WEST OCEAN CITY — Local law enforcement agencies are seeking anyone who might have been the victims of a pair of West Ocean City business owners charged earlier this fall with acting as a contractor without a license.
Since February, the Worcester County Bureau of Investigation has been investigating Apex Property Maintenance and Joseph Carlini for acting as a contractor without a license. Through the investigation, it was learned Carlini’s girlfriend, Jaime Hamer, was also involved in the case. Following the investigation, Carlini and Hamer were both charged with business-related crimes.
At this time, it is believed that there are more victims of Carlini and Hamer. Anyone with any information regarding any dealings with Carlini and Hamer or Apex Property Maintenance is urged to contact Tfc. Buck at the Worcester County Bureau of Investigation at 410-632-1111.
Rolled Out On Bar Tab
OCEAN CITY — A Berlin man faces theft and a rather unusual illegal gambling charge this week after allegedly walking out on a tab at a downtown bar after wagering on a game of pool.
Shortly after 2 a.m. last Friday, an OCPD officer responded to the Cork Bar on Wicomico Street for a reported theft. Bar employees told the officer an individual, later identified as Warner Rivers, 26, of Berlin, left the bar without paying his tab and that he had done so in the past. An employee told police he had been serving Rivers alcoholic beverages and handed him a printed receipt at the end of the night showing how much he owed.
The bar employees provided a description of Rivers, which was broadcast to other officers in the area. Bar employees told police Rivers had been playing pool against another patron and suspected he had been gambling. The bartender told police about five minutes after he gave Rivers the bill, which came to $36.51 and included four draft beers and one shot, Rivers left the bar and headed north on the Boardwalk.
An officer on patrol in the area of 5th Street saw an individual matching Rivers’ description walk quickly through the area. The officer went to the only hotel open in the area and was advised a male matching the description had walked through the lobby and used the elevator. A check of the hotel’s security camera footage revealed Rivers had entered the hotel and taken the elevator to the fourth floor to Room 401.
Officers went to the room and were greeted by the registered guest, who invited them in. Inside, the officers found Rivers sitting on the floor. When the officers asked Rivers about leaving the bar without paying, Rivers told them he had been playing pool and had won a game against another patron. However, Rivers said the losing pool player did not pay him the money he owed him, nor did he pay Rivers’ bar check, which was part of the agreement if Rivers won.
Rivers did admit leaving the bar without paying his tab. He said he went out for the night with $100, and he had been at different bars consuming alcohol since 4 p.m. When asked why he left the bar without paying his tab, Rivers became disoriented and told police he no longer had any money because he had spent it at other bars throughout the day, according to police reports.
A background check revealed Rivers was wanted on two active warrants from the Baltimore City Sheriff’s Department, one of which was for violation of probation which stemmed from a theft conviction. He also had one active theft case pending. The background check revealed Rivers had been arrested 23 times in Maryland and he was currently on probation. For the Ocean City incident last Friday, Rivers was charged with theft less than $100, and a somewhat rare betting, wagering or gambling charge.
Sign Swipers Nabbed
OCEAN CITY — Two teens were arrested on theft and malicious destruction of property charges last weekend after allegedly uprooting a “Ripley’s Believe it or Not” sign near the Inlet and dragging it across the Boardwalk and Somerset Street before getting caught in a West Ocean City restaurant.
Around 10:30 p.m. last Sunday, an OCPD officer responded to the area of Somerset Street for a reported theft that had just occurred. The caller told police an unidentified male and female were seen dragging a “Ripley’s Believe it or Not” parking sign down Somerset Street. When the witness yelled at the pair to stop, they abandoned the sign and fled.
The witness reported the suspects fled the scene in a Chevy pick-up truck with a tool box in the back of it. The original responding officer went to Somerset Street and saw the sign, which had been bent and pulled from the ground. Concrete was still attached to the base of the pole. The officer observed drag and gouge marks on the pavers on Somerset Street, the steps leading to the Boardwalk and the concrete edge of the Boardwalk.
The officer was ready to document the scene with photographs when Ocean City Communications received a call from an individual who had seen the suspects’ vehicle. The witness told police soon after the description was broadcasted, he observed the truck traveling through the alleys at 2nd Street between Baltimore Ave. and Philadelphia Ave. The witness told police he followed the truck across the bridge and into the Outback Steakhouse parking lot.
OCPD officers responded to the Outback Steakhouse and observed the truck in the parking lot. The officers were told there was only one table left in the restaurant and the group had entered just minutes earlier. The officers approached the group and asked who owned the truck and were told by a suspect later identified as Logan Grubb, 18, of Arnold, Md., that it was his.
As officers spoke to the group and advised them of why they were questioning them, another suspect, identified as Olivia Husby, 18, of Annapolis, told police she and Grubb had attempted to steal the sign. When questioned further, Grubb admitted he had removed the sign and Husby had helped him drag it from the scene. Meanwhile, Ocean City Communications reported the incident had been captured by one of the town of Ocean City’s “City Watch Cameras,” which revealed footage of Grubb and Husby dragging the sign across the Boardwalk.
Grubb and Husby were both arrested and charged with theft and malicious destruction of property. The sign was owned by Ripley’s Believe it or Not and the sign, post and cement base were valued at around $300. The damage to the Boardwalk, the steps and the pavers on Somerset Street were valued at under $1,000.
Cop Car Hits Suspect
SALISBURY — A Salisbury man is being held on weapons charges this week after getting hit by a police car while fleeing from officers investigating a shooting in the same area last week.
Around 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, state and local police were working on a criminal enforcement initiative in a Wicomico County neighborhood where a shooting occurred last week when a suspect who was ultimately found to be armed sustained minor injuries after he fled from officers attempting to talk to him and ran into the path of a responding police car. Members of the Maryland State Police Gang Unit and Firearms Enforcement Unit, along with investigators from the Wicomico County Task Force were working in the area of west Salisbury in response to a shooting that occurred on November 12.
The officers saw a man cutting through several back yards near Germania Circle and West Main Street. As the suspect, later identified as Kevin Garcia, 20, of Salisbury, neared the street, he saw investigators and immediately fled on foot while holding his waistband, causing the officers to believe he may be armed with a handgun. A foot pursuit of Garcia ensued and the suspect ran into the street and directly into the path of a responding covert police vehicle driven by a member of the Wicomico County Narcotics Task Force.
The police vehicle was turning from West Main Street onto First Street when Garcia ran into its path. During a search, police found a loaded .22 caliber handgun in Garcia’s waistband. Garcia sustained minor injuries and was taken to PRMC where he was treated and released. He remained in police custody during his treatment at the hospital and when he was released, Garcia was transported to central booking.
No shots were fired and no one else sustained any injuries in the incident.
Garcia was charged with firearm possession with a felony conviction, illegal possession of a regulated firearm by a prohibited person, possession of a firearm by a minor, wearing/carrying a firearm, and illegal possession of ammunition by a prohibited person. Garcia has been released to the custody of the Wicomico County Detention Center central booking unit for processing and his initial appearance before a court commissioner.
Ambulance Stolen With Patient In Back
SALISBURY — A Salisbury man was arrested on unlawful taking of a motor vehicle and false imprisonment charges last week after allegedly swiping an ambulance with EMTs working on a patient in the back late last month.
During the early morning hours of Oct. 29, Salisbury Police initiated an investigation into the theft and unauthorized use of a Salisbury Fire Department ambulance. The initial investigation revealed a suspect later identified as Russell Allen Holland, Jr., unlawfully entered and moved the ambulance while a patient was being treated in the back portion of the vehicle.
Salisbury EMS had been called to a residence on Heron Court for a medical emergency. Upon arrival, Salisbury EMS immediately began rendering aid to the patient in the rear of the ambulance. While tending to the patient, Salisbury EMS reported hearing the vehicle’s front do open and the emergency break released.
According to police reports, the ambulance traveled around 50 feet down the roadway while EMS personnel were in the process of providing emergency medical care to the patient. The suspect, later identified as Holland, left the scene prior to the police officers’ arrival.
After further investigation, Holland was identified as the person who entered and drove the ambulance. Last Thursday, a warrant was issued for Holland’s arrest and on Friday he was arrested and taken into custody without incident. He was charged with unlawful taking of a motor vehicle and false imprisonment and was taken to the Wicomico County Detention Center where he was held on a $15,000 bond.