COPS CORNER

Police called regarding removal of a 40-year-old star jasmine plant

This week in Cops Corner...


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April 8

Theft interrupted

12:14 p.m. — Intersection of Bear Creek Path and Hull Road, Ormond Beach

Attempted stolen vehicle. An Ormond Beach resident called police after his friend spotted two young men trying to steal his RV.

According to a police report, the resident's friend had pulled up to the RV with the aim of parking it when he spotted the two men. They fled the scene in a vintage truck.

The resident told police he wished to pursue charges if the suspects were identified.

April 9

Plant war

5:11 p.m. — First block of St. Anne Circle, Ormond Beach

Vandalism. For 40 years, a star jasmine plant was a permanent fixture in the backyard of an Ormond Beach home.

But recently, the family members of the homeowner noticed that it had been cut down to the ground without their authorization. The elderly homeowner's daughter called police and informed officers that the 7-foot-tall plant had been removed along with its trellis and that the cuttings were placed in their driveway. 

Who cut it down? A landscaping company, hired by their neighbor's son, according to a police report. The two parties had issues in the past regarding the homeowner's fence and encroaching plants. However, the report notes that the jasmine plant, which was planted in 1983, was "well within the property line."

When police spoke with the neighbor's son, he said he directed the landscaping company to cut the plant so that it was not on his mother's property. Police asked if he saw that the plant was in his mother's property, and he said he couldn't recall.

The family was interested in seeking restitution for the plant, which they valued at $2,000. The neighbor's son said he would pay restitution if that would resolve the issue.

The family was not sure if they wanted to pursue charges or rectify the issue civilly, according to the police report.

 

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