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Letter to the editor

Commit the boneheaded crime, do the time

By Times Staff Writer
Published February 10, 2008

ST. PETERSBURG

More proof, as if any was needed, that in police work, truth is sometimes stranger than fiction.

A 21-year-old man walking alone on Fourth Street S last week was robbed of his wallet and cell phone by an armed man on a bicycle. Later in the day, a friend of the victim sent a text message to the victim's cell phone and, yes, the suspect called back. The suspect offered to sell the cell phone to the friend, and they agreed to meet at a nearby park.

Of course, several police officers attended the meeting, too. They arrested the suspect on a robbery charge and seized an airsofthandgun.

* * *

Careful what you leave behind. A woman was hired to clean an apartment after its tenant had been evicted. The tenant had left her broken-down car in the parking lot and arranged to have it removed in a few days.

The cleaning woman found the title to the car, called a tow truck company, portrayed herself as the owner, and sold it for $50. The car was taken to a junk yard and crushed, and the woman was charged with auto theft and dealing in stolen property. No word on the $50.

* * *

Here's a guy without a plan - or a clue. Patrol officers arrested a 19-year-old while he sat, acting suspiciously, in a stolen vehicle in front of a motel known for drug activity.

I am not sure which is worse, getting caught driving a stolen, 10-year-old Toyota Corolla or being caught in that car with a bag of drugs in your right shoe. He was charged with auto theft and drug possession.

William Proffitt, St. Petersburg Police spokesman

[Last modified February 9, 2008, 23:19:51]