Brother Attacks Brother
OCEAN CITY — A Pennsylvania man faces first-degree assault and other charges this week after allegedly slashing his brother across the cheek with a pair of scissors during an argument last weekend.
Around 2:40 a.m. last Friday, an Ocean City Police Department (OCPD) officer responded to a residence in the 10th Street area for a reported stabbing incident.
Upon arrival, an OCPD officer met with an individual identified as Ryan Dietz, 26, of Carlisle, Pa. Dietz told police his brother had attempted to harm himself. Dietz told police his brother had placed a pair of scissors to his throat and had threatened to stab himself.
The OCPD officer observed scissors with blood on them in the kitchen sink. The officer also observed blood in various locations in the living room and kitchen of the residence. In addition, the officer observed damage to the walls and furniture in the unit consistent with a fight that had already occurred, according to police reports.
The OCPD officer interviewed Dietz’s girlfriend, who had been present during the entire incident and had called 911. Ocean City Emergency Services arrived and treated Dietz’s brother, whose left eye was nearly swollen shut with multiple bruises above and below the eye. The victim had a laceration on the lower portion of his left cheek approximately three inches in length. In addition, the victim had bruising and cuts inside his lower lip.
The victim was transported to Atlantic General Hospital for treatment of his various injuries. OCPD detectives interviewed the victim at AGH. The victim told police he had gotten into an argument with Dietz and it turned physical. The victim told police after Dietz had struck him in the face multiple times, the victim grabbed a pair of scissors and held them to his throat. The victim told police he had threatened to harm himself in the past while fighting with his brother and the threats had always been successful in de-escalating the incidents.
However, the victim told police while he was holding the scissors to his neck, Dietz allegedly approached him and took the scissors, disassembled them into two pieces and held the sharp end of one of the pieces to the victim’s lower left cheek, according to police reports. The victim told police Dietz then pressed the sharp edge of the scissors into his cheek, causing the laceration.
An OCPD detective interviewed Dietz’s girlfriend, who told police the two brothers had been arguing and the argument had escalated. The female witness said she observed Dietz strike the male victim multiple times in the face. However, the female witness told police she never observed Dietz cut his brother with the scissors.
When OCPD officers interviewed Dietz, the suspect told police he was only attempting to prevent his brother from harming himself. However, when detectives began asking Dietz pointed questions about the punches thrown at the victim and specific questions about the scissors, Dietz clammed up and requested a lawyer, ending the interview. Based on the victim’s testimony and the evidence, Dietz was arrested and charged with first- and second-degree assault and reckless endangerment.
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Armed Robber Pleads Guilty
SNOW HILL — One of two Berlin men arrested in June after allegedly robbing another man at gunpoint pleaded guilty last week to robbery and now awaits his fate pending a pre-sentence investigation.
Around 7 a.m. last June 9, an Ocean City Police Department (OCPD) officer met with the victim of an armed robbery at the police substation on the south end of the Boardwalk. The victim told police he had been robbed at gunpoint by two suspects, one of whom he had met a week earlier and had been in contact with in the days leading up to the incident.
The victim told police on Saturday, June 2, he met a man later identified as Trenton Smith, 19, of Berlin, outside a downtown underage club. According to police reports, the victim exchanged phone numbers and Snap Chat names with Smith and discussed meeting up later in the week. Smith and victim exchanged Snap Chat messages throughout the week leading up to their renewed meeting the next Saturday morning.
The victim told police he and a friend began walking south on the Boardwalk from 8th Street around 2:30 a.m. At some point, the victim’s friend returned to their hotel room and the victim continued walking south alone. Along the way, the victim ran into Smith again, along with another man, later identified as Darry Ames, Jr., 26, of Berlin.
The victim engaged in conversation with Smith and Ames, who invited him to go with them to a party. The victim agreed and walked with Smith and Ames to an area on Washington Lane, which runs north-south parallel to the Boardwalk. At that point, Ames allegedly pulled out a handgun and pointed it at the victim and told the victim to give him $60.
The victim told police he removed $750 from his wallet and Ames grabbed the money from him along with a 24-carat gold ring valued at $900. Also taken from the victim was a mini glass vaporizer valued at $300, a backpack containing a Bluetooth speaker, his key ring, which included the key to his house, his Ocean City hotel key and a Bluetooth keychain device which could be used to track the location of the keys.
The victim told police Smith also raised his shirt, revealing what appeared to be the handle of a black handgun in his waistband. At that point, Smith and Ames fled north on foot up Washington Lane and the victim ran south, re-entering the Boardwalk at 2nd Street. The victim then ran south on the Boardwalk to North Division Street where he called police.
Within an hour of the armed robbery, Smith began sending public snap chat messages of the victim’s stolen property for sale. The investigating officer was able to utilize Facebook and Snap Chat to pull up pictures of Smith and the victim stated he was “100 percent sure it was him.”
Through the investigation, OCPD officers were able to identify Smith and Ames and the suspects and located them a short time later. Smith was charged with armed robbery, first- and second-degree assault, theft from $1,000 to $10,000 and the use of a firearm during a violent crime. Last week, Smith pleaded guilty to robbery and a pre-sentence investigation was ordered.
Ames was charged with armed robbery, first- and second-degree assault, theft from $1,000 to under $10,000 and possession of a replica gun. His trial has been tentatively set for February 5.
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Guilty Plea For Urinating
OCEAN CITY — A Salisbury man arrested in October after allegedly stumbling down and peeing on the Boardwalk in front of a beachfront hotel pleaded guilty last week to intoxicated endangerment.
Around 3:45 a.m. on Oct. 29, an Ocean City Police Department (OCPD) officer was patrolling in the downtown area when he observed Johnny Price, 34, lying face down on top of the fountain wall at the entrance park at North Division Street. The officer was able to transport him to his residence on 14th Street to prevent him from further harming himself or others or property.
About a half-an-hour later, the same officer was patrolling around 13th Street and observed Price stumble onto the Boardwalk and urinate all over the Boardwalk in front of the Beach Plaza Hotel. According to police reports, Price continued to urinate for about a full minute while walking north on the Boardwalk in front of the hotel. Price was intoxicated and yelled a stream of obscenities at police after he was detained. He was ultimately arrested for intoxicated endangerment because police were certain if they released him he would only continue the behavior.