The Union Public Safety Department is investigating an incident in which gang signs were spray-painted in downtown Union early Saturday morning.

An officer was stopped at a red light at the intersection of South Pinckney and Main streets around 2:30 a.m. when he saw several black males running east on Main Street between Pinckney and Gadberry streets. The officer then turned onto Main Street and saw several of the males were wearing dark clothing and one had on a white camouflage pattern jacket. The males then ran down Gadberry Street but by the time the officer turned on to the street they were gone.

The officer then received information two of the males had gotten into a car parked across the street from an apartment complex. When he approached the vehicle he found the males lying in the back seat and questioned them.

When the officer was finished questioning the two males, he went to leave but as he did he noticed several black caps from spray paint cans laying on Gadberry Street. He also noticed gang symbols spray-painted in black paint on walls on both sides of the street. A sergeant was summoned to the scene and said he wanted to speak to the two males the officer had questioned earlier. They found the two and took them to the police department for questioning about the gang symbols.

Another officer was directed to check Main Street and other areas for any damage. He reported finding two cars and five businesses that had been spray-painted with gang symbols. As he was checking property in the area another male ran out of hiding and was caught. Several more were caught by officers patrolling the area. The ages of the males detained for questioning ranged from 17-19.

Evidence gathered by the officers included pictures of the graffiti and a paint can found in a trash can on Main Street. The teens were released after being questioned.

No charges have been filed and Public Safety Director Sam White said the matter is still under investigation.

Burglary

Two old air conditioning units were transformed into a makeshift stepladder by thieves who broke in to a residence at 228 General Lee Drive on Sunday afternoon.

The victim told the responding officer she’d left home around 2 p.m. and when she returned around 8:30 p.m. she found her house had been broken into. She said someone had moved two old air conditioning units in her yard to the back of her house at the kitchen window. They then broke out a pane, unlocked the window and climbed in.

The items missing from the house include a 46-inch RCA flatscreen TV; two Samsung 22-inch flatscreen TVs the victim said were still in the box; two Magnavox DVD players; and a Playstation Three. The value of the missing items is estimated at $1,560.

Drug Arrest

Being in the wrong place at the wrong time with the wrong things in his possession helped land a Union man in jail early Sunday morning.

Roderick Jermaine Tucker, 20, 210 Hamlet St., is charged by the Union Public Safety Department with open container and possession of marijuana with intent to distribute.

Tucker was arrested shortly before 1 p.m. when a public safety officer stopped the car he was riding in on Gault Avenue near Gage Avenue. The officer was in the area helping search for a group of black males who a short time earlier had stolen a woman’s pocketbook when she’d stopped to give one of them a cigarette and a light and then threatened to shoot her when she went to get out of her car. The victim and the woman driving the car she was in then tried to pursue the males while calling 911.

When officers arrived on the scene, the victim told them one of the males was in a black Chevy Suburban trying to back out on to the street. The officers then stopped the vehicle and one approached the passenger side of the car and told the passenger to show his hands. Once she was able to see into the car, the officer noticed an open bottle of beer and asked the passenger if it was his. The passenger, who turned out to be Tucker, said yes and the officer told him to get out of the car slowly because he was under arrest for open container violation.

As she was arresting Tucker, the officer reports he told her a bag in the car was his also. After Tucker was placed in the back of the patrol car, the officer then asked the driver of the Suburban if she could search the vehicle. The driver gave his permission and the ensuing search turned up a black and gray bag that had a gallon-size clear plastic bag that was full of what appeared to be marijuana. An investigator was called to the scene to question Tucker who was then transported to the Union County Jail.

White said while the car Tucker was riding in was stopped as part of the investigation into the robbery, Tucker’s arrest was unrelated to that incident and he himself is not a suspect in the case.

Investigations

The following incidents are being investigated by the public safety department:

Leaf Blower Stolen

A sheet of plastic over a broken out window proved no obstacle to the thief who stole a leaf blower from a car last week.

The victim told the responding officer sometime between 9 p.m. Wednesday and 1:30 p.m. Thursday, someone stole his leaf blower from the back seat of his car as it set parked outside his home at 103 Barron St. He said the thief removed a piece of plastic that he’d taped over a small rear window on the left side of his car.

The leaf blower is a Poulan backpack model valued at $200.

Navigation System Stolen

Another theft from a car being investigated by the public safety department was reported Wednesday morning. The victim told the officer someone had gone into his work truck while it was parked at 110 West Academy St. and stolen his Garmin Auvi 205 GPS Navigator. The system is valued at $180.

Vandalism

An act of vandalism that caused no damage but left a mess is also being investigated by the public safety department.

The victim reported sometime between 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. Tuesday someone threw eggs and hit her house. There was no damage but the victim said it had happened once before this summer and she wanted this incident reported. While there was no damage to her house, the report states the victim said cleaning up the mess was aggravating.

Arrests

The following persons were arrested by the public safety department

Charisse Marie Lucre, 21, 101 Wells Alley, Union, charged Monday with shoplifting.

Clifton Scott Jeter, 26, 410 Toluca St., Union, charged Monday with criminal domestic violence.

David Lee Byrd, 37, 207 Lawson Ave., Union, charged Saturday with possession of a stolen vehicle.

A 15-year-old juvenile charged Monday with simple possession of marijuana.

Matthew Peake III, 42, 205 Pinetree Lane, Union, charged Monday with shoplifting.