Jan. 15: Criminal trespass — A woman said her ex-boyfriend had been leaving letters on her door, on her vehicle and in her mailbox even though they had been broken up for two years with no other contact. She spotted her ex-boyfriend getting back in his vehicle after reportedly leaving her a letter and flowers between her screen door and front door. She told him to leave and not return. An officer contacted the ex-boyfriend, who said he was through with his ex-girlfriend.

Jan. 16
Doing business without a license — An HPD officer on patrol on Coalition Circle noticed a truck bearing the logo of a business that has a history of conducting business in Hinesville without a license. The officer made contact with two of the company’s employees, and noted that one had been warned on a previous occasion. The previously warned employee was arrested and taken to HPD, where he was cited for doing business without a license, given a bond of $276 and issued a court date. He paid his bond in full and was released. The employee who had not previously been warned was released with a warning.

Jan. 17
Prowling — A woman called police to report a subject in her yard. She said she woke up because one of her dogs repeatedly ran out of the dog door to the fence and back inside while barking. The woman said she looked out her sliding glass door and saw someone wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt trying to open her gate. When the subject looked up and saw that the blinds on the sliding glass door had moved, he ran from the area.

Jan. 20
Theft by taking — A fast-food restaurant employee reported that another employee was supposed to make a $626 deposit at The Coastal Bank but later found out that the deposit never posted, so she questioned the employee. The employee said a friend picked her up in a Chevy Impala to make the deposit in the bank’s drive-through. The complainant contacted the bank, which reviewed video footage of the time the deposit reportedly was made, and the bank did not see an Impala come through the line.

Jan. 24
Theft by taking, criminal trespass — A Happy Acres mobile home resident reported that an SUV entered the property, drove to the work shed and loaded a refrigerator into the truck. The resident reportedly approached the driver and advised him that he was taking property that was not trash and that he had seen him take items before. He also threatened to call police, so the driver unloaded the refrigerator and sped off. The driver reportedly had previously taken a stove and an air conditioner, and the complainant provided a license number, which led authorities to a Long County resident. The officer attempted to reach the suspect through Long County law enforcement but reported no response.

Criminal damage to property, simple battery, disorderly conduct —  Two women were arrested for fighting in the 800 block of Willowbrook Drive.  When the first officer arrived, he found a large crowd surrounding a white car and a female. The crowd scattered when the officer arrived, and another woman ran to the officer and reported that she was being attacked. Other officers arrived and they separated the women. The women reportedly were fighting over a man who lived with one of them but had gone to dinner with the other. The fight allegedly included kicking and keying a car, and it continued while officers spoke with the women. Both were placed under arrest for disorderly conduct and taken to the police department.  

Obstruction of officer — A man was arrested at Raintree Apartments for possession of marijuana less than one ounce and after he lied to police about his identity. Officer were on foot patrol in the area and smelled fresh marijuana around the man’s vicinity and he reportedly cooperated with a search in which they found the substance hidden in a rip in the man’s pants pocket.

Jan. 25
Criminal attempt to commit burglary — A resident in the 1400 block of Flo Zechman Drive reported that someone tried to enter his residence while he was gone for several days but another resident was still home. There was evidence of damage to a window frame and possible pry marks, though nothing was reported missing.

Theft by shoplifting, possession of controlled substance — Two males were arrested at Walmart for reportedly shoplifting $37 in Yu-Gi-Oh! trading cards, $10 in oral pain gel and $12 in Axe body spray. Loss prevention employees reportedly observed the men lifting the items and then opening them while eating at the McDonald’s inside the store. The officer and employee stopped the men as they were attempting to leave and asked to see the contents of their bag and a receipt; the receipt did not cover all of the contents of the bag. One of the men also had two white pills, which he said were a prescription for a mouth injury. He said he did not keep them in the bottle because it broke, and he could not remember the name of the doctor who prescribed the pills. Both men were transported to the jail, processed, offered bond and released. The pills were placed in evidence.

Jan. 26
Obstruction, arrest for other agency — A mobile-home resident in the lot at 1122 S. Main St. reported that four men were outside her home and refused to leave. The men reportedly were there to collect money from a woman visiting the resident.  The responding officer found three men sitting inside a Lexus but never located a fourth man. The officer requested identification from the men and found that one was wanted in Bryan County for probation violation.
As he attempted to arrest the probation violator, the violator took off on foot. He later was caught, but when he was in custody he required medical attention for reportedly irritating old injuries during his attempt to evade police.
He also claimed that he had been an informant for HPD and information from him had resulted in several arrests, so he was afraid to be placed in the Liberty County Jail. The man said that if he was forced to go to the jail, he would kill himself. After he was medically cleared, jail authorities said the man would be placed alone in a cell while awaiting pick-up from Bryan County.