July 9, 2002
Juveniles Arrested for Hate Crimes
<bt>Three Bethesda juveniles were arrested for hate crime vandalism at the Old Georgetown Swim Tennis Club, 9600 Fernwood Road, according to police.
The police gave the following account of the incident:
The suspects — whose names will not be made public because they are juveniles — defaced two surfaces of the swim club at 12:30 a.m. on July 4 with Swastika markings in blue paint and black marker. Papers, tables, chairs, umbrellas and two large trash cans were thrown into the pool. Office supplies were thrown around the office, which was squirted with suntan lotion.
Officers John Gloss, Mark Gribble and Wayne Wiltshire responded to the scene and interrupted the vandalism and theft in progress.
The suspects had also placed a beach towel over two flood lights, causing one of them to catch fire. Flames spread onto the roof of the pool house before Officer Gloss extinguished the flames with a fire extinguisher.
After a brief foot chase, the three defendants were arrested and charged with malicious destruction of property over $500, one count of theft under $500, trespassing on private property and disorderly conduct. They were also charged with Article 27, section 470A, which is Hate Crime as a felony.
The Fire Marshal’s office will conduct a follow-up investigation, which could result in a malicious burning or arson charge.
The defendants were released into the custody of their parents/guardians.
<sh>Sears Robbed
<bt>The children’s department of the Sears store at Montgomery Mall was robbed on June 30, at 1:53 p.m., according to police.
Police said a lone subject who bought two items from the children’s department came back 30 minutes later to return one item. The suspect reached over the counter and pushed the clerk, took cash from the register and then fled the building, heading to a lower-level parking garage, according to police.
The suspect is described to be a black male, 20- to 22-years-old, approximately 5-foot-9, 190-200 pounds, with bushy hair and a goatee. According to police, he was wearing a white T-shirt, black undershirt, baggy jeans and two-tone color sneakers.
<sh>Potomac Burglaries
<bt>According to police reports:
Burglars cut through a basement door of a residence on the 10600 block of Farmbrooke Lane in Potomac between 1 a.m. and 2:30 a.m. on June 26. Nothing was reported taken.
* A VCR, wallet and cash were taken from a residence on the 13800 block of Saddleview Drive in Potomac between 11 p.m. on July 2 and 6:02 a.m. on July 3. Burglars entered through an unlocked garage door.
* A wallet and cash were taken from a residence on the 14600 block of Country Creek Lane in North Potomac between 7 p.m. on June 28 and 6 a.m. on June 29. Burglars entered the house through a garage door.
* Burglars entered a residence on the 10800 block of Tuckahoe Way, in North Potomac, between 12:10 a.m. and 4 a.m. on July 3. Nothing was reported stolen.
<sh>Rock Throwers Arrested
<bt>A rock — the size of a brick — was used in an attempt to smash out the front window of the Piney Grove Convenience Store, at 14119 Travilah Road, according to police. The broken glass set off the alarm system on Wednesday, July 3, at approximately 12:30 a.m.
According to police reports:
During the investigation, a motorist stopped to inform police officers that two males walking a short distance away on Travilah Road had thrown a rock at his car and cracked the window.
After a short foot chase, police from the 1st District Special Assignment Team apprehended two suspects.
Camilo Andres Garcia, 19, of the unit block of Lloydminster Court in North Potomac was arrested and charged with second degree burglary, malicious destruction of property and resisting arrest. Anthony Tyrone Slater, 19, of the unit block of Shuttle Court in Gaithersburg was arrested and charged with second degree burglary and conspiracy to commit burglary.
Slater is being held at the Montgomery County Detention Center on a $1,000 bond. Garcia was released on a personal bond, according to police. Police said the suspects were responsible for both the rock thrown at the car and the attempted store burglary.
<sh>Cars Vandalized
<bt>20 automobiles were vandalized during the evening and morning hours of Saturday, June 29 to Sunday, June 30 in the Mohican Hills area of Bethesda. Police reported 38 cases of vandalism in the Cohasset neighborhood, near Burning Tree Elementary School, between June 17 and 18.
Police believe that at least two male suspects have been targeting vehicles parked on the streets. The suspects, armed with rocks, a baseball bat, cinder blocks or fire extinguishers, vandalized the cars by breaking out windshields, rear windows or passenger windows.
Police have increased night patrols in the neighborhoods affected and have spoken to residents and community associations alerting them about the situation.
Call 2nd District officer Denise Gill at 301-657-0962 with any information about the suspects. Citizens should call 911 immediately if witnessing any crime in progress.
<sh>Aggravated Assault
<bt>According to police reports:
On June 28, at 5:20 p.m., a suspect and a female pulled into a gas station on the 5100 block of River Road and began to argue. When the attendant from the station asked them to leave, the suspect — a black male, 36-40-years-old, 140 pounds, with short black hair — lifted his shirt and displayed a handgun and told the attendant, “You don’t own this place.”
The suspect drove west on River Road.