By Alicia A. Caldwell
Arizona Daily Wildcat
December 8, 1997

Police Beat

University police assisted the Tucson Police Department in an arrest Thursday after hearing a radio call about a theft in progress at the Texaco StarMart, 501 N. Park Ave.

Officers arrived at the StarMart at 2:15 a.m. and found the store clerk detaining a 12-year-old Tucson boy in connection with the theft, police reports stated.

The clerk told officers three boys came in the store just after 2 a.m. and were seen shoplifting, police reports stated.

The clerk reportedly tried to stop the boys when one of them pulled out a knife and threatened him with it. The employee was able to detain one of the boys until officers arrived, police reports stated.

The two other boys reportedly ran out of the store and headed south on North Tyndall Avenue.

TPD officers took a description of the other boys and searched the area until 2:45 a.m. but were unable to find them.

The 12-year-old was taken to Pima County Juvenile Justice Court, police reports stated.

University police arrested a 24-year-old New York man Wednesday on traffic violations after a routine traffic stop.

Officers stopped the 1987 Ford driven by Osamu Nigashi of Stoneybrook, N.Y., just after 5 p.m. near the intersection of North Tyndall Avenue and East Fourth Street for a traffic violation, police reports stated.

A check on Nigashi's license revealed that it had been revoked by the state of N.Y., according to police reports.

He reportedly told officers he thought he had taken care of everything in N.Y.

Nigashi was cited for driving on a revoked license and released at the scene.

University police got a call Dec. 1, from a Parking and Transportation Services employee after finding spray-painted graffiti on walls in the Second Street Garage, 550 N. Mountain Ave.

The employee told officers he found the graffiti on the wall at 6:20 a.m., police reports stated.

He reportedly thinks the incident happened over the Thanksgiving break, telling officers he did not notice any markings on the wall on Nov. 26.

The graffiti, white letters, was spray-painted on the walls, police reports stated.

The value of the damage was unknown.

Two mountain bicycles were reported missing last week.

A female student called university police Wednesday after she found her Giant mountain bike missing from a rack outside the Main Library, 1510 E. University Blvd.

The student told officers she parked and locked her bike with a cable lock outside the entrance to the Main Library at noon, police reports stated.

She came back to the rack at 6:45 p.m. and found the cable lock cut and the bike missing, police reports stated.

The bike and lock were valued between $500 and $600.

In a separate incident, another female student called university police Nov. 30, after finding her mountain bike missing.

She told officers she locked her bike with a U-lock just after 8 p.m. to a rack on the west side of the Sigma Kappa sorority house, 1125 N. Vine Ave., police reports stated.

She came back at 10:30 p.m. and found the front tire still locked to the rack, police reports stated.

The value of the bike was unknown.

Two incidents of petty theft were reported last week.

A Tucson man called university police Nov. 29, after finding the hood ornament of his 1983 Mercedes Benz missing.

The man told officers he parked his car on the third floor of the Main Gate parking garage, 815 E. Second St., at 8 p.m. on Friday, police reports stated.

He reportedly came back to his car at 10 a.m. Sunday and the hood ornament was missing.

According to police reports, there was no other damage to the car and nothing else was missing.

The value of the ornament was unknown.

In a separate incident, university police got a call from a male employee Nov. 26 after discovering a gray trash cart missing from the College of Medicine, 1501 N. Campbell Ave.

The employee told officers he put the cart outside a door near the St. Luke's Clinic at 6 p.m. and went inside.

He came back 15 minutes later and the cart was missing, police reports stated.

The cart was valued at $300.

Police Beat is compiled from official University of Arizona Police Department reports