Police Blotter: Valet Driver Questioned

police are investigating what they believe to be an attempted vehicle theft from a 55-year-old woman who used the valet service at Dec. 26. The woman and her husband exited the restaurant shortly before 10 p.m. She gave her keys to the valet who walked away to retrieve the car. About 15 to 20 minutes passed and the woman alerted a manager from the restaurant, who in turn called police. While responding officers were investigating, the woman's car was found parked in front of the restaurant. It did not appear to have any damage and nothing was missing from the vehicle, which was given back to its owner. Meanwhile, officers tried to find the valet, who lives nearby. They searched his his and his father's home but did not find him. A short while later, the father called to say his son had returned home. The 23-year-old valet told police he had the woman's keys and didn't realize it, but found them about five minutes later, went to the valet lot and returned the vehicle to the restaurant. Upon exiting the vehicle, the woman was very upset with him and yelling at him, which scared him. He ran away toward home, according to a report. 

SUV Stolen from Cancer Center Parking Lot 

police are investigating the theft of a 2003 Jeep Liberty from the parking lot of the Van Elslander Cancer Center at Dec. 23. The vehicle was stolen between 7 and 8 p.m. and a 2003 Dodge Caravan was found parked but running in a parking spot next to where the Liberty was stolen. The minivan was not reported stolen but the driver's side lock was damaged and the ignition was missing. The owner of the Liberty told police he had animal food, miscellaneous tools and a tow chain inside his vehicle, according to a report. 

In another similar report, Grosse Pointe Woods police are investigating the attempted theft of a 2003 Jeep Liberty from the 2200 block of Stanhope Road Dec. 21. The SUV's owner told police she parked it about 8 p.m. Dec. 20 and then found damage to the 7:30 a.m. Dec. 21. A window was broken and the steering column and ignition sustained damage but nothing was stolen from inside, according to a report.

Ham Stolen in Family Argument

Grosse Pointe Woods police were called to a home on Hawthorne Road Dec. 25 after a family argument led to one member leaving with the ham that was supposed to have been served for dinner. The woman who called police reported that she, her former boyfriend and their son live in the house together and that her former boyfriend's other son showed up, leading to an argument. The man then left with his other son and the ham. Officers tried to find the man but could not. The woman told officer he was planning to move out at the beginning of the year and she fears he will damage her personal belongings while moving, according to a report.  

Woman Arrested for Obstruction 

Grosse Pointe Woods police arrested a 29-year-old woman Dec. 25 shortly before 10 p.m. after being called to a family dispute. The woman continually tried to interrupt the officers' investigation and did not follow orders to go back inside her home and wait for the officer to come in to talk with her. The woman argued with her 18-year-old step-daughter, leading to her leaving the home with her younger brother and sister and going to her grandmother's house. The woman followed them to the grandmother's and tried to get them to return but they would not. Before the children left, their father tried to make them stay but was unsuccessful. While officers were trying to determine who had called police and why, they were talking with some of the kids when the step-mother began yelling and pointing her finger and disobeying the officers orders. The woman smelled of alcohol and after repeated attempts to tell her to go back into the house, an officer arrested her for obstruction of justice. She refused to comply with a portable breath test. The younger children were sent home with their mother who lives in another area of the state and the 18-year-old was left to make her own decision about where she was going to stay that night, according to a report. 

Drunk Driver Arrested 

Grosse Pointe Farms police arrested a 33-year-old Detroit woman early Wednesday in the 400 block of Moran Road for drunk driving. An officer initially noticed that she was driving 45 in a 35 mile per hour zone and began following her. She was swerving in both directions on the roadway, pulled into a driveway and drove partially on the lawn. The officer then stopped her and when she tried to roll down her window, she rolled down the back window instead and she failed field sobriety tests. The woman admitted to drinking two glasses of wine but refused to take a portable breath test and refused to take the formal test at the police station later. Officers requested a warrant to obtain a blood draw so it could be tested. The woman is charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated, according to a report. 

Teen Arrested for Drunk Driving

Grosse Pointe Farms police arrested a 19-year-old Grosse Pointe Park man Dec. 21 near Country Club Drive and Moross Road after he hit the curb and popped the front tire. After popping the tire, the teen continued driving but eventually stopped near Moross Road about 2:40 a.m. A little while earlier, a patrol officer spotted the same car driving 51 miles per hour down Grosse Pointe Boulevard. The officer was traveling in the opposite direction and was not able to turn around fast enough to catch up to the speeding vehicle. When the other officer approached the vehicle after it finally came to a stop, the teen smelled of alcohol and during his arrested, officers discovered a backpack containing marijuana, $1,125 cash, baggies and a scale. Also recovered from the vehicle were grinding tools, a scale and a glass pipe. The man is charged with possession of paraphernalia, possession of marijuana and operating a vehicle while intoxicated. He had a 0.15 percent blood alcohol content, according to a report. 

Vodka Stolen from CVS 

A employee reported the theft of eight bottles of liquor stolen Dec. 24 after one of two men who had already given up five bottles of vodka he stuffed under his clothing left. The employee told police she spotted the men milling around the store and not making any selections of product to buy. She saw one of the men shove something under his clothing and approached him in the liquor aisle, demanding he give it back. The man gave up five bottles and then the men left. After they left, the employee found that other bottles of liquor that had just been restocked that morning missing, including six $30 bottles of Vodka and two $34 bottles of vodka, according to a report. 

Woman Interrupts Crime 

A Grosse Pointe Woods woman witnessed a man throw a concrete brick through the back window of her son's car in the 2100 block of Allard Road Dec. 25. The woman arrived home to find a dark colored minivan parked in front of her home and a young man trying to hide himself with a hoodie and other clothing walking up her driveway. The man threw something at her son's Yukon and then she stepped from her vehicle to yell at him, spurring him to run to the minivan and drive away. The woman told police she has no idea who the man may have been or why he was targeting her son's vehicle, according to a report.  

Missing Teen Found After Reported Robbery

A 14-year-old Detroit girl who was reported as missing by her family was found Dec. 21 after she called Grosse Pointe Woods police to report being robbed. The girl told officers she had been riding around in a vehicle with four men, one of whom she did not know at all and the other three she did not know very well, when they began fighting with her. The driver stopped in the 2100 block of Vernier and threw her personal belongings out of the car. She told police they stole her cell phones and $75 cash from her bra before driving away. She asked a resident to call police. The teenager was vague in her descriptions of the men and the car to officers. Her information was removed from the missing persons database and she was released to the custody of her aunt, according to a report. 

Bank's Ex-Customer Escorted Out by Police 

Grosse Pointe Woods police escorted a 29-year-old resident out of the Mack Avenue branch of Dec. 21. An employee requested the escort after the woman refused to leave on her own. The bank employee told police the woman's bank account had been closed several weeks ago because the woman was disruptive to bank operation over several months and they told her they did not want her to return. She returned Dec. 21 to ask questions about a Bank of America credit card and when branch employees told her they could not answer questions about the credit cards, she refused to leave until police escorted her out, according to a report. 

Rock Used to Break School Window

A employee reported damage to a double pained window to Grosse Pointe Woods police Dec. 26. The employee returned to work on Dec. 26 to find a broken window along with a rock that remained lodged between the second of the double-paned window, according to a report. The window was in tact the last time the employee was there, which was Dec. 21, according to the report. 

Air Freshners Stolen

An employee of gas station reported to Grosse Pointe Farms police the theft of 15 coconut air fresheners Dec. 25. The employee said a man tried to exchange returnable bottles for one air freshener to which she declined. The man left and then returned a few minutes later, going to the area of the air fresheners and then left again. After he left the second time, the employee noticed the air fresheners were gone. The employee provided police with pictures of the thief that she took on her cell phone while he was in the store, according to a report. 

Identity Fraud Reported 

A 52-year-old man reported potential identity fraud Dec. 19 after receiving alerts that two additional people had been added to access his bank accounts online. The names were of people whom he does not know and he changed the password on his online accounts in addition to alerting the bank of the possible fraudulent activity, according to the report.