Police Blotter: Felony Warrant Issued in Attempted Park Purse Snatching

Judge Russell Ethridge signed a felony warrant Thursday for a Detroit man police believe is responsible for an attempted purse snatching from a woman June 18. 

Lt. James Smith sought Ethridge's signature after receiving approval from the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office on a single count of attempted larceny from a person--a felony charge carrying a maximum sentence of five years in prison. 

Smith said following the brief hearing that the 19-year-old man knows Park police are looking for him and he has been hiding from them at a few different locations. Despite his attempt to avoid police, Smith said detectives are confident his arrest will follow quickly. 

The but ran after she refused to give up her purse. is under investigation from June 6 in the 1000 block of Wayburn Street. Initially police did not believe the two cases to be related but Smith said they are still trying to make such a determination. The descriptions of the men committing the crimes varied slightly but the Park has only had two such crimes all year and within weeks of one another. 

Theft

police are investigating the theft of a purse from a car parked in the staff lot at July 21 some time between 7-8:40 p.m. The woman left her purse on the floor of her backseat and returned to find that it was missing. Another person using the track called police after finding the window smashed out on the woman's vehicle. During the investigation, police arrested one 15-year-old boy who was in possession of marijuana. The track runner said two boys were near the vehicles and acting suspicious and when officers found them, they discovered the marijuana. Video surveillance showed an adult man near the car during the time the purse was stolen, according to a report. 

Trespassing

police arrested a 21-year-old Grosse Pointe Park man July 22 about 10:30 a.m. for trespassing at . The man was spotted by employees on school property searching a dumpster at 7 a.m. He asked for water to drink and an employee told him to go across the street to the businesses for water. The employee locked a receiving door upon going inside and then a while later the man entered the building through another set of unlocked doors. The man seemed "distant" to the employee, whom he began to follow through the school. Acting Principal Joan Murphy told police she wanted to pursue a trespassing charge. The man was arrested, booked, interviewed and later released to his mother, according to a report. He is scheduled to appear in court Aug. 24. 

Arrests 

Grosse Pointe Farms police arrested a 23-year-old Detroit woman who works for on the Hill for embezzlement. A loss prevention official with the pharmacy company reported the crime July 19 and explained to the responding officer that the woman had been completing fraudulent returns with merchandise from within the store and then pocketing the cash. She performed fraudulent returns at least four times and the loss prevention department turned over a video of one of the transactions in which she returned $160 worth of merchandise, according to a report.

Grosse Pointe Farms police arrested a 59-year-old Farms woman July 18 on an outstanding warrant for second-degree home invasion. Officers discovered the woman had the outstanding warrant out of Wayne County while on the scene of a medical call for an unresponsive male, who was transported to an area hospital. The woman arrived at the scene in the 300 block of McKinley, which is also her home while emergency responders were preparing to take the man to the hospital, according to a report. 

Grosse Pointe Shores police arrested a 40-year-old Grosse Pointe Woods man found sleeping in a car in the parking lot of a Crestwood Drive home July 21. The man was discovered to have had a suspended driver's license and an outstanding warrant from Michigan State Police. The man was taken into custody and his parents were contacted to collect the car from the driveway of the Shores resident, according to a report.

Weather calls 

Grosse Pointe Shores police gave a pedestrian delivering papers to homes near Willison and Sheldon roads a Gatorade July 21 after a resident called to report concern about the man's condition in the heat. The man told responding officers he was getting a good cardio workout and was fine, according to a report. 

Meanwhile, Grosse Pointe Shores police have responded to a variety of false alarm calls due to the hot weather. The random power outages have set many home alarms off accidentally, according to numerous reports. 

Harassment 

A 43-year-old Grosse Pointe Woods woman whose ex-husband was recently released from prison on weapons offenses reported to police July 22 that he has begun harassing her by text message and voicemail. The messages are of a threatening nature and refer to her being dead. There is a history of domestic violence, including permanent hearing loss in on of the woman's ears and numerous scars she noted to police while making the report.