LA PLATA, Md. (Sept. 19, 2013)—The Charles County Sheriff's Office released the following incident and arrest reports.
SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY UPDATE: The Charles County Sheriff’s Office has identified the man who was described in a report of suspicious activity that occurred yesterday morning at a bus stop at the intersection of Normandie Woods Drive and Charles Street in La Plata, and has determined the man was not involved in malicious activity.
The investigation began at 8:40 a.m. when a woman called the CCSO to report that she observed a man in a sport-utility vehicle stop at the bus stop, lower his passenger-side window and initiate a conversation with her six-year-old son, who was waiting at the stop alone. The woman, who had been watching her son from a location nearby, ran to the vehicle and confronted the driver, who reportedly said he was seeking directions. Shortly thereafter she observed the vehicle return to the area and turn into the Clark’s Run neighborhood after the school bus had departed with the boy.
The woman called the CCSO to report her concerns and provided a description of the man and the SUV. The CCSO notified the community of the incident via a press release and social media posts and less than two hours later, after reading the reports, the man in the SUV contacted the investigating officer. The officer determined the man, who lives nearby, had pulled over near the bus stop to use his cell phone to find directions to another location. He left the stop after the woman confronted him. When she saw him the second time, he had made a U-turn and was returning home to continue his search for directions. The man did not speak with the child.
Officer M. Hancock investigated.
CRIME SOLVERS OFFERING CASH REWARD FOR SUSPECT'S WHEREABOUTS: CCSO investigators are seeking the whereabouts of Matthew Leo Wade, Jr., 29, of Pomfret, in connection with multiple traffic charges stemming from a pursuit and bail-out on Sept. 11 on Springhill Newtown Road in La Plata. Wade refused to pull over after a traffic stop was initiated. He crashed his car in a wooded area and fled. Officers recovered a stolen firearm in his vehicle. Wade is 5'8", 180 lbs., and has a tattoo of the name "Renda" on his left wrist. Wade could be armed and is considered dangerous. Anyone with information about Wade's whereabouts is asked not to approach him but rather contact police by calling (301) 932-2222. If he is within sight, please call 911. Callers wishing to remain anonymous may contact Crime Solvers at 1-866-411-TIPS or Text CHARLES + your tip to CRIMES or visit http://www.ccso.us to submit a web tip. Crime Solvers is offering cash reward of up to $1,000 for Wade's arrest.
BURGLARY: On Sept. 18 between 3 a.m. - 4 a.m., someone broke into a business in the 10100 block of Berry Road in Waldorf and stole about 100 packs of Newport Cigarettes and a small amount of cash. PFC K. Newman is investigating.
DESTRUCTION OF PROPERTY: On Sept. 17 at 3:19 a.m., officers responded to the 3300 block of Crain Highway in Waldorf for an intrusion alarm at a business. Officers arrived and discovered the front door had been shattered. It did not appear anyone made entry and nothing was reported stolen. PFC B. Kunz is investigating.
CALL FOR SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY LEADS TO RECOVERY OF HVAC SYSTEM: On Sept. 13 at 1 p.m., officers were dispatched to the 2100 block of Freemantle Court in Waldorf for the report of suspicious activity in which two males were tampering with an HVAC at a vacant house. The witness told officers the suspects were in a green Dodge Dakota. Officer R. Horrocks located the truck and found an HVAC system in the bed of the vehicle. Officers went back to the vacant house and determined the HVAC was still there but had clearly been tampered with. Based on additional evidence, the occupants of the truck were charged with the theft of the HVAC in their car. The investigation is on-going.
Disclaimer: In the U.S.A., all persons accused of a crime by the State are presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. See: http://somd.me/presumed-innocence. Additionally, all of the information provided above is solely from the perspective of the respective law enforcement agency and does not provide any direct input from the accused or persons otherwise mentioned. You can find additional information about the case by searching the Maryland Judiciary Case Search Database using the accused's name and date of birth. The database is online at http://somd.me/mdcasesearch . Persons named who have been found innocent or not guilty of all charges in the respective case, and/or have had the case ordered expunged by the court can have their name, age, and city redacted by following the process defined at http://somd.me/expungeme .