Police say there's something fishy about seafood-in-shorts in Stuart

A man with a fish on his shirt is accused of leaving Publix with flounder and shrimp in his shorts, according to a recently released Martin County Sheriff's Office report.

What could be called the case of the fish filcher that flipped away played out May 3 at a Publix in Stuart in the 5800 block of Southeast Federal Highway.

A loss prevention official told a deputy she spied two men ordering at the seafood department. The loss prevention official said one of the men put a seafood order in a shopping cart and walked away, while the second man put another seafood order in the cart.

The second man, described as wearing a blue shirt with a fish on the back and khaki shorts, wheeled the cart down aisle four and apparently did something fishy. He stuffed the seafood -- $44 worth of flounder and $12 in rock shrimp -- down his shorts and left.

Named because of their rock hard shell, rock shrimp are not to be confused with "Rock Lobster," a song on the B-52s' 1979 self-titled debut album, or with "Rock Paper Scissors," the children's game involving hand signs that often is used in deciding who will do something.

A nexus exists between rock shrimp and flounder, with the former sometimes being used in recipes involving the stuffing of the latter.

Flounder is a thin fish typically found on the ocean floor where its coloring allows it to blend with the surroundings.

Flounder, which has both eyes on one side of its body, also is a popular dish at seafood restaurants, sometimes served with hush puppies as part of a "fried fish platter."

Meanwhile, the man with the seafood in his shorts got in a silver Toyota truck that was towing a boat, the loss prevention official said.

Deputies might not be floundering for leads because the loss prevention official got a possible license tag.