Couple Calls 911 to Get Help Moving and Ride to Airport, Both End Up in Handcuffs and Charged
Imagine the looks on the faces of responding law enforcement officers when they showed up at a residence only to have the very people burglarizing it ask for a bit of help.
That’s what went down Saturday in Polk County, Florida, according to WBBH-TV in Fort Myers. Sheriff’s deputies responded to a home after 911 was called but nobody on the caller’s end said anything to the dispatcher.
Upon arriving at the home where the call originated, Polk County deputies encountered a man and his girlfriend. The two happened to be in the middle of burglarizing the home, authorities said.
Naturally, the responding deputies were curious as to why one of the two would have called 911 while committing a crime.
Well, duh! The woman explained that she made the call hoping that Polk County deputies would help the couple move some of the belongings from the house — “the one they were burglarizing,” the sheriff’s office said in a Facebook post — and ask if they could grab a ride to the airport to spend the weekend in New York.
Who doesn’t ask the local cops for a ride when breaking and entering?
Making the story even more bizarre is the fact that the male suspect was soon identified as having been a suspect from an earlier robbery at a local Dollar General store. Authorities said they have him on surveillance camera breaking the law.
The Facebook post from the sheriff’s office updated the general public on the hilarious situation, giving a play-by-play of what happened.
“A Dollar General store in Poinciana was burgled at around one o’clock in the morning, and multiple items were stolen from within. Whilst reviewing security video, a deputy recognized the suspect as Martin. A search for Martin was unsuccessful,” it said.
The post continued, “Later that day, deputies responded to a residence after a 911 call was received, but nobody spoke. When the deputies arrived at the house, they realized that nobody resided there, but they found an unsecured door. Deputies went inside to make sure everything was alright, and they found Martin and his girlfriend, Liz, neither of whom have ties to the house.”
It revealed that Liz admitted she called 911 for assistance in moving their belongings and the airport ride.
“Deputies DID help them with their belongings, and DID give them a ride, but it wasn’t to the airport…it was to the Polk Pokey. And they are welcome to stay there all weekend long. The Polk Pokey is much better than New York anyway,” the sheriff’s office added.
The fine men and women who make up the ranks of America’s law enforcement have the most challenging job in the world, but cases like these have to provide some form of comic relief from the daily rigors of being a cop.
If Polk County sounds familiar, it’s probably because it tends to make the news cycle somewhat regularly. The best stories out of Polk County and the Polk County Sheriff’s Office involve its leader, Sheriff Grady Judd.
Judd made headlines in October when he advised county residents to handle hurricane looters by shooting them until they resemble “grated cheese.”
“If a looter breaks into your home, take your gun and shoot him,” he said.
Florida Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd- “If a looter breaks into your home, take your gun and shoot him. Shoot him so he looks like grated cheese.” I agree 💯 with him. Looters are scum of the earth‼️ pic.twitter.com/sJqre89yQ1
— 𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝕷𝖎𝖔𝖓𝖊𝖘𝖘™️ (@CL4WS_OUT) October 8, 2022
In 2021, the sheriff put on a show during a news conference about a drug sting operation.
“That’s right, they thought they were cool. Well, how cool are you today? Can y’all make up a rap song about this?” Judd rhetorically asked, while holding up mugshots of two suspects.
“Well I’ll help you out,” he continued, before placing a large gold chain that was seized by law enforcement around his own neck.
“You see, we got your gold. We put your tail, in the county jail. Think about that, brothers. And you know what? This, you could call it the ‘Bell Gang Blue’ rap song, how’s that?
“You may think it’s cool, but it’ll end up with you arrested every time.”
The sheriff then pointed to the pendant on the necklace and added, “It’s not bad, if you got it legal.”
In 2018, Judd’s message to would-be criminals about the dangers of engaging in that pastime in Polk County went viral.
“Here’s a message for the ‘hot heads’ of the community: Don’t do that stuff,” the sheriff said, referring to an assault on a legally armed Uber driver.
“Good people carry guns. And they will shoot you. A lot,” he warned. “Graveyard dead.”
It’s refreshing that we still have law enforcement outfits like the Polk County Sheriff’s Office that not only get the job done and keep citizens safe but also engage in a bit of fun along the way.
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