LEONARDTOWN, Md. (Aug. 27, 2014)—The St. Mary's County Sheriff's Office released the following incident and arrest reports.
CHECKERS BURGLARY FOILED: On Aug. 25 at approximately 3:45 a.m., Dep. Lefave responded to an interior intrusion alarm at the Checkers on Miramar Way in California. Dep. Lefave approached the location on foot and observed two subjects inside with masks over their face. Additional sheriff's office deputies and a Maryland state trooper arrived. The two men then exited the building through the drive-thru window and were approached by Dep. Lefave. Dep. Lefave ordered the two to show their hands and stop. The two men fled and were detained by backup officers. The two were identified as James Daniel Short, 20, of No Fixed Address, and Charles Patrick Balsbaugh, 28, of Valley Lee. Short and Balsbaugh were transported to the St. Mary's County Detention Center and charged with Second Degree Burglary, Fourth Degree Burglary- Storehouse, Fourth Degree Burglary-Theft, Malicious Destruction of Property Over $1000, and Theft less than $100.
ARREST IN HOME BURGLARY CASE: On June 28, patrol units responded to a private residence on St. Jeromes Neck Rd. in Dameron for the report of a burglary. Deputies determined unknown culprit(s) forced entry to the victim's residence by breaking a window and stole various property belonging to the victim. The Criminal Investigations Division was contacted and assumed the case.
Following an investigation by detectives, 2 suspects were identified and arrested. Natasha M. Kelly, age 28, of Great Mills, Md. and Steven L. Thomas, age 44, of Lexington Park, Md. were both charged with 1st Degree Burglary and Theft $10,000 to under $100,000. Thomas was incarcerated in the St. Mary's County Detention Center under $5,000 bond. Kelly was incarcerated under a $25,000 bond. Thomas later posted bond and was released pending an appearance in District Court. Kelly remains incarcerated.
ARREST IN BUSINESS BURGLARY CASE: On March 27, patrol units responded to a business located in Mechanicsville for the report of a burglary. The victim/owner stated unknown person(s) forced entry to his business and stole several pieces of equipment. The Criminal Investigations Division was contacted and assumed the investigation.
Following a lengthy investigation, detectives were able to identify a suspect in the burglary and recover several pieces of the stolen equipment.
Detectives located and arrested William J. Chialastri, 35, of Baltimore, charging him with 2nd Degree Burglary, Theft $10,000 to under $100,000 and Theft $1,000 to under $10,000. Chialastri appeared before a District Court Commissioner and was released on personal recognizance.
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 .