Crime reports | Island Packet

3 Bluffton-area car washes burglarized

Authorities are investigating break-ins at three car washes, according to Bluffton police.

Police aren't sure if the thefts, which occurred overnight during the past few weeks, are related, Sgt. Joe Babkiewicz said.

The first was at about 6:30 a.m. Sept. 15 at Neighbor's Car Wash at 4374 Bluffton Parkway. Police arrived to find the front window of the business smashed and items missing from inside, a news release said.

In an apparently unrelated incident Wednesday, a man entered the office of the Ultimate Car Wash at 31 Plantation Park Drive at about 12:50 p.m. and stole a money bag containing about $580, Babkiewicz said.

The robber -- described as a black male, 6 feet tall, wearing an orange and white hat, white T-shirt and orange shorts -- drove away in a gray or gold SUV, Bluffton police said.

The Beaufort County Sheriff's Office also is investigating a break-in over the weekend at Island Car Wash on Fording Island Road. Nothing was stolen, but the front window of the business was smashed, causing about $500 in damage, according to an incident report.

Anyone with information about the incidents should call the Bluffton Police Department tip line at 843-706-4560 or the county non-emergency dispatch line at 843-524-2777.

Waste Pro driver cited for illegal dumping

A Waste Pro garbage truck driver has been ticketed after two incidents left parts of S.C. 170 littered with debris, according to the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office.

At about 4 p.m. Thursday, motorists reported a garbage truck dropping large amounts of trash on S.C. 170 from the Broad River bridge to Snake Road. After sorting through the trash, a sheriff's litter control officer tracked the contents to a Waste Pro truck that had picked up garbage on St. Helena Island, a Sheriff's Office news release said.

At about 10 a.m. Friday, deputies were called to a second dumping incident, on S.C. 170 near the Chechessee River bridge. The trash, which fell off the truck when a restraining net broke, blocked multiple lanes of traffic and took more than three hours to move, the release said.

The driver, identified as the same one from Thursday's dump, was ticketed for failure to secure a load and littering, the release said.

Waste Pro employees helped clear the mess, which caused no lasting property damage, according to the release.

Man flashes Hilton Head tattoo parlor employee

A 19-year-old Hilton Head Island man faces misdemeanor indecent-exposure charges after he exposed himself to a female tattoo shop employee Saturday night, according to a Beaufort County Sheriff's Office report.

At about 10:30 p.m., the man, who appeared to be drunk, entered the store and asked for a tattoo. Realizing he was too intoxicated to be tattooed, she asked him to leave.

A few minutes later, she saw him drinking alcohol outside the front door. He again entered the store and was asked to leave.

He then came into the shop a third time, walked to the front desk and pulled down his pants. He left and was later arrested, according to the report.

During the trip to the county detention center, he ripped a radar antenna in a deputy's cruiser, causing about $500 in damage, according to a report.

He remained in the jail Monday. Bond was set at $12,130, according to the jail log.

The following reports were released Monday by the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office:

BLUFFTON

THEFT

Fording Island Road, Wild Wing Cafe: Three gumball machines worth $500 stolen from restaurant.

HILTON HEAD ISLAND

THEFT

Hilton Head Plantation, Jingle Shell Lane: $1,100 in quarters stolen from residence.

Helmsman Way, Bristol Sports Arena: Metal pole worth $500 stolen from skate park.

VANDALISM

Deep Fording: Window of Dodge truck shattered and side door of GMC truck scratched. Damage: $600.

VEHICLE BREAK-IN

Port Royal Plantation, Resolute Place: Laptop computer and accessories worth $2,360, digital camera worth $450, gold Cross pen worth $300, vehicle tag, and electronics and gift cards worth $90 stolen.

Port Royal Plantation, Planters Row: Wallet worth $10, cellphone worth $250, $20 in cash, and credit cards and identification cards stolen.

Compiled by Cassie Foss