SNOW HILL — A former Ocean City hotel employee faces as many as 20 years in jail after being convicted on Monday for absconding with over $162,000 in cash from a resort business over a three-year period dating back to 2015.
On Monday, Richard Perry, 51, of Berlin, was convicted in Worcester County Circuit Court of theft scheme over $100,000. Perry faces as many as 20 years in jail and a $25,000 fine and owes a substantial amount of restitution to the Castle in the Sand hotel, which was the victim in the case.
Sentencing was deferred until September to allow Perry to gather the substantial amount of restitution owed to the victim. As part of the plea agreement, Perry agreed to forfeit more than $30,000 to the hotel, which was seized by Ocean City Police Department (OCPD) detectives during the investigation and also provided a cashier’s check for $10,000 as a partial restitution payment.
The charges stemmed from a 2018 investigation by the OCPD’s Criminal Enforcement Division. OCPD detectives were informed by hotel management that an employee had stolen thousands of dollars during a three-year period from 2015 to 2018.
After an extensive forensic records audit, OCPD detectives were able to determine Perry, who was employed by the hotel during the time period, had stolen over $162,000 by simply taking cash payments and depositing them in his personal bank account. Worcester County State’s Attorney Kris Heiser commended the OCPD Criminal Investigation Division and the lead detective for their detailed investigation and the team in her office for successfully prosecuting the case.
