Man Accused of Taking Cigars from Churchill's; Tires Slashed in Parking Garage

The following is a roundup of recent Birmingham Police reports:

Police arrest man after surveillance tape shows him taking cigars from Churchill's

A 60-year-old man from Detroit was arrested Thursday for allegedly taking several cigars from the humidor room at .

According to police reports, Churchill's employees reported that four cigars were missing from the tobacconist's humidor room Jan. 27. The employees told police they had noticed that cigars had been disappearing regularly from their inventory, but it was only on Jan. 27 that they checked a survelliance video and saw a man taking cigars and placing them in his coat pocket. The man would then purchase one cigar and leave the shop, the tapes show. According to police, the man was documented doing this several times.

On Thursday, police said the man from the surveillance video returned to the store at around 11:30 a.m., when employees called the police. The man was taken into custody and charged with retail fraud.

Tires slashed in private parking garage on Peabody

A car's tires were slashed last week in the private parking garage on Peabody, south of Maple Road. According to police reports, the car's owner reported at 4:15 p.m. Jan. 27 that two of his car's tires were slashed that afternoon while the car was parked at the garage. A surveillance video of the garage shows two men in the garage that afternoon, one of whom was seen slashing the tires. Detectives are investigating.

Man says teen ran off with his cellphone

A man told police he was approached by a teenage boy around 7:20 p.m. Saturday outside Panera. The teenager asked to use his cellphone, the report said. According to the man's statement to police, after he gave him the phone, the teen walked a few feet away and started to talk. A few moments later, the man said he realized the boy was gone, the report said.

According to police reports, the boy is described as white, in his midteens with brown hair. He is about 6 feet tall, weighs approximately 160 pounds and was wearing a black coat and blue jeans.

Woman leaves car running in driveway, purse goes missing

A purse was taken from a car left running and unattended in a driveway last week. According to police reports, a woman parked in the driveway of her friend's house on the 1300 block of Brookwood around 2:10 p.m. Jan. 26. According to reports, she left her car running and unlocked — and left her purse on the front seat — as she ran inside to drop something off.

Five minutes later, she returned to her car and realized her purse had been taken. A K-9 unit was called to the area but was unable to located any suspects. Reports state that no one was seen in the area by either the victim or the homeowner. The purse contained credit cards, cash, a smartphone and other personal property.

Anyone with information may call the Birmingham Police Department at 248-530-1889. If you have any questions about this report, email Laura.Houser@Patch.com.