News Releases

For Immediate Release: Thursday, December 22, 2016

NOTE to MEDIA: Several victims will be picking up their stolen packages today between 2:00 and 3:00 p.m. at the 5th District (Germantown) Police Station located at 20000 Aircraft Drive in Germantown . The media is invited to attend.

Over the past week, in two different incidents, 5^th District officers have arrested suspects for stealing packages that had been delivered to residences in the Clarksburg and Germantown areas. In total, four suspects have been arrested. Investigators have located approximately forty-two stolen packages in the suspects’ possession. Two of the suspects were located in a stolen car. Detectives are working to identify all of the victims and return the packages to their rightful owners. The two theft incidents are summarized below:

On December 13 at approximately 1:27 pm, a resident of Fair Garden Lane in Clarksburg called police to report that he had just witnessed two young males stealing packages from the front porches of houses on his street. The resident observed the two males get in a silver Audi driven by a third suspect. A patrol officer who had, three days earlier, responded to the report of a silver Audi stolen from a residence in Clarksburg, relayed this information to officers and provided the stolen vehicle’s tag.

Approximately seven minutes later, the Clarksburg High School Resource Officer (SRO), who was in the school’s parking lot at the time of the call for the stolen packages, observed the stolen Audi drive through the parking lot and drop off a student. The Audi then drove to the dead-end of a nearby street. Officers stopped the vehicle and arrested two 17-year old suspects. The juvenile suspects, from Germantown, were charged with felony auto theft and released to the custody of their parents. Officers located approximately 12 packages in and around the area of the vehicle. All three juveniles will face theft charges once victims have been identified.

On December 20, plain-clothes officers were working in the Germantown area and were attempting to locate a vehicle – a silver Audi station wagon (not the same vehicle from the first incident) – that was believed to be involved in package thefts in the area. MCP had received multiple calls from residents the past two days regarding a suspect who was stealing packages from homes and a delivery truck driver reported that he believed the vehicle was following him while he was making deliveries. Numerous residents had also reported thefts of packages in the same area. One of the stolen packages that had been reported to police contained five picture frames with a $100 bill in each frame.

At approximately 12:50 p.m. on that day, a plain clothes officer observed the vehicle in the Germantown area. The vehicle drove to the dead-end of a street and the driver threw multiple boxes into the woods. As the driver, later identified as Marcell Bennett, age 18, of Boyds, drove off, he made eye contact with the plain clothes officer. The vehicle then drove away at a high rate of speed. Officers initiated a traffic stop and Bennett and a female passenger, a 17-year-old from Boyds, were taken into custody. A search warrant was conducted on the vehicle and approximately 30 packages and the female suspect's purse were located in the car. Inside the purse, officers located five, $100 bills. It is believed that these five bills were the same as those that had been sent in the stolen picture frame package.

Both Bennett and the juvenile suspect admitted to stealing packages. Bennett was transported to the Central Processing Unit and charged with theft. The juvenile suspect was charged with theft and released to the custody of her parents. Both suspects will face additional theft charges once all victims are identified. Investigators also found return item receipts in the female's purse that indicate that these suspects had also been stealing packages and returning the stolen items to stores for compensation.

During the holiday season, many people choose to purchase gifts online and have them delivered to their home. This often means that there will be more packages on doorsteps and more opportunities for thieves to steal these deliveries. The Montgomery County Police Department reminds residents of ways to ensure that packages are delivered to them safely and securely: https://www2.montgomerycountymd.gov/mcgportalapps/Press_Detail_Pol.aspx?Item_ID=30361

RLI

Note: Photographs of the three juveniles will not be released.