Crime & Safety

Residents Help Catch Criminals By Reporting Suspicious Activity

Temple Terrace Police Department Community Service Officer Tracy Mishler has released this information on crimes that took place July 6 to 12.

Theft
July 6, 4:21 p.m.
7620 Wakulla Drive (Orange River Clubhouse)
Five unknown black male juveniles came into the clubhouse to get a drink of water. While inside, one of the subjects stole $80 from the wallet of an Orange River resident. The resident confronted the subjects who all fled on foot across the street into the Riverdale subdivision.

A responding officer located one of the subjects, a 14-year-old male who lives on Greystone Road in Thonotosassa.

The subject was arrested for providing a false name to a law enforcement officer. No arrests have been made for theft.

Find out what's happening in Temple Terracewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Burglary/Bike Theft
July 7, 4 to 7 p.m.
8700 block of Terra Oaks Drive
Unknown subjects entered a garage that had been left open and then took a blue and silver men’s 19-inch Sedona DX bicycle.

Officer Tracy Mishler said residents reported both of the following incidents as suspicious activity.

Find out what's happening in Temple Terracewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

“Like I have said before,” he wrote in the crime update e-mail, “‘You call ’em, we catch ’em.’ Great job! Go Crime Watch!”

Suspicious Person
July 11, 1:12 p.m.
Druid Hills Road and Inverness Avenue
A witness observed a white male subject riding his bicycle west on Druid Hills Road near Inverness Avenue. The subject was carrying a flat-screen TV on handlebars covered by a blanket.

The witness continued to follow the subject to the Heritage at Temple Terrace Apartments where the subject ditched the TV inside an apartment entrance foyer.

Officers were unable to find the subject, who fled on the bike traveling south on Richlyne Avenue.

There have been no reports of burglaries in Temple Terrace since this incident, Mishler said.

Police recovered the 26-inch TV and the blanket.

Burglary Auto in progress
July 12, 7:18 p.m.
8700 block of Morrison Oaks Court
Officers responded to an auto burglary in progress called in by a neighbor. The vehicle turned out to be stolen.

Two black male unknown subjects stole a red 2007 Volvo S40, and responding officers located the vehicle at N. 56th Street and Sligh Avenue. The subjects fled west on Sligh Avenue and lost control near N. 43rd Street and Hanna Avenue, crashing the vehicle.

The subjects then fled on foot.

Officers found the driver of the stolen vehicle and arrested him after a short foot pursuit. They continued to check the area for the second subject.

A Temple Terrace Police K-9 found the subject hiding under a stairwell. He would not surrender. The K-9 was deployed and the subject was bitten on the foot, causing minor injury.

Both subjects were identified by a witness, arrested and charged with multiple felonies. Both subjects have extensive criminal histories, according to Mishler, and Temple Terrace police and Hillsborough County deputies think that they are involved in other offenses within their jurisdictions.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com.

More from Temple Terrace