Crime & Safety

Weird Police News: Greasy Getaway, Polite Robber, and Cold Pill High

More of the strange stuff police officers around North Georgia were up against recently.

Click on the links below for more info on each story.

1. Can you start the car we’re stealing? A Snellville man, who was cleaning out his deceased father’s home in unincorporated Stone Mountain, was robbed and carjacked by armed men in the driveway. But the car wouldn't start without help from the victim, so the men made him get it running before they drove away. With the help of a witness, DeKalb County Police apprehended the suspects a short time later.

2. ‘Please and thank you,’ says robber: An armed robbery suspect at least was polite when he tried to rob a Norcross-area check-cashing business of $300. He handed an employee a note that read, "I would like to withdraw $300 from your register." . However, the suspect became nervous and fled before getting any cash. He was found later with several similar notes up his sleeve — "I need about $20,000 please & thank you," "I need $20,000, would be appreciated, thank you," and "Need a key to a car that would be appreciated."

3. High on cold pills: A Sugar Hill man was found in a disoriented state and walking around the parking lot of a Buford-area Target store. he told police. Apparently, the man was “robo-ing,” the slang for taking large quantities of over-the-counter cold medicine to get high.

Find out what's happening in Lilburn-Mountain Parkwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

4. Police chase doughnut truck: In a scene that might be worthy of a low-budget comedy flick, a Lawrenceville man took police on a freeway chase while driving a stolen doughnut delivery truck. He stole a Krispy Kreme truck in the Dacula area and took off south down Ga. 316 and I-85 before exiting the highway and crashing the truck into a tree. The suspect fled on foot, but was taken down by a K-9 bite. No word on whether the guy was easier for the dog to track because of the smell of doughnuts. DUI was one of many charges the suspect faced.

5. Banks and bomb threats: Gwinnett County police reported two recent cases of suspects handing bomb-threat notes to bank tellers. A woman, who was later admitted to the hospital for mental health issues, reportedly gave a teller at a Lawrenceville-area bank a note saying explosives were in her car. Also, police were looking for a man after he allegedly walked up to the counter at a Duluth-area bank, passed the threatening note and fled with a small amount of cash.

Find out what's happening in Lilburn-Mountain Parkwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

6. ‘Dumb thing,’ for sure: A convicted felon who served 13 years in jail for armed robbery found himself back behind bars after he accidentally shot himself in the leg. The man, from Buford, admitted to police that he had done a “dumb thing” after a pistol he had tucked it in his waistband went off by accident. Gwinnett Police responded to a person-shot call and found the man lying in the back of a pickup. The suspect, who lied about his identity (of course he did), asked police “to let it slide because he already spent 13 years behind bars,” the incident report stated. They didn’t.

7. Hot cooking oil: The owner of a Sandy Springs-area Greek restaurant reported finding an unauthorized woman pumping used cooking oil into a container on a truck at the back of the establishment. She and an accomplice got away with $100 worth of grease. There’s apparently a market for used grease, according to Sandy Springs Police — 30 to 40 cents per pound.

8. Blame it on the cousin: A South Carolina man told police the two orange pills they found in his car during a traffic stop weren’t illegal drugs.  he reportedly told police. They weren’t, unless amphetamines have been re-classified.

9. Mischief with food: A report from the Walton County Sheriff’s Office included this item listed as a “Juvenile Problem.” One resident reported “several juveniles running away from the residence after they egged the front door and used Boars Head Deli Turkey and pasted it on the side of the residence.”

10. Pain in the ribs: A man stopped by the Winder Police Department for a traffic offense took off running to get away but all it got him were trips to the Barrow Regional Medical Center and Barrow County Detention Center. The suspect hurt his ribs when he reportedly jumped a fence during his attempted escape, and then faced multiple charges due to his shenanigans, which included taking his fiancee’s car without her permission.


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