Charles Co. Sheriff's Reports

LA PLATA, Md. (Sept. 05, 2017)—The Charles County Sheriff's Office released the following incident and arrest reports.

CCSO WARNS OF THEFT SCHEME: On August 23 at 1:30 p.m., officers responded to the 3200 block of Crain Highway in Waldorf for the report of a theft. Investigation showed a lone male suspect approached a woman as she left a grocery store in Clinton. The man, who spoke with a heavy accent, told the victim he won $80,000 from a civil lawsuit and claimed he needed to donate the money to a church or give it to two friends; otherwise, he would have to put it into a hole and burn it.

As the suspect was talking to the victim, another male—an accomplice—approached. He acted like a stranger who overheard the conversation and appeared to be interested. The suspect talked about banking and said he was not able to make bank transactions in his country; he asked if the man and woman could. According to the victim, the suspect seemed fascinated with the concept of banking and asked if she and the other man would be willing to show him the process. In return, the suspect offered to split the money he found.

The accomplice, who was still acting like a stranger, was encouraged to go first. They drove to a nearby bank. The woman waited in the car while the accomplice allegedly withdrew money. The accomplice returned to the car and handed the suspect what appeared to be bundles of cash. The suspect put the money in a handkerchief along with half of the fortune he claimed he won and the three "prayed over the money." The accomplice then exited the car to deposit the monies he withdrew and the added money the suspect gave him. Then, the suspect told the victim it was her turn. They drove to two different banks where the woman withdrew $7,000 at one bank and $9,000 at another. They drove to another location where she gave the cash to the suspect who put it in the handkerchief, along with the other half of his $80,000, and they "prayed over the money." Before the woman could go back into the bank to deposit the money, the suspect said his nieces needed laptops and asked if the woman would purchase a few. The woman agreed and drove to a nearby store in Waldorf where she purchased three Apple laptops costing $2,800 each. After the transactions were completed, they drove back to the woman's bank where the woman got out of the car to deposit the money. The suspects waited until she was out of sight and fled. When the woman approached the bank teller, she opened the handkerchief and found shredded paper.

The suspects are described as black males with heavy accents. The first suspect appeared to be in his 60's and had a gray beard. He was wearing a suit and a blue hat. The accomplice said his name was John. He appeared to be in his 30's with black hair, a trimmed beard, and glasses. He was also wearing a suit.

This type of fraud is known as a pigeon drop and is one of the oldest frauds around. As a reminder, if a stranger approaches you in the street and tells you he/she found a lot of money and wants to share it with you—but first you have to hand over some of your money—it's definitely a con.

Investigation showed the suspects never actually entered the banks; however, detectives obtained surveillance photos as the woman, accompanied by the men, purchased the laptops. Anyone with information about the identities of either man is asked to call Detective R. Smith at (301) 609-6504.

CCSO TO CONDUCT SOBRIETY CHECKPOINT: Members of the Charles County Sheriff's Office Traffic Operations Unit, using funding from the Maryland Highway Safety Office, will conduct an impaired driver checkpoint on Friday, September 8. The checkpoint will commence at approximately 8:30 p.m. and will conclude at midnight. Special patrols and enforcement focused on impaired and aggressive driving are conducted year round. The CCSO is reminding drivers who might become impaired to always designate a sober driver.

ATTEMPTED ROBBERY / CRIME SOLVERS OFFERING CASH REWARD: On August 29 at 8:15 p.m., a lone male suspect entered Subway, 2055 Marshall Hall Road in Bryans Road, and walked directly to the cash register with both hands concealed in the front pocket of his hooded sweatshirt as if he had a weapon. He told the cashier to give him the money and no one would get hurt. The cashier refused. The suspect continued to make demands, but left after a customer entered the store. The suspect is described as a white male, mid to upper twenties, over 6'0" in height, medium build, a thin beard with a goatee, blue eyes, wearing a grey hooded sweat shirt, camouflage pants and work boots. Anyone with information about this case should contact Det. C. Gregory at (301) 609-6507. Tipsters wishing to remain anonymous may contact Charles County Crime Solvers by calling 1-866-411-TIPS, texting CHARLES + the tip to CRIMES (274637) or submitting tips online at tipsubmit.com. A cash reward of up to $1,000 is being offered for the tip that leads to an arrest.

SUSPECTS IN ATM THEFT APPREHENDED / CRIME SOLVERS OFFERING CASH REWARD LEADING TO ADDITIONAL ARRESTS: On August 8 at 11:23 p.m., officers were dispatched to an intrusion alarm at the CVS located at 4200 Altamont Place in White Plains. As officers responded, a citizen advised of seeing a large pick-up truck back into the front of the building. Three suspects got out and pulled the ATM into the bed of the truck. Officers arrived, but the suspects had already fled. Officers quickly located the truck on Hedgemeade Court and apprehended one suspect. The ATM was located in the back of the truck. Officers canvassed the area and determined another truck had been involved. They located that truck nearby and attempted a traffic stop, but the driver fled. The driver stopped in the 10000 block of Billingsley Road where two males jumped out and ran, but one suspect was apprehended. Kevontae Deangelo Stewart, 19, and Everett Tyrone Brown, 33, both of Washington D.C. were charged with theft, destruction of property, and burglary. Detectives H. Burgess and C. Gilroy are continuing the investigation to identify the third suspect. Charles County Crime Solvers is offering a cash reward for information leading to the identity of the other person involved. Anyone with information is asked to contact Charles County Crime Solvers by calling 1-866-411-TIPS, texting CHARLES + the tip to CRIMES (274637) or submitting tips online at tipsubmit.com. All individuals who provide tips through Crime Solvers will remain anonymous.

RECKLESS ENDANGERMENT: On August 28 at 3:43 a.m., officers responded to the 100 block of Brookside Place in Waldorf for the report of an adult male shooting a handgun inside his house. When officers arrived, they located the male outside, armed with a gun. Officers were able to find cover and gave several commands to drop the weapon. The suspect refused. After several minutes, the suspect dropped the gun and surrendered. He was apprehended without further incident and the loaded gun was recovered. Further investigation revealed several bullet holes through walls, inside the residence. A relative and her three children were inside but uninjured when the suspect fired the gun. The suspect, Armando Felipe Renteria, 25, of Waldorf, was arrested and charged with reckless endangerment. Officer D. Spencer investigated.

ROBBERY / CRIME SOLVERS OFFERING CASH REWARD: On August 26 at 8:33 p.m., officers responded to the 1100 block of Heritage Place in Waldorf for the report of a citizen robbery. Investigation showed the victim was walking home from a store when two suspects walked up behind him and said, "Give me everything!" The victim fled but the suspects were able to push him down and assault him. The victim was able to get away and call police. Officers canvassed the area but the suspects were already gone. Anyone with information is asked to call Pfc. M. O'Shields at (301) 932-2222. Tipsters wishing to remain anonymous may contact Charles County Crime Solvers by calling 1-866-411-TIPS, texting CHARLES + the tip to CRIMES (274637) or submitting tips online at tipsubmit.com. A cash reward of up to $1,000 is being offered for the tip that leads to an arrest.

CHARLES COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE ANNOUNCES APPLICATION FOR GRANT: The Charles County Sheriff's Office and Charles County Circuit Court announces they will apply for the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Formula Program through the United States Department of Justice. The JAG Program provides states and units of local governments with critical funding necessary to support a range of program areas including law enforcement, prosecution and court programs, prevention and education programs, corrections and community corrections, drug treatment and enforcement, crime victim and witness initiatives, and planning, evaluation and technology improvement programs.

Charles County is eligible for $44,448 through this grant, which combines the Byrne Formula and Local Law Enforcement Block grant programs to provide agencies with the flexibility to prioritize and place justice funds where they are needed most. The program allows states, tribes and local governments to support a broad range of activities to prevent and control crime based on their own local needs and conditions.

The Sheriff's Office invites citizens wishing to make comments or those who wish to review the Sheriff and Circuit Court's JAG application to contact Karlee Adams, Grant Coordinator, at 301-609-3279. All comments should be made by October 1, 2017.

Charles County Crime Solvers offers rewards of up to $1,000 for information that leads to the arrest or indictment of a person responsible for a crime in Charles County. Anyone with information about an unsolved crime or the location of a fugitive may contact Charles County Crime Solvers by calling 1-866-411-TIPS, texting CHARLES + the tip to CRIMES (274637) or submitting tips online at tipsubmit.com. All individuals who provide tips through Crime Solvers will remain anonymous.

For the current list of crime solvers cases in southern Maryland, see so.md/mostwanted

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: so.md/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 so.md/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 so.md/expungeme.