Author: MCS Staff

Silver Spring

Two Women Arrested and Charged With Prostitution and Sex Trafficking; Additional Victims a Concern

By MCS Staff

Per MCPD: Detectives from the Montgomery County Department of Police Vice and Intelligence Unit have arrested and charged two women with multiple counts of sex trafficking and prostitution. 48-year-old Ana Delia Solano of Silver Spring, and 49-year-old Ana Cristina Bermudez of Riverdale, are accused of running an unlicensed spa in the 9500 block of Georgia Avenue, where the two women advertised massage services on Craigslist, with sexually explicit photos of women.

During the five-month investigation, detectives observed male clients entering and leaving the “spa” and learned that the clients were offered extra services with prices based on the sexual service provided.

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MoCoSnow

Tuesday Morning Update on Potential Winter Weather Thursday Morning

By MCS Staff

We are now under 48 hours away from potential winter weather on Thursday morning. As it looks now, there’s still the possibility of freezing rain on Thursday that could affect the morning commute. The image below, courtesy of ABC7’s Eileen Whelan, shows that most of MoCo could be impacted by ice in the morning with temperatures in Gaithersburg at 31° at 7am.

This seems to be the general consensus among local meteorologists, with NBC4’s Chuck Bell also sharing a hi-res forecast model (seen below) that has freezing rain still in our area at 8am.

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Restaurants

Chef Tony’s at Amalfi Has Liquor License Hearing on Thursday

By MCS Staff

Last month we let you know that longtime MoCo restaurant Amalfi Ristorante Italiano at 12307 Wilkins Ave in Rockville was bought by the owners of Chef Tony’s Restaurant in Bethesda. The restaurant has a hearing for a liquor license on Thursday, December 15 at 10:30am and hopes to reopen later in the month. Full statement from Chef Tony’s from last month can be seen below:

“So it’s now official, my wife Sonia, and myself have purchased Amalfi Restaurant and Rockville. We are so excited to get started with this new project, and will explain everything in our email going out today… We will be blending the Chef Tonys brand with the wonderful accolades of Amalfi Restaurant, which is been around 45 years in the Rockville market. We are so excited to get started and will let you know when transitions will happen. To be clear, we are not leaving the promenade, but are adjusting the concept a bit… We can I think all the amazing clients that I’ve gotten us here over the years. And we’re so excited to blend Chef Tonys family with the amalfi family in more ways than one. We hope to reopen in December, in time for the holiday events, and serve you all with pride and honor. Thank you again for all your support… See you soon, and here’s to a grand adventure!”

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MCPS

MCPS and Partners Raise Awareness on Dangers of Fentanyl/ Demonstrate Narcan Administration

By MCS Staff

Per MCPS: Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) and County partners to discuss dangerous trend in substance use and how the school community is responding. This will include a demonstration of administering Narcan, a medicine that counteracts the effects of an Opioid overdose.

MCPS continues to work diligently alongside local government authorities and community partners on a comprehensive and coordinated approach to this dangerous epidemic. This effort is part of a series of outreach efforts to raise awareness to parents and caregivers to educate themselves and foster conversations with children about the dangers of drug use, specifically fentanyl and how to avoid use, family expectations around use, and the availability of help and support.

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Maryland

$186 Million Wagered Over First Nine Days of Mobile Sports Betting in Maryland

By MCS Staff

Per MD Gaming: With the launch of seven mobile platforms and a new retail location, Maryland’s combined mobile and retail sports wagering handle during November 2022 totaled $219,071,374, and sportsbooks generated $704,728 for the state. Each sports wagering licensee contributes 15% of its taxable win to the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future Fund, which supports public education programs.

Maryland’s first seven mobile sportsbooks held eight hours of controlled demonstration wagering on November 21, and launched at 9 a.m. on November 23. In nine days of operations during November, mobile sports wagering handle was $186,084,496. That amount included $63,835,319 in free promotional play, which is provided to customers by sportsbooks and is deducted from the taxable win. As a result, mobile wagering accounted for $4,262 in contributions to the state in its first nine days.

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Maryland

Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office Announces the Seizure of 55 Domain Names that Violated Copyrights by Illegally Live Streaming the World Cup

By MCS Staff

Per the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Maryland:  The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland has announced the seizure of 55 separate websites for allegedly live streaming the World Cup games, an infringement of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) copyrights.  Individuals visiting the sites will now see a message that the site has been seized by the federal government and be redirected to another site for additional information. 

According to the affidavit filed in support of the seizures, FIFA is the international governing body of association football and holds the exclusive rights to sanction and stage the FIFA World Cup 2022, which is being hosted in multiple cities in Qatar.  Beginning in September 2022, HSI received information from a representative of FIFA identifying several sites being used to distribute and transmit copyright-infringing content, without FIFA’s authorization.  HSI Agents in Maryland reviewed World Cup games accessible from each of the subject domain names, in violation of FIFA’s copyright.

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MoCoSnow

Monday Night Update on Potential Winter Weather Thursday Morning

By MCS Staff

We’re now within 60 hours of potential winter weather coming our way early Thursday morning. As it looks now, we could be in for some freezing rain early Thursday morning until about 8am or so when we would see a flip to rain from southern areas to northern areas.

If temperatures remain cold enough, early Thursday morning could be fairly slick with delays very possible for our area and even closures in areas north and west that may take longer to switch over. We’ll continue to monitor this one as it gets within 48 hours tomorrow morning and we have a better idea of where that ice/rain line will be. While it’s even possible to start with a bit of snow before changing to ice and then rain, it’s still possible for this to end up being an all-rain event.

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Glenmont

Collision with Rollover Blocks Part of Georgia Avenue Monday Night

By MCS Staff

Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services (MCFRS) were called to the scene of a collision at Georgia Avenue and Hathaway Drive at approximately 7pm on Monday night in Wheaton-Glenmont.

According to MCFRS Chief Spokesperson Pete Piringer, the collision involves two vehicles. Non life-threatening injuries are being evaluated and some lanes are currently blocked. Per our public safety reporter, Cordell Pugh, “crash destroyed the signal control box, extended repairs will be needed. Watch for crews who will be there for most of the evening.”

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Beyond MoCo

Gaithersburg Man Arrested on Firearms Charges in Frederick

By MCS Staff

Per the Frederick Police Department: On Dec. 9, 2022, at approximately 2:16 p.m., The Frederick Police Department received several calls for a disturbance and the sound of gunshots. Callers advised that an altercation took place around the area of Key Parkway and Willowdale Drive. Officers responded to the area, but did not immediately locate any subjects that were believed to be involved. Patrol officers continued to canvass the surrounding area and eventually observed a subject that matched the clothing description of one of the possible suspects in an outside common area of a nearby apartment complex. Officers made contact with the subject and checked the surrounding area where he was observed. Within close proximity of the subject, officers found a loaded handgun hidden under a children’s toy. The subject immediately began to flee on foot from officers when they discovered the handgun. The subject ran to the area of McCain Drive and entered into an underground water culvert. The culvert travelled underground from McCain Drive to an area South of Route 40 near the Alternate Route 40 split.

Officers positioned themselves at both ends of the culvert and with the assistance of a Frederick County Sheriffs Office K9 Team, they entered and began to search for the suspect. As the officers were making their way through the culvert, the suspect emerged at the other end and was arrested. The suspect was in possession of a New Jersey ID card, however officers determined the ID card was fake and the name was not the suspect’s correct name. Officers eventually fully identified him as Gervon William Norris (11-08-1993) of Gaithersburg, Maryland. Officers discovered that Norris had an active arrest warrant through the Anne Arundel County Sheriffs Office for failing to appear in court. Officers also learned that Norris is prohibited from possessing firearms due to previous criminal convictions.

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Bethesda

MoCo’s Joshua Pitsenberger Named Ivy League Rookie of the Year

By MCS Staff

Joshua Pitsenberger has been named the Ivy League Rooking of the Year after an impressive freshman year at Yale. Pitsenberger, who is from Bethesda and attended North Bethesda Middle School before going on to star as a student-athlete at The Avalon School, helped lead Yale to a 8-2 overall record (and 6-1 in the conference).

This season, Pitsenberger has rushed for 667 yards on 120 carries for 5.6 yards per carry and 6 touchdowns. He also has 10 catches for 53 yards and one receiving touchdown. He has been named Rookie of the Week four times this season and was a finalist for the Jerry Rice Award, which is awarded annually to the most outstanding freshman player in the NCAA. As a senior at Avalon, he rushed for 1,156 yards on 188 carries and scored 13 touchdowns, and had 36 receptions to go along with two receiving touchdowns. He also added two returns for touchdowns. Growing up he played football in Bethesda’s Maplewood Athletic Association and comes from a large, football-loving family. According to the Yale athletics website, he has eight brothers who have also played football.

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North Potomac

Playful Pack is Coming to Travilah Square

By MCS Staff

Playful Pack is opening one of two upcoming Montgomery County locations in the Travilah Square shopping center. Playful Pack is a daycare and boarding facility for dogs. Its other MoCo location is coming soon to Germantown. It will be taking over the location that is currently vacant, but was previously home to Kimo Sushi and Victoria Nail Salon, on Darnestown Rd. across the side of 7-Eleven and across the side of Trader Joe’s. The doggy daycare has locations in Northern Virginia and Annapolis. Playful Pack offers the following services and features, including:

Per Playful Pack: We are proud to maintain a cage-free atmosphere here at Playful Pack to mimic a dog’s natural environment and meet our PACKmates’ physical and mental needs. Each weekday, we plan a variety of exciting activities that rotate throughout the month, including bacon bubbles, gourmet treats, tunnels of fun, snuffle mats, frozen Kongs, and more. We even host birthday “pawties” on our PACKmates’ special days!

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