Off-Duty Officer’s Gun Swiped In Hotel Burglary

OCEAN CITY — A Bridgeville, Del. man was arrested on numerous charges last weekend after allegedly swiping a handgun from the hotel room of a federal officer and firing the weapon in the room before being nabbed on the Boardwalk a short time later.

Around 11:15 p.m. last Saturday, Ocean City Police responded to the Comfort Inn on the Boardwalk in response to a burglary and the theft of an off-duty federal law enforcement officer’s handgun.

OCPD officers arrived at the scene and met with the victim, who was identified as an off-duty federal officer who was staying in the hotel for the weekend. The victim told OCPD officers he had left the room and returned later to discover his .40 caliber handgun and several items of personal property were missing and believed to have been stolen.

During the on-scene investigation, OCPD officers were able to view the hotel’s video surveillance system, which further helped identify a suspect. The description of the suspect was broadcast to other officers in the area. Within 30 minutes of the initial report, OCPD officers located a suspect at 8th Street and the Boardwalk later identified as Jeffrey Lynn King, 19, of Bridgeville, Del.

OCPD officers recovered from the waistband of King’s pants a loaded .40 caliber handgun, which they subsequently confirmed was the weapon stolen from the off-duty federal officer’s hotel room. In addition, officers recovered several other items belonging to the victim, which were reported stolen during the burglary. During the course of the investigation, it was determined King had allegedly fired the handgun in the hotel room during the burglary.

King was arrested and charged with first-, third- and fourth-degree burglary, possession of a handgun, reckless endangerment and discharging a firearm within Ocean City. It was also determined King had an outstanding warrant from Wicomico County.