Crime Spree in Sandy Pointe Early Wednesday Morning 10/27

Approximately between 2 AM and 3 AM, Wednesday morning October 27th, at least one individual entered several unlocked vehicles in the neighborhood looking for valuables.  One victim had a $300 camera and a knife set stolen out of his truck, another victim had items out of place in their vehicle, but apparently did not have anything taken.  The 3rd victim is where all the major excitement started.

Mrs. Cory Carrier, the former City Manager also lives in the neighborhood and had left her car unlocked last night in her driveway.  The burglar accidentally tapped the horn while inside her vehicle, which woke up Mr. Don Penton, the former City Mayor and Cory Carrier's husband.  Peeking out the bedroom window, Mr. Penton saw the interior car light on and a profile in the vehicle.  He grabbed his 357 Magnum and headed out the side exit to confront the suspect.  In hindsight he regretted yelling to him before approaching the suspect, giving him a heads up.  The startled suspect began running.  Mr. Penton shot twice at the suspect trying to stop him by hitting him in the legs.  The 2nd bullet was recovered after it hit a neighbor's garage, the first bullet has not been recovered.  The suspect continued running down the street between houses farther into the neighborhood toward the lake.

Bullet hole in Sandy Pointe residence

911 was called at roughly 3:04 AM.  Patrols showed up approximately 7 minutes later and were followed up by 2 helicopters and dogs about 10 minutes after the call was placed.  A hat was lost by the suspect during his retreat which was given to the dogs to track him.  The dogs followed the scent through the back half of the neighborhood between houses and up through the undeveloped lots on the Southwest side of the neighborhood, where the dogs lost the scent.  The suspect is still on the loose as of this morning at 10:30 AM.
Neighbors were interviewed to see if there was any additional information that might help to catch the suspect.

I must admit that a 7 minute response time is pretty good considering the ONE Polk City Police Officer was not on duty last night when it happened.  It was the Polk County Sheriff's Department who responded to the call.  I'm sure the shots fired, and the fact that it was at the former City Mayor's house, didn't hurt matters either.  Did the absence of city patrols last night, due to the drastic cuts in the Polk City Police force, have any direct connection to the occurrence of the crimes?  Maybe or Maybe not, but it sure makes it a lot easier to be nosing around our neighborhoods at night without worrying too much about a police patrol driving up to interrupt all the fun.  I know many neighbors in Sandy Pointe will be looking into taking extra measures to protect their property and insure their safety in the future.  Other Polk City residents would be wise to do the same, since the City can't afford adequate police protection to have regular patrols to deter this type of activity.  The city residents are forced to take their protection into their own hands, since the city is financially not able to.  Polk City residents pay some of the highest tax rates in the state and the city still does not have enough money to provide adequate police protection for its residents.  Maybe the budget cuts should be made somewhere else?  Hopefully, the 357 Magnum scared this individual enough, and others who may be considering doing the same, not to mess with Sandy Pointe again!