Upon meeting Mathews at the scene of the bogus robbery, Officer Simpson says there was no sign of a cream-colored sedan. The woman reporting the crime never gave a description of the robber or his car.
The narration says that the story takes place on "May 20", but the trees in the area are largely void of foliage and it is apparent that filming actually took place during the late fall or winter months.
The entire conversation of the woman calling in the initial assault is heard from the time she dials until Mathews hangs up. She never describes the robber or his car to either the dispatcher or Mathews. After he hangs up, Mathews tells the dispatcher to set up roadblocks in that area with an APB on "the man and his car". Since there was no description of either the man or his car, it would be futile to use roadblocks and there would be no information for an APB.
Mathews makes two notable mistakes at the nursery: He failed to turn off his siren upon approach, which alerted the robber; and he fired into a building where there was a citizen.