Published Thursday, May 01, 2008 2:10 PM
Updated Thursday, May 01, 2008 2:10 PM

 

Crime Beat 05/02/08

Vegetarian shoplifter

Summerville police arrested a 43-year-old man on a shoplifting charge Monday after he reportedly stole a bag of iceberg lettuce and three boxes of frozen Morning Star vegetarian food products from a grocery store by stuffing the items into his windbreaker, a report shows.

According to the complainant, a store employee, the man took the food and then walked through a checkout line without paying, the report says. The employee told police she caught up with the man in the store parking lot and was able to get the items back.

Before the reporting officer could make contact with the man, he allegedly had already left in a white Pontiac, the report says.

Another officer made contact with the man during a traffic stop and he admitted to taking the food, a supplemental report shows.

Prior to the traffic stop, the man allegedly struck a tree and even acted as if he was going to run, the report shows. The officer ordered him back to the vehicle where he put his arms up, the report says.

He was charged with shoplifting, less than $1,000, and given a court date before being released, the incident report says.

Campaign signs stolen

A 70-year-old man called the sheriff’s office April 22 to report that at least 75 campaign signs for Mike Rose, a Republican candidate for State Senate, had gone missing from their original locations, a report shows.

The complainant gave an example of a sign near Highways 27 and 78 being there one day and gone the next, the report says. He asked that the incidents be documented in the event someone is caught stealing the signs.

‘Lumpenproletariats’

A Summerville police office was dispatched to a 63-year-old man’s house in reference to suspicious garbage and when he arrived, the man said unknown “lumpenproletariats” — a Marxist term used for low-class criminals — had thrown soda bottles containing an unknown liquid into his yard, a report shows.

The man said the liquid was corrosive and he was concerned for his health. He told the officer the suspects involved “are capable of recreating ‘Columbine’-style events,” the report says.

He requested the incident be documented and he said he would contact the assistant chief of police for further assistance.

Deployed soldier falls victim to stateside forgery

A Marion woman called police Monday to report that an unknown person wrote a check at a Summerville grocery store in the name of her son, who is a member of the U.S. Army currently serving in Afghanistan, a report shows.

The check was drawn last October from an account at a bank her son doesn’t even use, the woman said. The son wasn’t in the country when the check was written, she said.

The check was not honored by the bank and was returned, the report says. The woman said she was advised by the solicitor’s office, which has a copy of the check, to file a report with police.

Contact David Berman at 873-9424 ext. 214 or dberman@journalscene.com