OCEAN CITY – Resort police are still looking for a suspect who stole a pizza delivery vehicle early Sunday morning before abandoning the car and fleeing on foot.
A driver for a local pizza shop was delivering a pizza to the Tidelands Hotel on 5th Street early Sunday morning when he returned to find his vehicle missing. The victim, a 21-year-old Selbyville man, parked his 2004 silver Honda Accord in the alley by the hotel with the engine running while he made his delivery and returned a short time later to find it was gone.
After the theft was reported, a broadcast of the vehicle’s description was issued. One officer reported seeing the car northbound at 44th Street while another saw it near 65th Street. Yet a third officer saw the stolen vehicle pass him near 100th Street.
When the third officer, who was in the southbound lanes of Coastal Highway attempted to turn around, the suspect bailed out of the car near Channel Buoy Rd. and ran toward the beach. OCPD officers searched the area but did not locate the suspect. The car was then towed to police headquarters for processing.
The suspect is described as a young, white male, 5-feet, 10-inches to 6-feet, two inches tall; roughly 160-200 pounds, short hair, wearing blue jeans, a black T-shirt and a black baseball cap. Anyone with information regarding the theft is encouraged to call OCPD Officer Daniel Jacobs at 410-520-5437.
Two Arrested In Nightclub Fight
OCEAN CITY – Two Salisbury men were arrested last weekend for disorderly conduct after fighting on the parking lot of a midtown nightclub.
Early last Sunday morning, OCPD officers on routine patrol in the area of 49th Street observed a white male, later identified as Jesse James Franklin Jenney, of Salisbury, being escorted from Seacrets on 49th Street by security staff. After Jenney was bounced from the establishment, the officer observed the suspect arguing with another male in the parking lot. The exchange touched off a fight between Jenney and another male, later identified as Benjamin Ishmael Denson, also of Salisbury.
During the fight, the OCPD officer and several members of Seacrets security staff wrestled both men to the ground. Jenney and Denson were ultimately arrested and charged with disorderly conduct. The OCPD officer was not injured in the altercation.
Robber Gets 123 Days
SNOW HILL – An Ocean City man who robbed another resort resident at knifepoint from the back seat of a car in June was found guilty last week of assault and was sentenced to 123 days in jail.
On June 3, resort police responded to a reported armed robbery at a downtown bar on Somerset Street. The investigation revealed the victim had left the Harbor Inn shortly after midnight, and while he was walking through a nearby parking lot, he was offered a ride home by a woman he knew as an employee of the bar.
After the victim and his acquaintance got into her vehicle, the woman’s boyfriend, who was hiding in the back seat, sat up and put a knife to the victim’s throat. The victim handed his wallet to the man, later identified as William Cloutier, 28, of Ocean City, who was the boyfriend of the woman who had offered the ride.
OCPD detectives spoke with the woman, who said she had an argument with Cloutier earlier in the evening at the Harbor Inn. She claimed he left the bar and that she did not know he was waiting in her car.
The OCPD detectives later located Cloutier at his home on 32nd Street in Ocean City. He was taken into custody and charged with second-degree assault, robbery and misdemeanor theft. The victim, though shaken, was not injured during the incident. No charges were filed against the woman, who denied knowing her boyfriend was hiding in the back seat when she offered a ride to the victim.
Driver Backs Into Cop Car
BERLIN – A Berlin man was arrested last week on suspicion of driving while intoxicated after backing into a police cruiser during a traffic stop.
Around 9:20 p.m. on Sept. 29, a Worcester County Sheriff’s Deputy stopped a Hi-Tide Marine pick up truck weaving and crossing the lane markers of Route 50 in the area of Old Ocean City Blvd. in Berlin. As the deputy pulled the vehicle over, the driver of the truck came to a stop and then backed up and struck deputy’s patrol vehicle causing minor damage.
The deputy pulled her patrol vehicle away from the pick up and approached the driver. The driver was identified as Jaime Montgomery, 29, of Snow Hill. Montgomery appeared to be intoxicated and was placed under arrest. He was charged with driving while intoxicated and released pending his trial.
Hefty Sentence For Drug Dealer
SNOW HILL – An Ocean City woman arrested last spring after a month-long investigation conducted by the Ocean City Police narcotics unit was found guilty last week in Circuit Court of possession with intent to distribute cocaine and was sentenced to eight years in jail, all of which but one year was suspended.
In May, resort narcotics officers arrested Kathy C. Matthews, 35, of Ocean City, regarding drug distribution after undercover officers were able to purchase powder cocaine from her for a third time. It was on May 2 when a third deal to purchase more of the illegal substance was slated to take place.
In a pre-arranged meeting at 10th Street and the Boardwalk, Matthews met up with an undercover officer once again and sold five pieces of folded paper, each containing $20 worth of crack cocaine. Following the transaction, Matthews was then arrested and officers were able to seize more crack cocaine, powder cocaine, marijuana, 18 prescription pills and $137.
She was charged with three counts of distribution of cocaine, three counts of possession of cocaine, four counts of possession of a controlled dangerous substance, specifically Methadose, Ambien, Endocet and Valium. Last week, Matthews was found guilty of possession of cocaine with intent to distribute and was sentenced to eight years in jail with all but one year suspended.
Pot Dealer Gets 18 Months
SNOW HILL – An Ocean City man arrested in April after selling marijuana to resort narcotics officers for the third time was found guilty last week in Worcester County Circuit Court of possession with intent to distribute marijuana and was sentenced to 18 months in jail.
On April 20, an OCPD narcotics officer made arrangements for his third purchase of marijuana from William Moore, 24, of Ocean City. The officer had arranged to buy pot from Moore on two other occasions, and after the third purchase, the suspected dealer was placed under arrest.
Following the arrest, narcotics officers seized over nine ounces of marijuana and $339 in cash from Moore’s truck. He was charged with three counts of possession, one count of possession with intent to distribute and two counts of distributing marijuana.
Arrest Resister Handed Suspended Sentence
OCEAN CITY – A Laurel, Del. woman arrested last January on a variety of charges after scuffling with resort police during a traffic stop was found guilty last week in Circuit Court of assault and possession of marijuana and was sentenced to 90 days in jail, all of which was suspended.
After being pulled over for speeding on Jan. 6, a Laurel, Del., woman did all she could in an attempt to try and stop Ocean City police from searching her car but only ended up making things worse in the end. Melissa Renee Idoni, 28, was pulled over by OCPD Cpl. Lesa Breneman for speeding on Coastal Highway.
Idoni, who claimed she only had “1.2” alcoholic beverages, according to police records, said she was distressed because her father had recently passed away, then later said he died five years ago. She was then removed from her car until a K-9 unit could arrive to do an external search of her vehicle.
Once OCPD Officer Earl Campbell arrived with his K-9 partner Charlie, the scan was performed and Charlie indicated the presence of a controlled substance. Upon seeing the dog, Idoni began yelling to get the dog away from her car and had to be restrained as she approached Kelley and his partner.
Idoni continued to yell about the dog and once again charged the pair, landing a kick on Campbell before being placed under arrest for second-degree assault. She then put up a fight when officers tried to handcuff her, kicking Campbell once again in the leg.
However, Idoni wasn’t finished. Continuing to resist, she refused to get into the police car and managed to slip one hand free of the handcuffs to push her arresting officer. Restrained and cuffed once again, Idoni was placed into a patrol car and the search of her vehicle continued.
Officers found a bag of marijuana under the driver’s side floor-mat, a partially smoked cigar containing marijuana and a plastic pill bottle containing Xanax. She was charged with second-degree assault, possession of marijuana, resisting arrest and driving while impaired.
Suspect Who Fled To Beach Convicted
SNOW HILL – A Brentwood, Md. man arrested in June on drug and other charges after ditching his vehicle and fleeing on foot onto the beach was found guilty last week in Circuit Court possession cocaine and was sentenced to 60 days in jail, all of which but 10 days were suspended.
In June, OCPD officers on routine patrol around 34th Street noticed a vehicle driven by Thomas Mullarkey, 21, speeding past them. The officers pursued the vehicle, which turned right on 41st Street and headed toward the beach. The officers then observed three men, including Mullarkey, bail out of the car and run toward the beach.
All three were apprehended a short time later. While searching the vehicle, police found a duffel bag with 25 ecstasy pills in it. They also found a baggie of marijuana and a large amount of cash in the vehicle. While at the police headquarters, officers discovered another bag of cocaine and more cash on Mullarkey’s person. He was charged with intent to distribute ecstasy and possession of ecstasy, marijuana and cocaine. The two passengers in the car were later released.
Charges Dropped Against Knife Fighter
OCEAN CITY – The charges were dropped last week against one of two brothers involved in a knife fight outside a downtown Ocean City restaurant in June.
Around 2:15 a.m. on June 2, Ocean City police responded to a fight involving a knife in the parking lot of Mothers Cantina on Coastal Highway near 28th Street. When the officers arrived, they detained five individuals believed to have been involved in the fight while they sorted out what had happened.
According to police reports, the incident began as a fight between two women in the back seat of a pick-up truck. When the fight continued to escalate, the driver pulled into the Mothers Cantina parking lot, where the altercation spilled out of the vehicle and on to the street.
As the two women continued to fight each other, the two brothers they were dating, Howard Douglas Trainer, 38, and William Edward Trainer, 37, started to argue. At one point, William Trainer pulled out a black utility knife with the blade exposed and threatened his brother, saying “I’m going to kill you,” and “I’m going to cut you.” William Trainer chased his brother Howard around the parking lot, in and around parked cars, with the knife in his hand and continued to threaten him.
An employee of the restaurant, who was outside the establishment while the fight was going on, feared for the safety of the two women and himself, and pushed the two women back inside the restaurant and locked the door. The employee watched through the window as William Trainer placed the knife on top of a newspaper stand in front of the restaurant.
After sorting out the details of the fight, resort police charged William Trainer with first- and second-degree assault, reckless endangerment and carrying a deadly weapon with intent to injure. Last week in Circuit Court, all of the charges against Trainer were “nolle prossed” or not prosecuted.
‘Stoner’ Gets Five Days
OCEAN CITY – A Pennsylvania man was arrested in June after selling marijuana to an undercover OCPD officer on the Boardwalk near 8th Street was found guilty last week of possession of marijuana and was sentenced to five days in jail.
Around 8:30 p.m. on June 15, an undercover OCPD officer working the Boardwalk approached a man later identified as Alex Michael Seymore, 20, of Carlisle, Pa., and asked him “if he had any trees.” Seymore stopped walking and talked to the officer, telling him, “I must look like a stoner or something because you’re the second guy to hit me up.”
Seymore asked the officer what he needed and the officer told him he was looking for a “twenty.” Seymore and the officer then walked just off the Boardwalk and Seymore produced a plastic bag of marijuana from his pocket. The officer asked Seymore what he wanted for the entire bag and Seymore said he had paid $50 for it and wanted to “make a little something” on the deal.
The officer offered Seymore $55 for the bag and the deal was completed. Seconds later, the officer signaled to additional undercover officers in the area and Seymore was arrested and charged with distribution of a controlled dangerous substance. Last week in Circuit Court, Seymore was found guilty of possession and was sentenced to five days in jail, which he will serve beginning tonight through Monday.
Smoking Pot On Assateague
ASSATEAGUE – Maryland Natural Resources Police (NRP) last week charged three men with marijuana violations on Assateague after catching them huddled on the beach smoking pot.
Around 12:45 a.m. on Sept. 29, NRP officers on routine patrol observed three individuals huddled together on the beach at Assateague allegedly smoking marijuana. The officers approached and found a glass pipe with suspected marijuana and a Tupperware container with suspected marijuana.
The Maryland Natural Resources Police charged Jesse Allen Curtis, 25, of Catonsville, Andrew Dean Davis, 22, of Bivalve, and Richard Burdette Keener III, 22, of Bishopville, with possession of a controlled dangerous substance (CDS), marijuana, and possession of CDS paraphernalia at Assateague State Park.
Apartment Fire In OC
OCEAN CITY – The cause of a fire last Saturday at the Nock Apartments on 6th Street in Ocean City is still under investigation.
On Saturday, Oct. 6, the Ocean City Volunteer Fire Company and the Emergency Services Division were dispatched to the Nock Apartments on 6th Street for a reported building fire. Arriving units located the remnants of a small fire on a stove in unit five of the building, which had been extinguished by the owner of the apartment complex using a dry chemical extinguisher.
Smoke damage was evident throughout the two-bedroom unit. One police officer received minor smoke inhalation while directing the evacuation of tenants from the involved unit, but was treated and released by on-scene paramedics.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation by the Ocean City Fire Marshal’s Office. Anyone with information is encouraged to call the fire marshal’s office at 410-289-8780.
Psych Exam Ordered
SNOW HILL – A Laurel, Del. man who exposed himself to a 9-year-old girl in an Ocean Pines park this summer was found guilty of indecent exposure in Circuit Court last week and now awaits his fate pending the outcome of a pre-sentence investigation, which will include a psychological examination.
On June 30, Ocean Pines Police received a call about a reported indecent exposure in the Manklin Tennis Complex playground. The caller told police a male suspect had exposed himself to her 9-year-old daughter in the playground. When she confronted the suspect, he fled in a white pick-up truck, but she followed in an attempt to get a tag number while she called 911.
An OCPD officer located the suspect truck while talking to the caller and pulled it over. In the meantime, another officer responded to the mother’s residence to interview her about what had happened. The mother told the police her daughter was playing when she came to her and said a man was talking to her and exposed himself to her.
The young victim told police the suspect, later identified as Charles Passero, 40, of Laurel, Del., approached her in the playground, sat beside her and said, “I’ve been swimming today,” and then pulled his private part from his shorts and told the young girl, “This is Charlie.”
Police took the victim and her mother to the site where Passero had been pulled over and they both positively identified the suspect. He was charged with indecent exposure. Last week in Circuit Court, Passero entered an Alford plea to indecent exposure and was found guilty. A pre-sentence investigation was ordered including a complete psychological evaluation.
Brawling Biker Convicted
SNOW HILL – A Salisbury man arrested last January after fighting with several resort police was found guilty of resisting arrest last week in Circuit Court and was sentenced to 90 days in jail, all of which was suspended.
On Jan. 7, David Quinn French, 47, of Salisbury, was arrested after he became hostile with Ocean City police officers and assaulted one of them after a traffic stop. French was riding his motorcycle east bound on 17th Street when OCPD Officer Charles Kelley observed him not wearing sufficient eye protection and run a red light. Kelley then began to follow French north on Coastal Highway until French turned off onto Herring Way and turned off the lights on his motorcycle. Kelley attempted to intercept French, and in doing so, observed him drive his bike into an adjacent parking lot with his lights still off.
Kelley approached French and after speaking with him, suspected he had been drinking. A background check also revealed that French’s license was suspended. When Officer Kelley asked French to get off his bike, French did so but showed signs of hostility and unwillingness to cooperate with Kelley when asked to perform a simple sobriety check. “I’m not doing any [expletive deleted] tests,” he said at the time.
It was then that Kelley and OCPD Sergeant Harmon decided to place Kelley under arrest, but before doing so, French charged Kelley, who said, “Hell no.” The two officers wrestled French to the ground, after taking a few blows themselves, and were finally able to restrain French and get him handcuffed.
French was arrested and charged with second-degree assault, resisting arrest and driving while impaired. While in custody, French told police he had not resisted arrest, stating, “If I resisted, you wouldn’t be standing here and it would have take eight of you to get me down.”