Police blotter
The following accounts were taken from reports from the Columbia County Sheriff's Office. Reports are available at www.columbiacountyso.org:
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Appling church's roadside sign shot
Someone shot an Appling church sign.
Police were notified by a man who arrived at Lampkin Grove Baptist Church, 2723 Louisville Road, about noon Saturday and discovered the damaged roadside sign.
The man found six small bullet holes, which went through both sides of the sign. At least two bullets hit the electrical ballasts in the $499 sign.
Lost wallet is returned empty
A Martinez man said Saturday that someone returned his lost wallet, minus hundreds of dollars in cash.
He had lost his wallet around Washington Road near Flowing Wells Road about 1:45 p.m. Someone returned it and told him that he had found it in the road in that area.
The owner said that $750 had been stolen from the wallet but that he does not believe the man who returned it took the money.
Confused cashier overpays customer
A cashier at an Evans restaurant told police Thursday that a customer had confused her into giving him more than $150.
The manager of Moe's Southwest Grill, 4239 Washington Road, said that between 1:30 and 2:30 p.m., a customer talked the cashier into giving him too much change while he was paying for his food.
The cashier told police the man ordered two tacos, paid with a $50 bill and she gave the man the correct change. While the cash drawer was still open, the man stated he didn't mean to pay with a $50 bill, instead asking for change for a $100 bill. The man gave the cashier the leftover change from the earlier transaction, then started asking her questions and "getting in her face."
The cashier said she got confused and gave the flimflammer an unknown amount of money back. After she gave him the money, the man said that he was late for a poker game and was in a rush.
The cashier told the manager, who checked the cash drawer. It was $150.43 short.
Ball bat smashes car's back window
A Martinez man said Monday that someone threw a baseball bat through his son's car window, smashing it.
He heard a noise about 10 p.m. Sunday but paid no attention. On Monday morning, he discovered that someone had thrown a bat through the rear window of the 2009 Nissan Cube, causing $300 damage to the vehicle.
Customer steals paint ball gun
A man stole a paint ball gun from a store Thursday.
The assistant manager of Academy Sports, 4210 Washington Road, said that just before 9 p.m. a man carried a backpack and a paint ball gun into the store restroom. When he emerged from the bathroom, the gun was not visible.
Store employees found the gun's empty package on the bathroom floor. The assistant manager tried to approach the man, who ran out through the rear fire exit.
Martinez-Columbia Fire Rescue report for Sept. 13-19:
Structure fires, three; vehicle fires, two; activated fire alarms, 12; gas line ruptures, two; electrical incidents, four; medical incidents, 17; vehicle accidents, 11; investigate various incidents, four; and mutual aid/public safety assistance, one.