OCEAN CITY – A
Pennsylvania man was arrested on first-degree assault and other serious charges
this week for threatening to kill a downtown apartment building owner during an
apparent domestic situation in front of a large crowd of people on the
Boardwalk early Sunday morning.
Shortly after midnight
on Sunday, Ocean City Police were dispatched to the area of 6th
Street for a report of a disorderly male screaming and threatening to kill
someone. When the officers arrived, they discovered the suspect, later
identified as Devon James Hentosh, 21, of Lincoln University, Pa., yelling,
“I’m going to kill you,” while charging another man with a knife, according to
police reports.
The officers observed a
large crowd of about 200 individuals had rushed over from the Boardwalk to
witness the confrontation in the street, according to police reports. The
officers observed Hentosh charge at the man with a knife held out in front of
him while yelling, “how dare you [expletive deleted] tell me how to care for my
kid,” according to police reports.
The officers ordered
Hentosh to the ground at gunpoint, to which he complied, closing the knife and
throwing it on the ground. He was taken into custody without incident and
placed under arrest. During the arrest process, Hentosh allegedly told police,
“I know why you did what you did and I was wrong, but ain’t no [expletive
deleted] foreigner gonna tell me how I’m gonna raise my child.”
The investigation
revealed Hentosh had earlier attempted to meet his girlfriend, who was staying
with another girl, at the apartment building on 6th Street, but the
building owner, who later became the object of Hentosh’s apparent rage, refused
to allow him in the building. The building owner watched Hentosh scale a fence
and attempt to enter the building and eventually gained entry on the third
floor.
The building owner told
police Hentosh screamed obscenities at his wife in front of a large group of
people and threatened to pull a knife. When the altercation between Hentosh and
the apartment building owner spilled into the street, Hentosh allegedly pulled
a knife from his pocket and charged the victim, saying, “I’ll kill you and our
family,” although it is unclear exactly what the relationship is between the
victim and Hentosh.
Hentosh was arrested
without further incident and charged with first- and second-degree assault,
reckless endangerment and disorderly conduct.