Police Blotter: Suspicious Man at Park Just Wanted Quiet Place to Read Book

A suspicious white van was parked by the tennis courts at 4:27 p.m. Oct. 27, according to a caller who said the man had been at the park all hours of the day and night for the past three or four weeks. Police said the man lives on Woodhurst Avenue and was at the park reading a book.

A man came to the police station at 11:12 p.m. Oct. 28 and said he was on Wilson Mills Road when a man approached and said he needed gas money, to which he responded that the person should contact AAA. There was a small brown wallet on the ground with a driver's license that had a Mayfield Heights address, so the man brought that to the station.

A Hidden Trail woman thought there might be a prowler at 9:45 p.m. Oct. 28 because her dog was going crazy and she heard a closet door close. Police said there was a screen out on the second floor, but officers did not find anyone else in the house.

A Woodrow Avenue woman called police at 5:11 p.m. Oct. 28 because a deer had been in her yard all day. She thought the animal might had injured a leg. Police chased the deer off.

An elderly man driving a tan Toyota hit a parked car at 1:24 p.m. Oct. 28 on Larchmont Drive. The man was taken to and police contacted the owner of the Saturn that had been struck.

A Worton Boulevard woman thought a man was trying to break in at 9:23 p.m. Oct. 27. He tried to put a key in the door and left when she asked who was there. Police said the man was confused and lives a block away. An officer took the man home in his car.

 A Larchmont Drive woman reported at 7:56 pm. Oct. 26 that a man called her and said she won a large cash award. He wanted to make arrangements to come to her house and present the winnings.

A Crestwood Road resident called police at 2:15 p.m. Oct. 26 after getting into a fight with a neighbor. He asked the neighbor to stay off of his property and the confrontation turned physical, with the neighbor hitting him with a plastic leaf rake. Police talked to the neighbor, who said the caller shoved him first. Neither man wanted to purse the matter any further.