Crime Report: Kids Found Alone in Vehicle, Mom Faces Charges

A 31-year-old Farmington Hills mother faces charges after a witness saw her two children, ages 9 months and 2 years, left alone in a car parked at Farmington Crossroads shopping center on May 4. 

According to the report, another woman who was getting into her vehicle at the shopping center called police after seeing the children in their car seats, with no one else in the vehicle. The witness told an officer that the woman returned to her vehicle after 8-10 minutes and was driving away as police arrived, the report indicated.

When an officer stopped the woman's vehicle, she told the officer she left the children in the vehicle, with the doors locked and windows cracked, because she didn't have a double stroller to take them into the store. The officer issued a citation for child abandonment and neglect, and notice was sent to Child Protective Services, the report indicated. 

Property damage

A manager at Panera Bread on Grand River called Farmington Public Safety Dept. at around 4:30 a.m. May 6, after someone broke a window at the restaurant with a landscaping brick. According to the report, an employee on break saw someone running past the front window and heard a loud noise. Damage was estimated at around $500. 

Obstruction charge

A 28-year-old Westland man who led a Farmington officer on a foot chase May 3 faces charges of obstructing a police officer and giving a police officer false identification. According to the report, the officer stopped a commercial vehicle at Farmington Road and Maplenut for equipment violations and asked the name of a passenger in the vehicle. While he was being questioned, the passenger pulled away from the officer and ran through nearby apartment complexes, the report indicated. When the man finally gave up the chase and gave his true identity, a background check showed 11 felony and misdemeanor warrants on his record. 

Thefts from vehicles

A resident on Violet told police someone took the license plate from a 2001 Pontiac Grand Am parked in the home's driveway, sometime in late April or early May. According to the report, the vehicle was not running, so the owner was not sure when the plate was taken. 

A resident on Annewood told police that someone took tools from his truck while it was parked in front of his residence between April 27 and April 29. According to the report, the resident saw no signs of forced entry and was unsure whether the tool box inside the truck bed was locked. The tools were worth more than $1,800, the report indicated. 

Marijuana arrests

A 23-year-old West Bloomfield man stopped early May 2 at Halsted and Grand River faces a charge of marijuana possession and driving with a suspended license. According to the report, an officer stopped the man's vehicle because he was driving with his bright lights activated. A check of the driver's background showed his license was suspended, and a search of the vehicle turned up a marijuana cigarette on the driver's side floorboard. The man posted bond and was released. 

A 58-year-old South Lyon man faces charges of marijuana possession and possession of narcotics paraphernalia, following a traffic stop at Grand River and Halsted on May 1. According to the report, an officer on patrol stopped the vehicle because it had no functioning brake lights. While speaking with the drive, the officer noticed a strong smell of burned marijuana. When the officer asked about it, the man said he frequently smoked marijuana and had for years. A search of the vehicle turned up eight marijuana cigarette stubs, a partly smoked marijuana cigarette in an ashtray and a marijuana cigarette in a plastic bag, along with metal roach clips, the report indicated. 

Want to learn more about public safety activity in Farmington? Read "Week in Review" reports posted on the department's website and follow FPS on Facebook. 

If you have questions about any of the above reports, contact editor Joni Hubred-Golden, joni.hubred-golden@patch.com.