Police blotter

The following accounts were taken from reports filed with the Columbia County Sheriff's Office.

A $1,000 dog was reported stolen from a Martinez home on Monday.

Marilyn Debra Underwood, of the 4100 block of Birchtree Drive, told police her white, Maltese male dog escaped out of her back yard at about 9:30 a.m. She said she tried walking around her neighborhood to find him.

While Underwood was searching, a neighbor said she was looking out her front window and saw the dog walking up the driveway. She then saw a white Chevrolet Lumina stop in front of the house. A white female with short brown hair got out of the car, grabbed the dog and left, the witness stated in a Columbia County Sheriff's Office report.

She was unable to tell police if there were any other occupants in the car or its license plate number.

An Appling man was threatened on his answering machine last weekend.

James Rudolph Dixon Jr. told authorities he discovered a message on his answering machine on Jan. 17 by an unknown man saying he had a firearm scope trained on Dixon, according to a Columbia County Sheriff's Office report.

The message was followed by the sound of a firearm being loaded, the report stated.

A melee recently broke out at an Evans dance studio.

Megan Eckert of Evans and Arcelis Anna Hernandez of Augusta told deputies that two people started a fight with two others at about 3:30 p.m. on Jan. 18 at the Ballroom Dance Center, 525 Grand Slam Drive.

Eckert and Hernandez said several others joined in the fray but left before police arrived.

The people originally attacked said their attackers began hitting after an argument, according to a Columbia County Sheriff's Office report.

The alleged instigators of the fight refused to give deputies a statement.

Another witness said he tried to break up the fight when someone began hitting and kicking him. The witness had to be taken to the Medical College of Georgia Hospital for a cut he sustained over his eye, the report stated.

Others involved in the fight only suffered minor cuts and bruises.

All of those who were involved refused to press charges.