Second Montgomery County government facility burglarized in Rockville area in two weeks

A second Montgomery County government building in the MD 355 corridor has been burglarized in as many weeks in the Rockville area. Rockville City police responded to a break-in at the County's Shady Grove Transfer Station and Recycling Center at 16101 Frederick Road in Derwood at 11:30 PM Wednesday night, according to crime data. Two weeks prior, burglars broke into a County government office building further down MD 355 at 401 Hungerford Drive.

Strong-arm robbery at Rockville ATM machine

Rockville City police responded to a report of a strong-arm robbery at a bank ATM machine along Rockville Pike on Wednesday afternoon. The robbery was reported in the 100 block of Halpine Road at 2:30 PM, according to crime data. There is a Capital One bank branch on that block. It has a standard ATM machine at the front, and drive-thru ATM machines on the side.

Homesense opening Rockville store (Photos)

Homesense is opening a store at the Montrose Crossing shopping center on Rockville Pike. The home goods retailer is part of the conglomerate that owns TJ Maxx, Marshalls, HomeGoods and Sierra. Homesense carries furniture, lighting, decor, art, rugs, home office goods, everything you need to entertain, and even a broad line of hardware and home improvement tools and materials. The store takes over the A.C. Moore space near Bob's Discount Furniture at the rear of the property.

A sign has been attached to the storefront, and is already lit, even though the store is not ready to open yet. Montrose Crossing has rapidly become a one-stop shop for new or redecorating homeowners, with Value City Furniture, Bob's Discount Furniture, Home Depot Design Center, Target and now Homesense all on one site. Property owner Federal Realty has also been on a home decor streak at Bethesda Row, but here at Montrose Crossing, the furniture and decor are available at a much wider spectrum of price points. Homesense touts its prices as 20-60% below competitors, achieved by intercepting large order cancellations by other retailers, or buying up inventory from chains who are clearing shelves as seasons change.

Rockville armed carjacking suspect arrested in SE Washington, D.C.

Thomas Whiting

Montgomery County police announced Wednesday that the suspect in the April 6, 2022 armed carjacking on Congressional Lane in Rockville is now in custody in Washington, D.C. Thomas Whiting, 23, was allegedly driving the stolen red 2012 Toyota Corolla two days later on Anacostia Road S.E. Metropolitan Police officers recognized the vehicle as having been carjacked in Maryland, and conducted a traffic stop. After initially pulling over, Whiting allegedly then attempted to flee from officers, who apprehended him and noticed a black handgun in the center console of the Corolla.

Whiting, whose residential jurisdiction was not identified by County police, has been charged with motor vehicle theft, armed carjacking and the use of a firearm during a crime of violence. He also had an outstanding warrant for failure to appear in court on a previous illegal firearm possession charge. Whiting is being held in a D.C. jail. No plans for his extradition to Montgomery County have been immediately announced.

Police step up presence at Montgomery County Metro stations after New York subway attack (Photos)

Montgomery County and Metro Transit Police had a visible presence at Metro stations in the county Tuesday, after a mass shooting on a New York subway train earlier that day. Metro Emergency Response Team vehicles were parked in the bus bay area of the Bethesda Metro station. A County police cruiser prominently straddled the concrete median at the Old Georgetown Road entrance to the station. 

Authorities have so far declined to label the New York incident as a terrorist attack, despite the use of smoke grenades and a gas mask. Police are calling Frank R. James a person of interest in the mass shooting, and a $50,000 reward has been offered for information leading to his arrest. Ten people were wounded early yesterday morning after a gunman donned a gas mask, deployed smoke grenades, and then fired 33 shots in a subway car on an N train approaching the 36th Street station, the New York Times reports.

Mail stolen out of home mailbox in Derwood

Montgomery County police responded to a report of postal larceny in Derwood yesterday morning. Mail was stolen out of a mailbox in front of a home in the 16500 block of Grande Vista Drive at 10:27 AM, according to crime data. This is an increasing problem in Montgomery County, although the thefts have tended to be from USPS mailboxes, as opposed to those at individual homes. 

Criminals are typically seeking checks being mailed or received, and have a new way to erase the recipient's name, so they can write in their own name and/or amount. USPS officials have advised that postal customers place mail in USPS mailboxes as close to the collection time as possible. Customers in the Derwood and Rockville areas should be aware that such thieves are currently working the area. If your mail is stolen, call the police, and then the United States Postal Inspection Service stolen mail hotline at 1-877-876-2455. 

Photo courtesy USPS

Don Pollo planning new Rockville location

Don Pollo continues to grow in popularity in the area, and the restaurant chain's expansion is growing as well. A source tells me the charbroiled Peruvian chicken company is looking at opening a new Rockville location in the future at 168 Rollins Avenue. There is an existing Don Pollo at 2206 Veirs Mill Road, in the Twinbrook Shopping Center.