OCEAN CITY — A New York man was arrested on indecent exposure charges this week after an alleged drunken episode on the Boardwalk that ended with him urinating on a fence in plain view of several citizens.
Around 10:45 p.m. on Monday, an OCPD bicycle officer patrolling in the area of 9th Street and the Boardwalk was flagged down by a citizen who reported an intoxicated male disturbing people in the area of 11th Street. The officer responded to the area and observed the suspect, later identified as Anthony Guiliano, 58, of the Bronx, N.Y., spilling pizza all over the front of his shirt while sitting at a table. According to police reports, when Guiliano attempted to stand up, he fell down on the Boardwalk.
The officer then observed Guiliano walk north on the Boardwalk to the 15th Street area, where he allegedly walked up to a fence and urinated on it in plain view of passersby. In particular, two citizens seated on the other side of the fence waved the officer over with looks of surprise and disgust on their faces, according to police reports. Guiliano was then arrested and charged with indecent exposure and disorderly conduct.
10 Days For Assault, Theft
OCEAN CITY — An Anne Arundel County man, arrested in April on multiple charges of theft from Boardwalk stores and for assaulting a store clerk before being tracked by police on a cell phone he left behind, pleaded guilty last week and was sentenced to 10 days in jail.
Around noon on April 4, Ocean City Police responded to the Cool Topics store on the Boardwalk for a reported assault and theft that had already occurred. Store employees told police two individuals, later identified as Joel Swabon, 19, of Pasadena, and a 17-year-old female from Annapolis, had attempted to steal multiple items from the Boardwalk establishment.
A Cool Topics employee told the officers he had observed four individuals shopping in the store, two of whom were attempting to steal items. The clerk told police he confronted Swabon and the juvenile female, who attempted to flee. The clerk stood in front of Swabon in an attempt to prevent him from leaving and a physical altercation ensued. The clerk said during the altercation Swabon bit him on the hand, causing a visible injury. The two suspects then fled the store, but not before leaving a cell phone behind.
OCPD officers viewed the phone’s screen and saw an image of a male and a female. The store clerk identified the couple as the two suspects who had attempted to steal and assaulted him. About an hour later, the phone rang and an OCPD officer answered it. A female asked how and where the phone had been recovered. The officer told the female he was vacationing in Ocean City with his family and would like to return the phone to its owner.
The female agreed that a male would meet with the phone’s answerer, who was unknown to her at the time as a police officer, at the 7-Eleven on North Division Street. OCPD officer went to the 7-11 for the pre-arranged meeting and located two individuals whose descriptions matched those provided over the phone.
The police made contact with the individuals, who said they were not the phone’s owners, but were sent by Swabon to recover it. The individuals then told police Swabon was staying at the Madison Beach Motel on Baltimore Ave.
OCPD officers went to the motel and met with Swabon, who allowed them into the unit. The officers observed marijuana throughout the unit. Swabon admitted stealing items from various Boardwalk stores. Most of the stolen merchandize was located and still had the price stickers on them. The police also located a switch-blade knife in Swabon’s rear pants pocket.
Swabon was placed under arrest at that point for theft. He agreed to walk with OCPD officers on the Boardwalk to point out what was stolen from several shops. The OCPD charged Swabon with six counts of theft less than $100, second-degree assault, possession of an assisted-opening knife and theft scheme less than $1,000. He was held initially on a $15,000 unsecured bond and was later released. The 17-year-old juvenile female was also charged with six counts of theft less than $100, possession of drug paraphernalia and theft scheme less than $1,000. She was released to a guardian a short time after her arrest.
Last week, Swabon pleaded guilty to second-degree assault and was sentenced to 29 days in jail, all but 10 days of which were suspended. He also pleaded guilty to theft and was sentenced to 10 days on that charge. The outcome for the juvenile girl arrested in connection with the incident has not been made public.
No New Jail Time For Trespassing
OCEAN CITY — A local man, arrested for breaking and entering in March after being found sleeping in the crawl space of a residence in the area of 6th Street, pleaded guilty last week to trespassing and was sentenced to 33 days, or the amount of time he served while awaiting trial.
Around 3:30 p.m. on March 21, OCPD officers patrolling in the downtown area observed a man later identified as Jeffrey Taylor, 53, of Ocean City, disappear behind a residence on 6th Street and St. Louis Ave. The officers responded to the area and did not see the suspect, but located an uncovered opening to a crawl space under the house. As one of the officers was walking by the residence, he peered through another opening to the underneath of the building and observed several beer cans strewn about.
The officers walked toward the crawl space and could observe the shoes of some individual, presumably Taylor, underneath the building with the wooden covering for the crawl space opening lying nearby. The officers then observed Taylor sleeping just inside the crawl space. They identified themselves as police officers and asked Taylor to come out of the crawl space.
The officers questioned Taylor, who told them he was just looking for a place to take a nap, according to police reports. Taylor told police he had a place to stay, but was recently forced to leave it. When asked if he had permission to sleep under the residence, Taylor told police he did not.
Taylor was placed under arrest for fourth-degree burglary. The officer observed in his report nothing appeared to have been missing or out of place in the crawl space except for the displaced wooden covering, which appeared to be its only point of entry. OCPD officer later spoke with the property owners who confirmed they did not know Taylor nor did he have permission to be under the residence.
Last week, Taylor pleaded guilty to trespassing and was sentenced to 33 days. He was then given credit for the 33 days he spent in jail awaiting trial, resulting in no new jail time.
IRS Phone Scam Warning Issued
OCEAN CITY — The Ocean City Police Department has seen a recent increase in reports of scams involving a caller who claims to represent the Internal Revenue Service. The caller will demand immediate payment for unpaid taxes and threaten arrest by local law enforcement if the victim does not comply.
“These callers are con artists and sound very convincing,” said Captain Mike Colbert of the Criminal Investigation Division. “They may know specific details about the victim and typically alter the caller ID to make it seem as if the IRS is calling. The callers typically also use false IRS identification badge numbers.”
Citizens are reminded that the IRS will never demand immediate payment, nor will the agency call about tax issues without first having mailed a bill. Also, the IRS will always give citizens the opportunity to question or appeal an amount that is owed whereas scammers typically become irate when the citizen begins to ask questions. Additionally, the IRS will never require citizens to use a specific payment method, such as a prepaid credit card, or ask for credit or debit card numbers over the phone. Finally, true IRS personnel will never threaten to involve local police departments and have a citizen arrested for not paying an amount.