TAMPA, Florida - Cops say he's a thief, a pimp, a drug dealer and all-around bad guy. In fact, Clyde Brown, police say, gave them a fake name in the beginning. Then, on the way to jail, Brown gave up his real identity to the transporting officer. Turns out he has a huge criminal record, dating back more than 20 years. Tampa Police Officer Harry Augello says it all started when Brown was caught shoplifting on February 1st in Sears at Westshore Mall. They followed his every move and saw him allegedly putting a pair of jeans in the pink Victoria's Secret bag he was carrying. When they arrested him, he said he didn't have a car, but seconds later they found a red Toyota in the mall parking lot with all kinds of goodies inside. Officer Augello told us, "All he said to me was, 'You know what the score is. You know what's going on.' And I said, 'Yeah, I do. I'd like to hear it from you.'" Officer Augello found a FedEx box turned inside out and packaged with Apple labels, making it look like a brand new laptop computer inside. "He told me that someone sold this to him for 400 bucks. I said, 'But its 2,299? May I open it for you?'" the Officer said. When Officer Augello opened the package, it was indeed a phony parcel. Inside, there was a phone book, sealed in saran-wrap and bound with packing tape. The phone book was from Tallahassee. He was trying to convince people that there was a laptop inside. "He had a warrant out of Torrance, California for basically doing this exact same thing that he didn't get to do here in Tampa," Officer Augello.
Quite the resume, Clyde! Pimp, drug dealer AND thief! At least you've found a good use for those pesky phone books! Criminal genius! Oh, and by the way, love the mustache.....
