Oconee Blotter: Florida man helps himself to hot chocolate when burglarizing Watkinsville home

The Oconee County Sheriff’s Office reported the following incidents:

SHOPLIFTING CHARGE: On Feb. 4, Deputy Devan Blair was dispatched to Walmart for a shoplifting that was in progress. A man had placed $879 worth of merchandise in a cart and was leaving the store, while his female companion was outside in a Toyota. When he was confronted, the man took off running. The deputy stopped her patrol unit near the Toyota, where she saw the woman exit, wave at someone and shout, “The police, the police.” The deputy approached the suspect, who was uncooperative, so he was put to the ground. The woman then fled in the Toyota. The 27-year-old man explained he was from Greenville, S.C., and that he had met the woman that day and that she drove them to Georgia. The man didn’t want to go to jail because he didn’t know anyone who would bond him out.

CRACKED WINDSHIELD: On Feb. 2, Deputy Scotty Bodie and Cpl. Lex Ogan were monitoring traffic on Epps Bridge Parkway when they spotted a vehicle with a cracked windshield. After a traffic stop, the 43-year-old Athens man was arrested because his license was suspended due to a previous drunk driving conviction and he had failed to pay for child support.

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SUSPICIOUS CHARACTER: On Feb. 5, Cpl. Pat Holl and six other deputies responded to a report of a suspicious person in the parking lot of North Oconee High School off Rocky Branch Road. An event was taking place on the football field and callers reported seeing a man possibly with a gun. The man was wearing an oversized black coat and a wide brim hat. The deputy stopped the man and asked if he had a weapon and he said no that he was looking for a lost cell phone that belonged to a friend. The 50-year-old Athens man had a phone in his hand and a search revealed he did not have a weapon. However, some meth was found on him and he was taken to jail.

SHOPLIFTING: On Feb. 6, Deputy Ryan Buzzard was dispatched to Walmart after a 42-year-old Greensboro woman was observed taking a price tag off a ruler and using it to scan $56 in merchandise. The woman was taken into custody, but explained she was pregnant.

SUSPICIOUS MAN: On Feb. 6, Deputy Annessa Glenn and seven other deputies responded to a call about a suspicious man knocking on doors at homes along Oliver Bridge Road. One resident told a deputy he came home, found his door unlocked, and upon going inside found someone had been there and made themselves a cup of hot chocolate before leaving. A second resident confronted the suspect. This man reported he walked into his kitchen and saw a barefoot man standing at the sliding glass door. The man, with a scruffy beard and a hooded sweatshirt, was standing still with his armed crossed in front of him. The resident told the man to leave, which he did. The victim then called 911. Deputies located the man, who was identified as a 44-year-old resident of Doral, Florida. He was taken to jail on a burglary charge.

SUSPECT NABBED: On Feb. 7, Cpl. Lex Ogan was on patrol when he received a FLOCK notification that a Toyota Corolla was coming into Oconee County and the driver was wanted on a terroristic threats warrant. The deputy made a traffic stop and placed the man under arrest. The warrant stemmed from an incident at Walmart on Feb. 4 in which the suspect, who is from Venezuela, threatened harm to a woman.

Self inflicted: Comer teen shoots own hand playing with brother's gun

ASSAULT SUSPECT: On Feb. 8, Deputy Boris Argueta and 12 other deputies responded to the call of a man with a gun. The deputy met with Walton County deputies on Hebron Church Road and they explained the assault occurred in Oconee County. The 25-year-old victim explained he was at his mother’s home in Statham doing yardwork with his 28-year-old brother. Afterward, they had some wine and cheese, then they left in the brother’s car. Once in the car, the older brother accused his brother of being involved with a drug cartel, something the brother denied. However, the suspect insisted he was and pulled a gun, which he used to hit his brother in the head. When the suspect slowed his car, the victim jumped out and fled to a nearby store where he called 911. A dozen deputies then gathered at a house where the suspect was inside. Deputies were able to get close to the suspect and put him on the ground. The suspect complained that the number of deputies who arrived was “unnecessary.”

DUI CHARGED: On Feb. 9, Cpl. Dylan Pulliam responded to motorists’ calls that a car was parked in the roadway at Simtonton Bridge Road and Hickory Hill Drive. The deputy found a man asleep at the wheel, so he turned off the ignition and removed the keys. The man, who smelled of alcohol, woke up. The deputy asked if he had anything to drink and he confessed to “a little,” then remarked, “What are you getting at?” When the man refused to do sobriety tests and told he was under arrest for DUI, he replied, “Says who?”

This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Oconee Blotter: Shoplifting suspect abandoned by female companion