The Bartlett Police Department handled the following incidents for Jan. 30-Feb. 5. This listing includes the most notable incidents for the reporting period and does not necessarily reflect all police activity.
Editor’s note: All suspects are presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in a court of law, and values are estimated for stolen/damaged items. These are brief summaries of detailed BPD reports.
Jan. 30
Bartlett Corporate Drive (trailer theft)
Someone broke the chain lock on the back fence of a business and stole two trailers from the back lot: A 2015 equipment trailer ($2,687) and an 8- to 10-foot trailer ($400). The thefts happened between close of business on Jan. 27 and Jan. 30.
Jan. 31
Ferguson Road (motor vehicle theft/other)
An office manager reported that someone stole the company’s van from the front parking lot between 5 p.m. Jan. 30 and 7:25 a.m. Jan. 31. It is a white 2007 Ford Econoline cargo van. The Memphis Police Department recovered the stolen vehicle, which had been abandoned, and returned it to the owner.
Stage Road (robbery)
A suspect threatened an employee at Carl’s Wines & Liquor (5975 Stage Road, #10) with a knife on Jan. 31 to flee with a shoplifted bottle of whiskey.
Three black females and one black male entered the business around 9 a.m. Jan. 30. While the older woman was paying cash for a bottle of Jack Daniels Honey, the man grabbed a 1.75 liter glass bottle of Gentleman Jackson ($56.99) and hid it under his jacket. He left and headed toward a gray four-door Nisan Sentra.
The victim followed to confront him, but the suspect produced a red-handled knife with a four-inch curved blade, moved slightly toward him and said, “You aren’t going to do anything or able to do anything to me.” The suspect left, headed southbound on Bartlett Boulevard.
Two of the females appeared to be in their mid-20s, and one seemed to be in her 40s. The man wore light cream pants, a purple jacket and a fedora.
U.S. 70 (theft from a motor vehicle)
A man reported on Jan. 31 that someone stole his iPad Mini from his truck while it was parked in front of the Dollar General (7889 U.S. 70). It happened between 7:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. Jan. 27. A dispatcher entered the item’s serial number into the National Crime Information Center’s database.
Feb. 1
Shelby Street (theft)
A thief made off with about $6,300 in equipment from a locked van at Hastings Plumbing (2778 Shelby Street) sometime between 5:30 p.m. Jan. 31 and 10 a.m. the next morning. The victim found the back fence ajar because someone had cut the padlocked chain. In the back lot, someone had cut a padlock securing the back of a work van and stolen some of the van’s contents.
Items missing included a large and heavy (in excess of 300 lbs.) Spartan sewer and drain-cleaning machine, which was attached to a hand operated crane. Also missing were multiple new and used faucets, a Spartan sink machine, and a toolbox with assorted specialty tools.
Feb. 2
Memphis Arlington Road (theft of vehicle parts/accessories)
A victim reported that someone stole his vehicle’s license plate while it was parked on the 6300 block of Memphis Arlington Road. The incident happened between 7 p.m. Feb. 1 and 8:30 a.m. Feb. 2.
Feb. 3
U.S. 64 (auto burglary)
A patron at Abuelo’s Mexican Restaurant reported that someone broke into his Ford F-250 and stole multiple items while it was parked at Abuelo’s Mexican Restaurant (8275 U.S. 64). He said it happened between 8:15 p.m. and 8:40 p.m. Feb. 3.
Damage to the truck included a punched lock on the driver’s side front door. Items stolen included a Dell laptop ($1,400) and two knives ($50 each).
Feb. 4
Hollister (aggravated burglary)
A grandmother and grandson were watching TV on Feb. 4 when the doorbell rang. The grandmother saw a shadow in the back yard, but before she could investigate she heard someone forcing open the front door. She saw her son, the suspect, headed upstairs. The grandson just said he saw a black man in a fuzzy black hat come inside and go upstairs.
The grandmother locked her grandson in a room and followed the suspect, who left the scene in a black Chevrolet Suburban with clothes taken from the house. Officers stopped the vehicle minutes later at Kirby Whitten on the overpass. The driver said he couldn’t wait for the police any longer, so he kicked the door in. He was arrested and taken to Bartlett City Jail.
Feb. 5
Northampton and Ingleside drives (shots fired)
Two people were walking their dog eastbound on Sylva Rene Drive shortly before 1:40 p.m. when a white four-door Ford Focus drove past them. The driver pointed a black handgun out of his window and shot several times in their direction.
The victims were not hit, and they said the weapon made a noise like an Airsoft gun.
A neighbor at Sylva Rene Drive saw the Ford turning west from Sylva Rene Drive to go south on Lee Ridge when he heard the shots and saw the victims. He was unable to see who was in the vehicle.
As the dog-walkers approached the intersection of Sylva Rene and Ingleside drives, the same car approached from northbound on Ingleside, and again the driver shot at them. This time, he struck one victim on his left buttock.
As the victims continued west on Northampton Drive, the vehicle returned yet again and shot one victim twice in the chest. Then the car left, headed southbound on Elmore Park Road.
The victims described the shooter as a white male, about 17, with long brown hair. There were three passengers: A white female with long brown hair, about 15, and two black males, about 15.
