Teased and taken: A 70-year-old man must have thought it was his lucky day when a pretty girl knocked on his back door to ask about vacant properties nearby. After inviting the woman inside, she began asking him personal questions. He stepped out of the room for a few moments. By the time he returned, the woman was in a hurry to leave. It didn't take long for the man to realize he was missing his Smith & Wesson handgun and $453 in cash.
Rude Awakening: A 21-year-old man was sleeping peacefully last week at 4 a.m. when his roommate's friend came into the room with a proposition. The victim says the provocateur told him, "I'm wasted, and I want to fight," then began punching the poor guy's head and chest before leaving the room.
Eavesbombing: A passenger on a US Airways flight out of Charlotte-Douglas became scared last week after overhearing the worst possible conversation while everyone boarded. The man reported that two men were discussing possible explosive devices that could be used on a plane. It was cleared and checked before leaving.
Shoed: A CMPD officer reported an incident at the N.C. Music Factory last week that could have been the beginnings of a really intense game of footsie. The suspect threw a shoe at the officer, striking him in the head.
Parental Advisory: Charlotte was apparently nearly overrun with unsupervised little ones last week. In one incident, a 3-year-old boy was found walking down a street in the University area. The boy's uncle was babysitting, probably for the last time. In an unrelated incident two days later, two girls, both 4, were found wandering the parking lot of a motel without supervision and inadequately dressed.
Banged up: A 45-year-old woman needed medical attention after getting too near the action at a block party last week. Police and medics responded to the scene after the woman complained of head and ear injuries from being too close to fireworks.
Streets Are Watching: CMPD officers had fun with some of their DNC surveillance toys last week, in order to catch a man stealing a tablet. Police set up a bait operation at the Charlotte Transportation Center with a Samsung Galaxy Tablet at 11:30 a.m. Four hours later, someone took the bait. Police tracked the suspect's moves using cameras, physical surveillance and GPS before finally arresting him.
Threat of the Week: A 23-year-old woman filed a police report after being threatened by an ex who is nothing if not consistent. The man saw the woman one evening and told her, "I'm going to beat you and your boyfriend up every day."
Blotter items are chosen from the files of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty.
