MCPS

School Bus Driver Found Guilty of Sexually Abusing Special Needs Passengers Sentenced to 40 Years

By Patrick Herron

According to the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office, “today the Honorable David Lease, in the Circuit Court for Montgomery County, MD, sentenced defendant, Etienne Kabongo, to 90 years in prison suspend all but 40 years. He would face five years of supervised probation should he ever be released. The defendant pleaded guilty to crimes against four female victims, ages 12, 12, 18 and 20, who rode the bus he drove for Montgomery County Public Schools. While he pleaded guilty, Kabongo claimed he was not criminally responsible due to an alleged mental disorder. Last month, however, a jury found he is indeed responsible for the two counts of Second-Degree Rape and two counts of Sexual Abuse of a Minor.”

 

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Gaithersburg

Lakeforest Mall Closes Permanently on Friday, March 31

By MCS Staff

Lakeforest Mall will close to the public on Friday, March 31st (video of Lakeforest through the years available below). The Gaithersburg Planning Commission gave a recommendation of approval for redevelopment plans on March 1, 2023. The Gaithersburg Mayor and City Council will have a Policy Discussion April 17, 2023, where a final decision is expected to be made. No public testimony will be taken on April 17.

Lakeforest Mall first opened on September 12, 1978. At that time, the mall’s anchor stores were JCPenney, Sears, Woodward & Lothrop, and Hecht’s. The mall was one of the first in the United States to feature an indoor ice skating rink on the lower level, in the “H section”, along with being the biggest indoor shopping mall in the county at the time of grand opening. The ice skating rink was replaced by a NTI Theaters movie theater in 1984, later renamed Cineplex Odeon Lakeforest 5, then by a food court, which now occupies the space. The mall was built on top of Lake Walker, a park on the property prior. The mall opened with approximately 30-50 stores, with some of the first stores being relocated from the then nearby indoor Village Mall (now an outdoor strip mall called Montgomery Village Center since 1991) and absorbed onto the property.

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MCPS

Have a Relaxing and Wonderful Spring Break: A Message from MCPS Superintendent, Dr. Monifa B. McKnight

By Patrick Herron

It’s also a moment to reflect, and I want to take this moment to express my gratitude and admiration for all of your hard work as scholars and educators. Despite that hard work, each of you has risen to the challenge and your accomplishments are remarkable. First, as we reported to the Board of Education in a meeting on March 28, student academic performance is on the rise. Vital literacy and math skills attainment is improving for all types of students, and we’re committed to ongoing improvement in all of our academics. Students also are:

Learning and acquiring knowledge and skills that will serve them throughout their lives.

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Bethesda

Animation Workshops for Tweens and Teens Will Be Available Free During MCPS Spring Break April 3-7 at Montgomery County Public Libraries

By Patrick Herron
Courtesy MCPL

The workshops are funded in part by an Arts in Education Grant from the Maryland State Arts Council.For more information contact Clotilde Puértolas at [email protected].

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Bethesda

Dog Haus Now Open for Delivery 24-7

By Patrick Herron

Dog Haus Biergarten is now offering 24/7 delivery service out of all three of its Montgomery County locations (Gaithersburg, Bethesda, and Silver Spring,) making it one of the only non-fast food restaurants offering 24-7 delivery service in the area.  Dog Haus’ virtual brands, including Bad Ass Breakfast Burritos, Plant B (All plant base food) Impossible Shop, Bad Mutha Cluka and Jail Bird (all chicken options), are also available 24-7.

The first Dog Haus opened in Pasadena, CA in 2010.  The company opened its first east coast location in Bethesda (7904 Woodmont Ave) in 2018, followed by Gaithersburg (644 Center Point Way) in January 2020 and Silver Spring (933 Ellsworth Dr.) in December 2021.

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Beyond MoCo

Montgomery County Man Identified as Suspect in College Park 4th Degree Sex Offense (Unlawful Touching) and Indecent Exposure Cases

By MCS Staff

Per University of Maryland Police: The suspect in the 4th Degree Sex Offense (Unlawful Touching) and Indecent Exposure Cases has been identified. On March 29, our Detective applied for and received an arrest warrant for Marquise Tranell Mahoney of Silver Spring. He was charged with the following: One Count of CR 3-308 ((b)(1)) Sex Off 4th Deg-Sex Contact, One Count of CR 3-203 Assault – Sec Degree, One Count of ED 26-101 ((b)) Schl Molest Etc Other Loc, Two Counts of CR 11-107 Indecent Exposure.

If you see Marquise Tranell Mahoney on our campus, call UMPD immediately at 301-405-3333 or #3333 (for AT&T and Verizon Wireless). You may also text or call UMPD using the UMD Guardian app. If you have any information on his whereabouts, you are encouraged to call UMPD at 301-405-3555.

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Montgomery Parks

Postponed: Montgomery Parks invites the Public to a Celebration at the Recently Renovated Silver Spring Intermediate Neighborhood Park 

By MCS Staff

Event rescheduled for the rain date, Saturday, April 22, 2023, 11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m.

What:    Silver Spring Intermediate Neighborhood Park celebration

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Briggs Chaney

Montgomery Planning Board Schedules May 4 Public Hearing on Fairland and Briggs Chaney Master Plan

By MCS Staff

Community encouraged to sign up to testify and continue providing feedback on draft plan that recommends better access to public transportation, housing, retail, and pedestrian connections along U.S. 29/Columbia Pike

The Montgomery County Planning Board will hold a public hearing Thursday, May 4 at 6 p.m. on the Montgomery County Planning Department’s Fairland and Briggs Chaney Master Plan. At its March 23 meeting, the Planning Board added its comments and accepted the Working Draft of the plan as the Public Hearing Draft, which the public is encouraged to review and provide in-person or virtual testimony. Read the Fairland and Briggs Chaney Public Hearing Draft. Sign-up to testify in-person or virtually at the May 4 public hearing.

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Gaithersburg

Gaithersburg Man Found Guilty of First-Degree Attempted Murder for Restaurant Parking Lot Shooting Caught on Camera

By Patrick Herron

According to the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office, “In the Circuit Court for Montgomery County, MD, before the Honorable Eric Johnson, a jury has found defendant, Jefferson Delgado, 29, of Gaithersburg, guilty of first-degree attempted murder for shooting a man outside of Antojitos restaurant located on East Diamond Avenue Gaithersburg. The incident occurred on Aril 18, 2021 and the jury reached its verdict late yesterday, March 30, 2023. Delgado faces the potential of life in prison when he is sentenced on May 8, 2023.

This shooting was prompted by an argument between two groups of people at the restaurant. It happened in the parking lot outside of Antojitos at 1:22 a.m. and was caught on surveillance footage. After retrieving a shotgun from a friend’s vehicle, Delgado opened fire at least twice hitting the victim with two bullets. He then ran to a parking garage where he was captured by another surveillance camera running back and forth. He is seen attempting to hide the weapon. The victim in this case survived. Prosecution was handled by Assistant State’s Attorney Teresa Casafranca.”

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Silver Spring

Police and Family Concerned for Missing 15-Year-Old

By Patrick Herron

Felipe is approximately 5-feet, 4-inches tall and weighs 115 pounds. She has shoulder length black hair and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, black pants and black Ugg boots.   Police and family are concerned for her welfare.

Anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of Yesenia Cabrera Felipe is asked to call the police non-emergency number at (301) 279-8000 (24-hour line) or the Special Victims Investigations Division at (240) 773-5400. Callers may remain anonymous.

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MCDOT

Annual Street Sweeping Program to Begin in April

By Patrick Herron

Per MCDOT: The Montgomery County Department of Transportation (MCDOT) annual Street Sweeping Program runs from Monday, April 10, through June and sweeps over 4,100 lane miles of residential roadways in Montgomery County. Last year, over 1,000 tons of debris were collected and removed by crews. Sweeping routes are prioritized based on their proximity to sensitive watershed areas that are identified by the Montgomery County Department of Environmental Protection.

MCDOT will post “No Parking” signs a few days in advance of sweeping operations. Residents may find the sweeping schedule online by calling MC311 or visiting MCDOT’s Residential Street Sweeping website at montgomerycountymd.gov/DOT-Highway/streetsweep. These efforts help to promote the health and vibrancy of our local watersheds as well as the overall health of the Chesapeake Bay. For ongoing updates, follow @MCDOTNow on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Visit the MCDOT website and subscribe to MCDOT’s “Go Montgomery!” newsletter.

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