OCEAN CITY — A Delmar man faces first-degree burglary and other charges this week after breaking into a downtown Ocean City condominium to party with friends and stealing an expensive pair of basketball shoes that ultimately helped identify him.
Around 12:50 a.m. on Wednesday, Ocean City Police responded to the White Marlin condominiums on Somerset Street for a reported burglary in progress. After learning from the property owner he was not in Ocean City, nor did he have any renters or anyone else allowed access to the condo, police set up a perimeter and made their way up to unit 202.
The officers approached the unit, with lights on inside, and after knocking on the door found the front door knob to be broken and unlocked. The officers made contact with the occupants, including Ky’Shir Connally, 18, of Delmar, Shyheim Mitchell, 18, of Salisbury, and two others and ordered them to come out and get on the ground.
The property owner told police the unit had been broken into back on July 1 and that he believed the perpetrators entered through a window and that his son’s black and red Air Jordan basketball shoes, size 11.5 had been stolen. A prior report had been filed for that incident. As the officers were detaining suspects found in the same unit early Wednesday morning, they found Connally to be wearing Air Jordan shoes matching the exact color scheme and size as those reported stolen in the earlier incident.
Upon questioning, Connally told police he was trying to find a place to party in Ocean City and knew about the unit at the White Marlin condo. He told the other three suspects he knew about the condo and found it to be unlocked, information he related to the other three suspects. Connally told the police he had partied in the vacant condo about two weeks earlier, which corresponds with the first reported break-in and theft of the shoes back on July 1. Connally told police he bought the Air Jordan shoes at a store about three months earlier, but could not provide any details about where, what store or when he bought the shoes.
OCPD officers questioned one of the female suspects detained after the alleged break-in on Wednesday. The female suspect said Connally had invited her to party at the condo around 8:20 p.m. on Tuesday, and when she told Connally she was bringing another female friend, Connally told her he was bringing Mitchell. The female said she arrived at the unit around 10:30 p.m. with her friend and began partying with Connally and Mitchell until the police arrived at nearly 1 a.m.
At that point, Connally was arrested for first-degree burglary, theft and other charges. When questioned further, Connally told police on July 1 he was at a downtown underage nightclub when he met a female known to him only as Sasha. After realizing his friend’s vehicle was locked, Connally said Sasha told him she knew of a condo on Somerset Street in which to “party.”
Connally said Sasha entered the unit at the White Marlin condominiums through a window and let Connally in the front door where the pair had consensual sex and then left. Connally told police he saw the Air Jordan shoes at that time and really liked them, so he took them. Two weeks later on Tuesday night, Connally returned to the unit with Mitchell and their two female companions and broke into the front door where they partied until police arrived just before 1 a.m.
Connally was charged with first-, third- and fourth degree burglary, theft and malicious destruction of property. Mitchell was charged with third- and fourth-degree burglary.