gaithersblog.net

Via Connected Communites, where reports for all six districts are available. Note that there was no P2 beat report in what was published by Connected Communities this week.

Also note the assault in the men’s room off the Lakeforest Mall food court on the afternoon of Tuesday, August 26. Putting this together with the armed robbery of the check cashing store last Sunday would perhaps suggest that the Mall is getting rougher. The Transit Center on the fringe of the parking lot, out by Lost Knife, has been a pretty dicey place for a while now.

P1 Beat:

• Three thefts from vehicles occurred in the 15300 of Diamond Cove Terrace in Gaithersburg overnight Thursday, 8/21 to Friday, 8/22. Suspects broke windows and removed GPS units from display.
• Two thefts from vehicles occurred in the 10000 block of Vanderbilt Circle in Gaithersburg overnight Thursday, 8/21 to Friday, 8/22. Suspects broke windows and removed GPS units from display.
• A theft from vehicle occurred in the 9700 block of Oakdale Drive in Gaithersburg overnight between Tuesday, 8/19 and Wednesday, 8/20. Suspects broke a window, searched the interior and removed the in-dash stereo system.

• Three thefts from vehicles occurred in the Rio parking garage in the 9700 block of Washingtonian Boulevard in Gaithersburg on Saturday, 8/23 between 5:30 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. Suspects broke a window and removed a GPS unit from each.
• A theft from a construction site occurred from a construction trailer at 9711 Washingtonian Boulevard in Gaithersburg between Saturday, 8/23 and Monday, 8/25. Construction materials were removed.

R1 Beat:

• A commercial burglary occurred at the Sears store located at 701 Russell Avenue in Gaithersburg between Tuesday, 8/19 and Wednesday, 8/20. Forced entry and property was removed.
• An assault was reported in the food court area of Lake Forest Mall located at 701 Russell Avenue in Gaithersburg on Tuesday, 8/26 around 5:45 p.m. An adult male was physically assaulted in the men’s room. No property was obtained.

R2 Beat:

• A strong-arm robbery occurred in a parking lot in the 20000 block of Goshen Road in Gaithersburg on Friday, 8/22 around 7:15 p.m. The adult female victim was taking her shopping cart to her vehicle when the suspect, approached knocked her to the ground and took her purse.
  Suspect: B/M, 8-22 years, 5’8” to 6’0”, 185-200, crew cut, black tee shirt, black pants
• A strong-arm robbery occurred near the basketball courts on Southern Night Lane in Gaithersburg on Saturday, 8/23 around 5:30 p.m. The male victim was approached by 2 suspects who threatened physical harm if he did not turn over his property. The victim was punched in the face and property taken. A 21-year-old male of Montgomery Village was arrested nearby.
• An aggravated assault occurred in the 9900 block of Ridgeline Drive in Montgomery Village on Tuesday, 8/19 just after 10:00 p.m., when an unknown suspect shot the victim. An arrest warrant was obtained and a 36-year-old male of Hagerstown was later arrested.
• A garage burglary occurred in the 8300 block of Marketree Circle in Montgomery Village on Monday, 8/18 between 5:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Property was removed from an open garage.

S1 Beat:

• A rape occurred in the area of Washington Grove Lane and Emory Grove Road in Gaithersburg on Tuesday, 8/19 at 9:30 p.m. The adult female was dragged into some brush, and assaulted.
  Suspect: B/M 40-45 years, 6’0”, 6’3”, 190-225, black tee shirt, black shorts
• An attempt robbery occurred at Girard Street and Goshen Road in Gaithersburg on Wednesday, 8/20 around 10:00 a.m. The victim advised she was at the bus stop and approached by a suspect who held a knife to her midsection. The suspect (1/M, NFD) spoke English, which the victim could not understand, and fled before obtaining any property.
• A strong-arm robbery occurred in the common area of 8 North Summit Drive on Sunday, 8/24 just after midnight and involved four intoxicated subjects beating another man after an unknown dispute. All four were arrested in a nearby apartment.

S2 Beat:

• A residential burglary occurred in the 8300 block of McCullough Lane in Gaithersburg on Wednesday, 8/20 between 11:35 a.m. and 7:45 p.m. Forced entry and property removed.
• A vehicle vandalism spree in the Strawberry Knoll Drive area of Gaithersburg occurred on Thursday, 8/21 at around 3:00 a.m. ended in arrests. Seven vehicles were found with windows shot out with pellet guns. A vehicle was pulled over nearby for erratic driving and four BB guns and two knives were found inside. The defendants admitted to shooting as many as 20 vehicles. Two adults and two juveniles were arrested.

• Patricia M. Murret writes, Police seek two suspects in Lakeforest hold-up:
  

  Police are seeking two armed robbers who held up Services Unlimited Check-Cashing Store, inside Gaithersburg’s Lakeforest mall at lunchtime on Sunday.

  “We lost almost $90,000,” said owner Vijay Sharm.

• Sebastian Montes writes, Value of Tech Park could go way up:
  

  Tens of millions of dollars hang in the balance in a zoning dispute between the city of Gaithersburg and the owner of the GE Tech Park that could make it costlier for the county executive to relocate several county agencies to the land on Darnestown Road.

• Meghan Tierney and Patricia M. Murret write, Upcounty charities forced to cut services, some foods:
  

  Gaithersburg and Germantown charities are making tough choices, including cutting expensive pantry items and suspending prescription drug programs, to fulfill an increasing need for services.

• Sebastian Montes writes, Speed cameras under fire again:
  

  Montgomery County’s speed camera program has landed in court once again — this time not because of a motorist appealing their speed, but from a twice-caught attorney who says the program violates state law by allowing the contractor be paid on a per-ticket basis.

• Sebastian Montes writes, Arrest made in Ridgeline shooting:
  

  Darrell Andre Shanton, 35, was arrested at his Hagerstown home Friday in connection with the shooting on Ridgeline Drive, near the Village Center shopping center.

• C. Benjamin Ford writes, Legal fight over cruiser cameras continues:
  

  A union representing Montgomery County police officers claims installing cameras in police cruisers would be a “gross” violation of the state’s wiretap laws.

  The union wants officers to control when and what sound is recorded on the video tape, citing privacy concerns, and has fought against the use of cruiser cameras since they were proposed by the county 2006. An arbiter decided in May that the cameras could be installed.

• Amber Parcher writes, County’s gamble on grape uncorks profits:
  

  For the past decade, the county’s Department of Liquor Control has been purchasing some of the world’s best wine from the famed Bordeaux hills and selling it at county liquor stores at a discount, said Diane Wurdeman, the retail operations manager for the DLC.

  “We want to provide wine for all the people that want nice Bordeaux at reasonable prices,” she said.