Maryland Natural Resources Police Blotter

Wicomico County – Wicomico County – The Maryland Natural Resources Police (NRP) arrested and charged William Daniel Ailsworth II, 46, of Deltaville, Va., with first and second degree assault. On February 23 at 12:04 a.m., officers responded to the Wicomico River, Salisbury for a report of an assault that occurred on a tug boat south of the Port of Salisbury. Officers interviewed Keith Isadore Lippman, 57, of Newport News, Va., who stated that the captain of the tugboat, Ailsworth, struck him on the head with a metal pipe during an argument. Ailsworth was taken to the Wicomico County Detention Center and held pending bond. Lippman was treated at the scene by Salisbury Emergency Medical Services.

Allegany County – NRP charged Omar Taha El Basir, 20, of Falls Church, Va. and Ryan Lee Fiddermon, 20, of Glen Burnie on March 2 with possession of marijuana and possession of paraphernalia. On February 23, NRP approached a suspicious vehicle on Bridge Road in McCoole, Md. The officer smelled the odor of suspected burning marijuana in the vehicle and a search revealed suspected marijuana and drug paraphernalia. A trial is set for June 17 in the District Court of Maryland for Allegany County.

Anne Arundel County – NRP has charged John Robert Abner with failure to remain in his boat and within two miles of his attended drift gill net. On February 26 at 8:56 a.m., officers observed Abner set a gill net for perch in the South River and then leave the area. The unattended net remained out all night and Abner returned the following morning to retrieve it. A trial is set for March 18 in the District Court of Maryland for Anne Arundel County.

Calvert County – On February 25, 2011, NRP charged Steven Allen Reynolds, 54 of Chesapeake Beach, Md. February 25 with failing to attend his drift gill net during the commercial rockfish season. Officers observed Reynolds set a rockfish gill net in the area of Breezy Point, near Chesapeake Beach and then return to the dock. Reynolds then drove to Anne Arundel County and set a perch net in the South River over twenty miles away. A trial has been set for March 7 in the District Court of Maryland for Calvert County.

The Maryland Natural Resources Police is the enforcement arm of the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). With an authorized strength of 247 officers and a dedicated staff of civilian and volunteer personnel, the NRP provide a variety of services in addition to conservation and boating law enforcement duties throughout the State of Maryland. These services include homeland security, search and rescue, emergency medical services, education, information and communications services on a round the clock basis. NRP is the only police force aside from the Maryland State Police that has statewide jurisdiction.

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources is the state agency responsible for providing natural and living resource-related services to citizens and visitors. DNR manages nearly one-half million acres of public lands and 17,000 miles of waterways, along with Maryland's forests, fisheries and wildlife for maximum environmental, economic and quality of life benefits. A national leader in land conservation, DNR-managed parks and natural, historic and cultural resources attract 11 million visitors annually. DNR is the lead agency in Maryland's effort to restore the Chesapeake Bay, the state's number one environmental priority. Learn more at Learn more at www.dnr.maryland.gov