Published Tuesday, May 06, 2008 3:48 PM
Updated Tuesday, May 06, 2008 3:49 PM

 

Crime Beat 5/7/08

Life imitates art

“Grand Theft Auto IV” is the year’s most anticipated video game and, according to a Summerville police report, at least one person got his hands on it last week when he allegedly stole a copy.

Police responded April 30 to Best Buy at Azalea Square where the suspect — described as a black male, age 16 to 18 — reportedly put the $70 video game inside the back of his pants and ran toward the front doors before exiting the store, the report shows.

The store manager told police the incident was observed and videotaped by the surveillance system. A search for the suspect in the immediate area had negative results, the report says.

Man puzzled by his own injuries

Summerville police met last week with a man sporting a swollen right eye and dried blood on his mouth and face. Where did the injuries come from? He’s not exactly sure, a report shows.

The man, 44, said all he could remember was that he had been out drinking with some friends April 27 and he woke up at the bottom of a flight of stairs leading to his girlfriend’s apartment, the report says.

Police later caught up with his girlfriend, who said the two of them had been at a friend’s residence downtown. He had already been drinking when she arrived, she said, and he continued to drink when they went out. Together they left Charleston to return to Summerville and somewhere along U.S. Interstate 26, they got into an argument.

The man struck her in the face, she told police. They continued arguing and when she finally stopped the vehicle to let him out, he had no injuries, she told police.

The reporting officer later made several attempts to contact the man to see if he could provide any more information, but those attempts were unsuccessful, the report says.

Clingy drug leads to arrest

A 28-year-old Summerville man was charged with simple possession of marijuana after his arresting officer spotted two clumps of what appeared to be marijuana clinging to his shirt, a report shows.

The man had been stopped near the intersection of Stallsville Loop and Bacons Bridge Road after he was reportedly driving 47 mph in a 35 mph zone, the report says.

As the officer spoke with the man, he noticed the clumps of a green plantlike material and when he retrieved them, they appeared to be — and smelled like — marijuana, he noted.

A search of the man and the vehicle revealed two other clumps of marijuana and a clear plastic bag containing more marijuana, the report says.

The man was issued a citation for simple possession of marijuana and a warning ticket for speeding, the report says. He had no previous criminal history and he was released from the police department after he was booked, the report says.

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