LA PLATA, Md. (March 5, 2014)—The Charles County Sheriff's Office released the following announcement and incident and arrest reports.
Sheriff’s Office Honored for Outstanding Crime Prevention Programs
Charles County Sheriff Rex W. Coffey is pleased to announce the Charles County Sheriff’s Office was recognized for outstanding service in crime prevention at the 34th Annual Governor’s Crime Prevention Awards ceremony held in February. The ceremony recognized law enforcement agencies, police officers, corrections, and citizens who made significant contributions in crime prevention in 2013. Cpl. William “Bill” Welch – a CCSO school resource officer - and Waldorf resident William Wamsley were also recognized during the ceremony for their work in crime prevention.
Sheriff Coffey accepted the law enforcement agency award which recognized the Charles County Sheriff’s Office for making crime prevention an integral part of the agency’s operations. To achieve this award, the CCSO had to demonstrate a commitment in six areas of crime prevention: personal security; sexual assault; elderly abuse; youth crime; drug abuse; and residential security. The agency supported the award by highlighting numerous outreach programs such as the Explorers program, Criminal Justice program, Cadet program, Crime Solvers, Teen Court and various programs sponsored by the detention center.
Corporal Welch, a 15-year veteran of the CCSO, was nominated by the sheriff’s office for his work in youth programs. Over the past seven years, Cpl. Welch has been assigned to the school resource unit where he has been instrumental in organizing and implementing several youth sports camps designed to build strong relationships between juveniles and police officers. Because of their success, the camps have continued yearly. “Playing sports builds teamwork and more importantly, builds relationships,” said Welch who has consistently been at the helm of three highly successful camps:
-- In 2010, Cpl. Welch helped start the Cal Ripken Sr. Foundation’s Badges for Baseball program which pairs children between the ages of 10 to 14 with the agency’s school resource officers for a week of baseball and mentoring. “Although learning baseball is fun, the important lessons learned were teamwork, good communication skills, respect and leadership,” said Welch. The program has since become one of the most popular summer camps in Charles County serving nearly 400 children.
-- In 2012, Cpl. Welch started the CCSO COPS Youth Football camp aimed at preventing youths from joining gangs. Cpl. Welch focused on students in the fifth and sixth grade and incorporated information from the Gang Resistance Education And Training (GREAT) program. He secured most of the funding for the camp from the Greater Waldorf Jaycees Foundation and obtained permission to use the football field at North Point High School. Cpl. Welch reached out to former Washington Redskins offensive lineman, Rod Milstead, and asked him to help coach. During the camp, 60 participants received quality football instruction from area coaches, trained police officers and a professional football player. “We wanted to teach kids about good decision making, conflict resolution, and self-management,” Welch said. “These are necessary skills during adolescent years.”
-- In Jan. 2014, Cpl. Welch volunteered to organize the 18th Annual CCSO Youth Three-on-Three Basketball Tournament for middle school children. Thirty-five teams (105 youth) participated in the all-day, double-elimination tournament which was supervised and refereed by officers assigned to the school resource unit. He has been a part of this camp since he started in the school resource unit.
“Cpl. Welch dedicated his time and many off-duty hours to ensure the success of all of these programs and it is people like him that make our outreach efforts a success,” Sheriff Coffey said.
Waldorf resident, Bill Wamsley, was honored in the category for citizen’s who made a difference in crime prevention. When the leader of the Pinefield Citizens on Patrol had to suddenly retire due to a medical emergency, Wamsley stepped into the leadership role and ensured the program would continue. Since then, Wamsley has continued to increase the number of people patrolling the neighborhood, created a crime watch data base for his community, and he established a communications system with Cpl. Richards, the community policing officer assigned to the area. In addition, the group arranged a neighborhood parade and a community yard sale. “Neighbors are getting to know each other which is critical to the success of a safe community,” said Sheriff Coffey. Upon receiving the award, Wamsley said, “We are concerned citizens who help our neighbors and we want to live in a safe community. The most critical issue for all of us is to remain safe and to report suspicious activity.”
“These awards prove that sometimes all it takes is for one person to take that first step to organize programs. Whether it starts with the sheriff’s office or with a citizen, Charles County is a community who is connected by innovative programs and outstanding outreach efforts,” Sheriff Coffey said. “I am honored to have received these awards and to serve for an agency and for a county who truly cares about keeping our communities safe.”
BURGLARY REPORTED: Sometime between March 3 and March 4, someone broke out the front window of a business in the 100 block of Paul Mellon Court in Waldorf and ransacked the office. Nothing was reported stolen. PFC B. Kunz is investigating.
BURGLARY: On March 4 at 2:45 a.m., officers responded to an intrusion alarm at a store in the 3300 block of Crain Highway in Waldorf. Upon arrival, officers noticed the glass to the front door had been shattered. Officers conducted an immediate search but no one was inside. Investigators are following leads.
SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY: On March 2 at 8 p.m., officers responded to Jameson Court in Indian Head for the report of a possible attempt burglary. The victim was inside her residence when she reported someone tried to kick in the front door. Entry was not gained and the suspect fled. PFC J. Foster is investigating.
CRIME SOLVERS CASE: Charles County Crime Solvers is offering a cash reward for information leading to the whereabouts of Michael Paul Holbink, 44, of Waldorf. Holbink currently has two open warrants charging him with failure to appear in court for violating probation relating to theft scheme charges and burglary charges. Holbink is 6’2”, 220 lbs., and has brown hair, blue eyes and tattoos on his neck.
Anyone with information about the whereabouts of Michael Paul Holbink is asked not to approach him but rather call the CCSO Warrant Unit at (301) 932-2222. Charles County Crime Solvers is offering a cash reward of up to $1,000 for information leading to his arrest. Tipsters 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. For additional information about Crime Solvers see http://www.charlescountycrimesovlers.com.
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 .