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Tempe Police: Man litters, threatens officer with stick

The man was carrying a sharpened stick as he walked down Mill Avenue and threw magazines on the ground.

Police Beat Photo

Tempe Police Headquarters


Tempe Police reported the following incidents Tuesday:

A 25-year-old Tempe man was arrested June 21 on the 900 block of East Broadway Road on suspicion of shoplifting and marijuana possession, according to a police report.

The man entered a Safeway store and picked out two Blu-ray discs and seven DVDs, police reported. He hid it all in his waistband and walked out of the store without attempting to pay for it, according to the report.

A store employee stopped him and recovered the merchandise, police reported. It was worth about $110, according to the report.

The report said the man told the employee he didn't plan on paying for the discs, police reported.

When officers arrived, they found a plastic bag with approximately one ounce of marijuana in the man's right shorts pocket, according to the report.

He told officers he had purchased the marijuana but that he didn't have a medical marijuana card, police reported.

The man was arrested and transported to the Tempe City Jail, where he was booked and held to see a judge, according to the report.


A 54-year-old Tempe man was arrested June 12 at 4th Street and Mill Avenue on suspicion of aggravated assault on a peace officer, disorderly conduct, serious disruptive behavior and criminal littering, according to a police report.

Officers saw the man walking southbound on Mill Avenue, police reported. He grabbed a magazine from a stand and threw it on the ground, according to the report.

One of the officers approached him, at which point the man became agitated, the report said. He was carrying a jagged wooden stick with a pointed end that was approximately three feet long, police reported.

When the officer tried to take the man's stick, he lunged at the officer, according to the report.

Both officers drew their Tasers and told the man that he needed to drop the stick, police reported. When he refused, they deployed their Tasers, according to the report.

The man later said he knew he had littered and took an aggressive stance to the officer because he was scared, police reported. He said he was sorry and didn't know why he hadn't dropped the stick, according to the report.

He was arrested and transported to the Tempe City Jail, where he was booked and held to see a judge, the report said.

Reports compiled by Julia Shumway.

Reach the editor-in-chief at julia.shumway@asu.edu or follow @JMShumway on Twitter.

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