A 22 year old Atlanta man was arrested and denied bail after setting fire to the mattress in his hotel room early one morning. Firefighters were called to the hotel on West Bay Street around midnight, and when they arrived found smoke coming from the room. They forced the door open and extinguished the fire, but did not find anyone in the room. They removed the mattress, box spring and a chair that had been damaged. Investigators discovered an accelerant was used to light the mattress and found a gas can in the room. Several hours later, the man who had rented the room called 911 to turn himself in. He was charged with first degree arson and transported to CCDC. A preliminary hearing has been scheduled for next week.
• A 66 year old woman from Ghana drowned in the Savannah River after falling over a railing into the water. An identification card found in her purse, which was found near the scene, revealed her identity and a last known address in Atlanta. Witnesses said she was walking along the railing, bent over it and fell into the water. They tried to throw her a life preserver, but she did not respond.
• Police are searching for the man who robbed a 101 year old gentleman on his way home from a church gathering. The victim was on his porch when he was approached by a light–skinned black male in his early 20s about 5’7” tall. The suspect grabbed the victim and demanded money. The victim tried to resist, but was thrown to the ground by the suspect, who then took his wallet, containing $61 and some ID cards. The victim had abrasions on his hand and face, but refused medical assistance. He was later taken to the hospital by a family member. Police scoured the area, but were unable to locate anyone fitting the description.
• A security guard caught two shoplifting ladies red handed and called the police. An officer was dispatched to the big box retail store in order to fill out two ban forms for the ladies. While completing the necessary paperwork, a store employee told the officer that they believed one of the woman had stuffed merchandise into her brassiere. A female officer accompanied the woman to the restroom in order to complete a search. Instead of merchandise, the officer found a bag of leafy green substance believed to be marijuana. It field tested positive according to “a Duquenois Reagent Test.” Surveillance video showed one woman pass the contraband to the other woman during a moment while they were left alone in the loss prevention office. Both women were charged with misdemeanor possession and were banned from the store. They were not charged with shoplifting.
• A company’s bookkeeper stole more than $47,000 over the course of three years, and was arrested. The bookkeeper had opened a line of credit under the business’ name, using it to pay for his personal phone and other items, including gas. He paid the bill using company checks.
• Police responded to a possible sexual offense reported by a teenager. The girl stated she’d been receiving unwanted sexually explicit text messages from a high school acquaintance. The conversation began innocently enough, but then he began asking her to perform sexual acts via web cam. She refused. She told police that he also sent several photos of his genitals.