Woman claims to be police, yells racial slurs, threatens child at Naples hotel

Reporter: Gina Tomlinson Writer: Jack Lowenstein
Published: Updated:
Credit: WINK News.

A mother was terrified for her child’s life after they were threatened at a hotel pool. She says a woman claimed to be law enforcement, and it did not end there. The mother says the woman yelled racial slurs at her and her son.

Thursday, Naples Police Department arrested Sallie Boles, 50, of North Carolina, for disturbing the peace at Inn of Naples.

“It was definitely scary, and I was definitely scared for my son’s life,” Portia Ballard told WINK News.

Ballard holds her 2-year-old tight, hoping the two will rest easier after an unsettling night at the inn. She says her encounter started when she heard screams from Boles.

“She said she had a Glock and she would shoot my baby with it,” Ballard recalled.

These were threats from another hotel guest claiming to be a police officer

“She gave some numbers off and said it was her badge number,” Ballard said.

Ballard says the woman appeared intoxicated, yelling racial slurs off a balcony.

“She said she was from the south and then she started calling everyone the “N” word,” Ballard said. “And my son was just like, ‘Baa, daa, daa,’ and she was like, ‘Shut that baby up, or shoot him.’”

Ballard said she rushed inside the Inn of Naples to call for help.

“At that point I was like, ‘I had enough of this,’” Ballard said.

When Naples police got to the hotel, they say Boles told investigators she is not a police officer, but her son is a cop in North Carolina. She said the argument was over the other guests’ noise level.

“I was a little shooken up, but I was definitely terrified because you never really know nowadays if someone has a gun or not,” Ballard said.

Boles was arrested for disorderly conduct, trespassing and resisting police. She bonded out of jail Friday. Bond amount was not available on the Collier County arrest page.

The Inn of Naples did not want to comment when we reached out.

A mugshot of Boles was unavailable because she is a family member of a law enforcement officer. 

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