Police: Man warned over stalking nuisance squirrels

Melbourne police warned a resident not to stalk or hunt nuisance squirrels after reports he killed at least one of the scurrying creatures before taking a request to eliminate another from a neighbor earlier today.

Police received calls about 10 a.m. today concerning a man with a BB gun walking in the area of St. Marks Avenue, just south of Parkway Drive. The man told police he believed the squirrels were a growing nuisance in the area, officers report.

"It's not a call that we usually deal with. He had a problem with squirrels in his yard, and he had exterminated one, and his neighbor also had a problem with one.

The neighbors were complaining about seeing him with a BB gun," said Lt. Pete Mercaldo, a spokesman with the Melbourne Police Department. It was not immediately known how many squirrels the man -- identified by police as the president of the neighborhood association for the area -- had killed.

"We gave him a warning and told him that next time, use a professional service," Mercaldo said. "He may have been under the impression that if the squirrels were a nuisance on your property that you could take care of it. There are laws that govern these things, and he agreed with that," said Mercaldo, adding that officers did not believe there was any malice on the man's part.

Contact Gallop at 321-242-3642, jdgallop@floridatoday.com or Twitter@JDGallop