Police bust drug-dealing operation in WOC

(Feb. 3, 2023) An investigation of an apparent drug dealing operation in the West Ocean City area has resulted in the arrest of two men and the seizure of a substantial amount of marijuana by county law enforcement authorities.

According to a release from the Worcester County Sheriff’s Office, a December investigation by its Worcester County Criminal Enforcement Team concluded with the search of a West Ocean City residence

Destruction of property

Jaedyn McKenzie Dayton, 19, of Milford, was charged with two counts of malicious destruction of property and one count of second-degree assault on Jan. 22.

Ocean City Police officers responded to the Holiday Inn on 17th Street for a domestic dispute complaint at 2:07 a.m. At the scene, the arresting officer encountered multiple male juveniles, Dayton and another man.

The man said he and two of the juveniles had gotten into an argument involving Dayton and left the hotel room. Another officer observed that Dayton was “extremely intoxicated,” according to the police report and said she that uncovered “significant controlled dangerous substances.”

Listed by investigators as seized were: claimed the three males “‘jumped’ on her, assaulted and strangled her when she told them to leave.” The officer observed red marks on her knuckles and a “small abrasion” on her neck.

• Approximately 76.74 pounds of marijuana.

• Four firearms, including a Palmetto AR-15 rifle, Keltec Model 2000 9mm, a Mossberg 12ga shotgun, a Remington 12ga shotgun.

According to the police report, one of the juveniles who left the room claimed that Dayton and another of the juveniles who were fighting each other before their exit.

Two cell phones were forgotten when they left. While they were gone, the arresting officer determined that Dayton threw the cell phones off of the 9th-floor balcony onto 17th Street, destroying them.

Dayton denied destroying the phones, although the arresting officer determined Dayton was alone with the

• A large amount of ammunition, including high capacity magazines and body armor

• 102.5 grams of marijuana THC edibles

• 292 grams of psychedelic mushrooms

• $82,391.00 of suspected drug proceeds

Arrested on drug and weapons charges were Andrew Campbell phones and that there was no strangulation during the “mutual combat” that occurred between Dayton and one of the juveniles. Dayton was told she could press charges against that juvenile, should she choose to do so.

Founds of Ocean City and John Paul Ternahan of Frankford, Delaware. They were committed to the Worcester County Jail without bond.

The Worcester County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Enforcement Team was assisted by the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office Community Action Team, Ocean City Police Department’s Narcotics/Vice Unit, the Worcester County State’s Attorney’s Office along with federal and state authorities.

Vehicle over dock

Steven M. Smith, 58, of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, received more than a dozen charges including driving while impaired, trespassing, driving a vehicle on a sidewalk area, failure to return and remain at the scene of an accident and failure to report bodily injury or vehicle/property damage on Jan. 23.

At 2:51 a.m., Ocean City Police officers responded to 200 67th Street in the Sunset Island community for the report of a vehicle driven off a dock. Upon arrival, an officer observed a white vehicle teetering over the end of a dock around 50 feet from the road. Smith was still inside the vehicle, according to the police report.

The officer observed that the engine was running and that the front wheels of the vehicle were hanging over the water. Smith was able to exit the vehicle.

Smith did not compete any of the field sobriety tests the officer administered. At the police station, he registered a 0.04 blood-alcohol test, under the legal limit. Further investigation revealed via security footage that the vehicle was traveling west on 67th Street at 10:36 p.m. without its headlights or rear taillights on. The vehicle then turned down the dock it eventually drove off.

Further investigation revealed that twice Smith left Sunset Island to attempt to call a tow truck but never made the nearby security guard aware of the accident. He had also passed a “No Trespassing” sign.

A story in the Jan. 27 edition about a proposed citywide scooter and personal mobility vehicle rental ban stated that existing business owners who hold licenses to rent the types of vehicles named would be forced to cease those operations this April. That is incorrect.

The ordinance, as proposed, would require those business owners to cease rental operations no more than three years from April 1.