dec 28, 2004 11:59 am

Robber Nabbed After Locking Keys in Car

LAKE STATION, Ind. (AP) - A 26-year-old man locked his keys in his car while robbing a convenience store across the street from a police station, authorities said.

Dan L. Griggs, of Gary, stole three cartons of cigarettes about 1 a.m. Thursday from a store across the street from the Lake Station police department, and returned to his vehicle to find the doors locked, police Lt. Mike Stills said

The robber told a clerk, who followed him out of the store, that it was just a joke and that he didn't intend to steal the cigarettes. The clerk then called police officers

Griggs returned to the store, ripped out the telephone cord and demanded money, opening the store's lottery machine to take about $50 and fled again, according to court documents filed Thursday in Lake Superior Court.

Griggs returned to the store again and grabbed a broom, Stills said. Dispatchers then watched from the police station in the city just east of Gary as Griggs used the broom to smash out a vehicle window.

An officer arrived as Griggs was driving away from the store. After a brief chase through snowy streets, Griggs struck an oncoming police cruiser and fled from the car.

He was arrested when he became stuck in a ditch.

"Unfortunately for him, that was the end of the line," Stills said.

Police officers found the money, lottery tickets and three cartons of cigarettes that investigators believe Griggs took from the store, he said.

Griggs was charged with a felony count of robbery and was being held without bond.

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Information from: Post-Tribune
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#407 Postby TexasStooge » Wed Dec 29, 2004 3:59 pm

Mo. Man Charged After Slur Word Claim

INDEPENDENCE, Mo. (AP) - Police have charged a man with filing a false police report after he claimed someone tried to carve a slur on his forehead.

There was one little problem with 22-year-old Floyd Elliot's story: The superficial wound was backward, as if it were made while looking into a mirror.

Officials on Monday said that the slur also was burned into Elliot's chest, but it was not backward. They say he filed the original report on Dec. 14 because he wanted more officers to patrol his Independence neighborhood.
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Information from: The Kansas City Star
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#408 Postby TexasStooge » Fri Dec 31, 2004 11:47 am

Women Accused of 'Hot Dog' Prostitution

BALDWIN, N.Y. (AP) - Two Long Island women who sold hot dogs and sodas from a truck were arrested on charges that their menu also featured sexual acts in exchange for money.

Catherina Scalia, 38, and Rose Skorge, 34, were arrested Wednesday afternoon after they "offered and agreed to engage in sexual conduct with others in return for a fee" at their hot dog stand, which was parked at Sunrise Highway and Rockwood Avenue, Nassau County police said in a news release.

Scalia offered to expose her breasts to an undercover officer who was buying a hot dog and Skorge offered him oral sex in exchange for money, Deputy Inspector Rick Capece, commanding officer of the Narcotics/Vice Squad, told Newsday for its Thursday editions. The women also gave the officer a card for a stripper business, Capece said.

Police started watching the truck more than a week ago after receiving a tip, he said.

Scalia and Skorge were charged with prostitution and were released on desk appearance tickets. They were scheduled to return to court on Jan. 10.

A message left at a telephone number listed for Scalia was not immediately returned. There was no listing for a Rose Skorge.
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#409 Postby TexasStooge » Mon Jan 03, 2005 12:02 pm

Pine Cones Lead to Christmas Tree Suspect

WINNIPEG, Manitoba (AP) - It didn't take Winnipeg police long to solve the great Christmas tree heist — a trail of pine cones from the scene of the crime led directly to a suspect's living room.

"It's got to be the dumbest crime of the century," apartment caretaker Cindy Peterson said Wednesday. "You could see where they dragged it into the house."

The Yuletide theft happened early Dec. 23 when someone cut down an 18-foot blue spruce from in front of Peterson's apartment building. The tree wasn't sawed at the base of the trunk, but about six feet up.

Peterson said she only noticed the tree had been lopped off when she went out to shovel the walk.

"A neighbour asked me if I couldn't afford a real tree," she said. "She pointed and I looked and thought, `What the ... ?"

Peterson and neighbour Ralph Mehmedov went to investigate and found a small cedar tree apparently discarded in favor of the larger spruce. A trail of pine cones, needles and broken limbs led directly to a residence across the street.

Police questioned the 22-year-old occupant, who told them he had bought the tree from an unknown door-to-door tree salesman for $5.

The man was charged with possession of stolen goods and released on a promise to appear in court at a later date.
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#410 Postby TexasStooge » Tue Jan 04, 2005 11:18 am

Police Say Man Rages Over French Fries

DuBOIS, Pa. (AP) - A Burger King customer berated the employees and nearly hit one of them with his truck after the clerk at the drive-thru window told him they were out of french fries, police said.

Gregg Luttman, 22, made an obscene gesture at the drive-thru clerk on New Year's Day, then walked into the restaurant and cursed at the staff, Sandy Township police Sgt. Rod Fairman said.

When he returned to his pickup truck, he saw restaurant workers taking down his license number and put the vehicle in reverse, nearly hitting one of them, Fairman said.

After being stopped on a highway a short distance away, Luttman scuffled with police and kicked out the back window of a police car, Fairman said.

Luttman was charged with assault, reckless endangerment and other offenses. He was freed Monday on $2,500 bail.
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#411 Postby TexasStooge » Wed Jan 05, 2005 12:21 pm

Smugglers Hid Heroin in Puppies' Bellies

BOGOTA, Colombia (Reuters) - Colombian drug traffickers surgically hid heroin in puppies' bellies in a plan to evade international customs controls, police said on Tuesday.

Acting on a tip-off, police found six puppies with scars on their abdomens at a rural property near the city of Medellin in northern Colombia, the Colombian Police said in a news release.

Ultrasound scans revealed bags of liquid heroin hidden inside the living animals. Police said traffickers planned to retrieve the drug once the dogs had passed customs abroad.

"The lust for money leads criminals to commit acts of great cruelty," the police said.

The puppies were recovering after the heroin was removed by veterinarians.

Using animals for smuggling is unusual although drug smugglers often rely on couriers to swallow condoms full of drugs and one Colombian woman was once found with cocaine surgically implanted in her buttocks.

Colombia is the world's largest producer of cocaine and the main supplier of heroin to the United States.
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#412 Postby TexasStooge » Wed Jan 05, 2005 12:27 pm

Jailed Man Gets More Time for Sandwiches

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) - A man serving a life sentence for murder was sentenced to three additional years in prison for passing out cheese sandwiches while in jail.

Douglas Eugene Wilson, 45, pleaded guilty Monday to possession of contraband and was sentenced by District Judge Thomas Kane.

Prosecutors said Wilson had the sandwiches while in jail awaiting trial on the murder charge and he tried to give them to other inmates, which is a violation of jail rules.

A sheriff's deputy testified at a hearing in May that they warned Wilson not to pass food to other inmate then shocked him with a stun gun when he ignored them.

Wilson was tackled and handcuffed after he reportedly charged a deputy. Second-degree assault and attempted second-degree assault charges against Wilson were dropped in exchange for the contraband guilty plea.

"Why are the taxpayers paying the judiciary to hold this hearing on some contraband sandwiches?" he said in a telephone interview with the Gazette of Colorado Springs. "Taxpayers want to know where their money is going — there it is."

Wilson was convicted last month of first-degree murder in the strangling death of Liza Chavez, 37.
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#413 Postby TexasStooge » Wed Jan 05, 2005 12:29 pm

Gunman Passes Out Drunk to End Standoff

GOWANDA, N.Y. (AP) - A western New York man said to be grieving the death of a family member took a bartender hostage Monday and opened fire on police during a four-hour standoff that ended only after he passed out drunk, authorities said.

Dale Covert was facing a charge of attempted murder after firing a single round at a Gowanda police officer, State Police Maj. Michael Manning said.

Police responded to the Palm Gardens restaurant lounge 30 miles south of Buffalo around 3 p.m. after receiving a report of a man brandishing a gun inside the establishment, where Covert was holding a female bartender.

Gowanda police, upon being fired upon, called the Erie County Sheriff's Department and State Police for backup. SWAT teams from those agencies then cordoned off the lounge and closed the street to traffic.

As the standoff dragged into the evening, Covert watched the saga unfold on the television news until service inside the bar was cut.

Shortly after 6:30 p.m., the bartender emerged from the bar, unharmed. Covert, who was drinking heavily, then passed out, Manning said.

Michael Luffred, who called himself a longtime acquaintance of Covert, described him as a hard worker who was distressed over the death of a sibling.

Police said Covert was transported to a Gowanda-area hospital, and was then expected to be booked on criminal charges.
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Information from: The Buffalo News
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#414 Postby TexasStooge » Wed Jan 05, 2005 12:30 pm

Fla. Official Accuses Woman of Spitting

EAGLE LAKE, Fla. (AP) - A city council member has accused a former city manager of not just saying it, but spraying it. Vice Mayor Dennis Pate said he wants a new rule to prohibit spitting at council meetings after he accused former city manager Linda Weldon of spitting at him following a meeting last month.

Weldon has denied that saliva ever passed her lips.

"That is the most asinine and juvenile thing I have heard," she said. "I wouldn't get that close to him. It is just childish stuff, and I don't want to be a part of it any more."

The alleged spitting was preceded by an argument between Pate and Weldon over two minor issues.

"She came at me and said, 'Oh phew on you Dennis Pate,'" he said. "It looked like she was trying to spit — she spit at me. I don't believe city government includes spitting at someone."

No report was filed with the police department in the Polk County community 45 miles east of Tampa.
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Information from: News Chief
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#415 Postby TexasStooge » Fri Jan 07, 2005 12:55 pm

Man Slams Door, Feels the Pane...

BERLIN, Germany (Reuters) - A German man, angered by a court decision, was left even more out of pocket when a judge gave him an extra fine for storming out of the court and slamming the door hard, authorities said on Thursday.

"Apparently the panes shook, he slammed it so hard. That displeased the judge," said Wolfgang Ohler, spokesman for the court of appeal in the southwestern town of Zweibruecken.

The man, who had been involved in a property usage dispute with neighbors, had appealed the fine on the grounds the door had slipped out of his hand as he left the courtroom.

But the appeal court rejected the appeal and upheld the judge's view and fine of 200 euros ($265).
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#416 Postby TexasStooge » Fri Jan 07, 2005 12:56 pm

Prostitute Turns in Child stuff Holder

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. (AP) - A prostitute turned in a customer after seeing child pornography, including a video of an apparent toddler rape, on the man's home computer, police said.

Detective Carlos Negron said police were contacted by the woman on Tuesday, saying that while working at the man's apartment as a prostitute she saw numerous pictures of children who appeared to be between ages 3 and 16 performing sex.

The woman told police that it was a disturbing video that showed the rape of a younger child, perhaps no older than 2, that caused her to make the call after she left the apartment, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported.

Negron said Federico Eduardo Amezaga, 29, let investigators search his apartment, where they found numerous photos and videos of children performing sex acts.

Officers arrested Amezaga on 15 charges of possessing child pornography and took him to the Broward County Jail, where he was being held Friday in lieu of $150,000 bond.

Negron said Friday that police are still investigating whether Amezaga produced, participated in or intended to sell the materials.

"He told us that he downloaded them through the Internet," Negron said.

He is being represented by the Broward County public defender's office, which did not immediately return messages seeking comment.
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#417 Postby TexasStooge » Fri Jan 07, 2005 1:58 pm

Police: Escapee Hid in Store for Months

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - A prisoner who escaped last June was recaptured this week and accused of robbery after surviving for months by hiding out in a vacant electronics store and eating stolen baby food, police said.

Authorities said Jeffrey Allen Manchester lived a 4-by-10-foot closet decorated with posters and model toys, played hoops with a mini-basketball net and watched "Spider-Man 2" on a DVD player. He also routed water from an adjacent Toys "R" Us and even installed a smoke detector, they said.

"I've never seen anybody so determined," said Officer Fred Allen, who spotted the hideaway Sunday. "He wasn't going to make a stupid mistake. We had to find him."

Manchester was four years into a 45-year robbery sentence when he allegedly sneaked out of the Brown Creek Correctional Institution on June 15 by clinging to the undercarriage of a truck.

Manchester, 33, is now accused of robbing the Toys "R" Us at gunpoint Dec. 26, then setting fire to a dentist's office. Police believe he had dental work done while he was on the lam and set the fire to hide his records.

Police are also reviewing unsolved early morning break-ins at the toy store, which was connected by a secret door to the former Circuit City space where Manchester lived.

In the Dec. 26 case, he faces charges of robbery with a dangerous weapon, malicious use of explosives to damage property, burning an unoccupied building, breaking and entering and possession of a firearm by a felon.
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#418 Postby TexasStooge » Sat Jan 08, 2005 12:46 pm

Woman Again Charged for Hitting Officer

RONCEVERTE, W.Va. (AP) - A councilwoman who pleaded no contest last year to charges of hitting the police chief has been arrested again after a second fracas at City Hall. Councilwoman Beverly Boswell is accused of kicking and slapping Police Chief Howard "Doc" Giles on Thursday.

Interim City Manager Doug Hylton said Municipal Judge Curtis Shaver and two city workers witnessed the alleged incident.

"From my understanding, Beverly came into City Hall between 3 and 3:30 p.m. and started yelling and screaming at the chief," Hylton said. "The chief then began to back away from her and then she kicked the chief and slapped him."

Giles subdued Boswell, 58, until State Police Trooper R.R. Richards arrived, Hylton said.

Boswell was charged with battery on a police officer, a misdemeanor. She was released from Southern Regional Jail on $1,000 bond. No hearing has been set.

Boswell pleaded no contest to battery in October 2004 after being accused of punching Giles in the face during an August incident. She originally was charged with battery on a police officer but Greenbrier County Magistrate Brenda Smith reduced the charge to battery in exchange for the plea. She was fined $500 and assessed $123.50 in court costs.

If convicted of the latest charge, Boswell faces up to a year in jail and another $500 fine.

Boswell has been a member of the council since July 1, 2001.
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Information from: The Register-Herald
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#419 Postby TexasStooge » Mon Jan 10, 2005 12:37 pm

Court Jails Art-Loving Thief

STRASBOURG, France (Reuters) - A French court on Friday sentenced an art-loving waiter to three years in prison for stealing art works and valuable paintings from galleries and museums across Europe.

Stephane Breitwieser had confessed to stealing almost 240 art works but was on trial for just 23 items stolen in France, Denmark and Austria between 1999 and 2001.

The array of objects he says he stole from six European countries included 16th and 17th century masters, statues, jewels and antique musical instruments.

The court also gave his 53-year-old mother a three-year sentence, with 18 months suspended, for throwing some of the stolen works into a canal.

His ex-lover received an 18-month sentence, 12 of them suspended, for handling stolen goods. Breitwieser's three-year sentence included 10 months suspended.

Breitwieser, 33, tried to hang himself in his cell on Thursday, his lawyer said, but appeared in the court in the eastern city of Strasbourg hours later.

"I'm not quite myself after what happened last night," he told the court.

Prosecutor Manon Brignol acknowledged Breitwieser had a genuine love of art but was a "selfish predator" and was "almost obsessed."

"A thief remains a thief...whether he steals cars or works of art," Brignol said.

Breitwieser has always said he stole because of his passion for art and took only what fitted into his collection. He says he made no profit from his crimes.

Only 112 of the nearly 240 items have been found, many of them broken or damaged, and some were fished out of a canal near the family home in eastern France. Breitwieser's lawyers said they would not appeal against the sentence. His mother Mireille Stengel, a nurse, was jailed for receiving stolen goods and destruction of works of art.

Breitwieser, who was arrested in Switzerland after a theft at Lucerne's Richard Wagner Museum in November 2001, was sentenced to 4 years in jail by a Swiss court in February 2003 for having stolen 69 works in that country.

He was extradited to France in July 2004.
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#420 Postby TexasStooge » Tue Jan 11, 2005 11:22 am

Austrian Woman Who Insulted Pope Fined

VIENNA, Austria (AP) - An Austrian woman who shouted insulting remarks about Pope John Paul II outside Vienna's main cathedral was fined $325 after a court convicted her Monday of disturbing the peace.

The 46-year-old Viennese woman, whose name was not released by authorities, repeatedly and loudly denounced the pope and other Roman Catholic leaders as "child molesters" while standing in front of St. Stephen's Cathedral in 2003.

On Monday, a Vienna court convicted her of disturbing the peace and being a public nuisance. The popular square outside the downtown cathedral was packed with visitors when she stood on the steps with a megaphone to ridicule John Paul and accuse the church of trying to cover up the sexual abuse of children.

Although freedom of speech and expression are enshrined in the Austrian constitution, prosecutors charged the woman under statutes in place to preserve public order.

Overwhelmingly Catholic Austria was stung by a sex scandal last year involving the discovery of up to 40,000 lurid images, including child pornography, on computers at a seminary west of Vienna. The local bishop resigned over the affair, and a Vatican emissary ordered the seminary shut down.
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