At 8:15 a.m. on February 25, Charles County Sheriff’s officers responded for the report of an attempted burglary at an apartment in the 3000 block of Gallery Place in Waldorf.
Officers were dispatched to Smallwood Village Shopping Center, where security officers for the apartment complex said a man fled after he attempted unsuccessfully to break into the apartment with a large pry bar.
The security officers provided a description of the man and when responding officers arrived and found him in the shopping center parking lot, he ran.
Officer A. St. Germain and Sgt. R. Vaughn exited their cruisers, chased the man and quickly apprehended him. He was identified as Jason Leonard Baker, 25, of Waldorf.
During the pursuit, officers observed him discard a book bag, which was later recovered. Inside the bag, officers found a large pry bar and other items commonly used in burglaries.
Baker was charged with attempted first-degree burglary, malicious destruction of property valued at less than $500 and possession of burglary tools and was being held at the Charles County Detention Center pending an appearance before a district court commissioner. Officer St. Germain investigated.