On October 5, 2016 at about 7:45 a.m., an SMPD officer was patrolling the alley in the 3000 block of Prospect Ave when he came across a homeless man camping. The man was on a mattress with a nightstand next to it, along with numerous bags and backpacks of personal property.
The officer advised the man of the city ordinance against public camping and asked for his identification to issue him a citation. The man was unable to provide an ID or information to positively identify himself. The officer placed him under arrest to transport him to the police station where he could be identified, issued a citation, and released.
The officer gathered up all the man’s belongings and searched them for contraband prior to transporting him to the SMPD jail. During the search of a backpack, the officer located four credit cards in two different names. The man told the officer the cards were his and the names were two of his many aliases. The officer was able to investigate the names on the cards and discovered they were stolen from a car on Arizona Ave. the previous day. The victim of the theft said the cards incurred several unauthorized charges. The victim further told the officer he didn’t know the man in possession of his credit cards and he didn’t give him permission to have or use them.
The man was additionally found to be in possession of methamphetamine at the time of his arrest. He was transported and booked for the camping ordinance, possession of stolen property, possession of a controlled substance, and violation of probation.
Aaron Broadbent, 34, homeless, was held without bail.