City asks public to help catch installers of illegal snipe signs

MELBOURNE, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - Melbourne code enforcement officer Michelle German says snipe signs, which she calls "litter on a stick," are constantly popping up illegally near busy roads and intersections across the city.

"I'll collect them all," says German, who visits busy intersections like U.S. 192 and Babcock to personally remove the snipe signs. "Then I'll come out the next day or next week and they are littered again with these signs"

German says the problem is tracking down who is responsible for installing the signs. She says many businesses avoid revealing their real business name and address when she calls the number on the snipe sign. So, she's making an unusual public request: if you see someone putting up these illegal snipe signs-- take their picture, and send it to her.

"If it's safe to do so, please feel free to take aphoto of the person, the sign, and the plate number," says German, "and then email it to code compliance here at the city of Melbourne, or wherever your jurisdiction is."

German advised the public should only do it if they are comfortable with the idea, keep a safe distance from the person installing the signs, and never confront them. She also suggested be

"You could zoom in, click click click, maybe they don't know what ur doing," she advised. "They might think you're just taking a picture of the flowers or something.

She says it's worked before: A citizen sent a photo she says shows an alleged snipe sign installer and the license plate connected to melbournesingles.org. German says the owner of the website agreed to stop placing snipe signs around the city after code enforcement found them, and sent them a warning letter.