Abandoned Boat Case Solved; Turkey, Fish Poachers Caught

Maryland Natural Resources Police officers solved an abandoned boat case, and charged fish and turkey poachers across the state in recent enforcement actions.

A Baltimore County couple was charged Tuesday with abandoning a boat near Martin State Airport.

Mark Alan Bartels, 49, and Kimberly Jan Bartels, 43, both of Essex, were charged with illegal commercial dumping, abandoning a vessel and altering the identification number on a vessel hull.

Neighbors in the area of Martin’s Lagoon off Middle River filed complaints with officials and police last year about the 37-foot vessel, partially sunk and tied to a dilapidated pier. Initial attempts by officers to determine the owner were unsuccessful.

In April, members of the Baltimore County underwater team dove on the wreck and found that while the hull identification number had been removed, the Maryland registration number was legible.

Officers talked with the previous owner, who said he gave the Bartels the title and $1,800 to tow the boat from Annapolis for salvage. They towed it away on June 29 using their own boat.

The next day, the Bartels cashed the check and police began receiving complaints about a boat 60-percent underwater in Martin’s Lagoon.

Using photos taken by the previous owner, officers found the tow boat at a Baltimore boat yard and confirmed it is owned by Kimberly Bartels.

The Baltimore County State’s Attorney’s Office reviewed the case before charges were filed.

The Bartels are scheduled to appear in Baltimore County District Court on June 20. If found guilty, each of them could be fined as much as $31,500 and be sentenced to more than five years in prison.

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Two Virginia men were charged early Friday morning with multiple poaching violations after officers on surveillance in Dorchester County caught them with 22 undersized striped bass.

Obed Bia Callejas Zavala, 31, of Woodbridge, and Jose Rides Vasquez, 29, of Alexandria, were stopped as they drove away from a spot on Fishing Creek. Officers cited them for possessing undersized fish, overfishing, catching fish in a restricted area and possessing striped bass beyond the legal time.

The two men must appear to answer the charges. They are scheduled to appear in Dorchester County District Court on July 20. If found guilty, they each face a fine of up to $6,000.

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A man from Arkansas who struck out during a turkey hunt in western Maryland was charged with poaching after he shot a bird from his pick-up truck.

Benjamin Andrew Wallace, 31, of Jonesboro, received three citations last Saturday morning when an officer stopped his truck after receiving a call about a shot fired in a cow pasture in Accident.

The officer saw the turkey in the bed of Wallace’s truck and he admitted “couldn’t resist” killing it so he wouldn’t return home empty handed. The officer also found a loaded shotgun in the truck cab.

The turkey was donated to a needy family.

Wallace is scheduled to appear in Garrett County District Court on Aug. 4. If found guilty of hunting from a vehicle, having a loaded weapon in a vehicle, and hunting on private lands without written permission, he could be fined as much as $4,500.

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A citizen with a camera helped officers catch an Elkton man on Saturday who was trespassing on private property in Kent County to turkey hunt.

Joshua Lee Poe, 28, was charged with hunting without written permission after officers confronted him on posted private property. The poacher had been entering the property over a five-day period.

Poe is scheduled to appear in Kent County District Court on June 8. If found guilty, he could face a maximum fine of $1,500.

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Three people were issued citations for not wearing life jackets on the upper Potomac River, as required by regulation, and fled when approached by an officer.

The officer was patrolling near Four Locks at about 4 p.m. Sunday, when he saw a small vessel approaching the ramp. As the officer drove to the ramp to conduct a safety inspection, the operator put the boat in gear and motored upstream.

When the officer activated his emergency lights, siren and truck horn, the operator and one of the passengers turned around and looked but continued around a river bend and out of sight.

Ten minutes later, the boat came back and all three people were wearing life jackets. When questioned, they admitted they fled in order to put their life jackets on. State regulations require boaters to wear life jackets on the upper Potomac from Nov. 15 to May 15.

Craig A. Lord, 54, of Inwood, W.Va., was charged with failing to wear a life jacket on the upper Potomac River, failing to have proper safety equipment aboard and eluding a police officer while in a vessel. He could be fined as much as $1,175.

Both passengers, Jamey Trian Zirk, 44, of Martinsburg, W.Va., and Mervin Robert Stottlemyer, 39, of Falling Waters, W.Va., were both cited for failing to wear a life jacket. Each could be fined $85.

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Saturation patrols in the upper Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries during spawning season resulted in citations being issued to the following individuals:

• Christopher Morton McIntee, 27, of Philadelphia, and Daniel Aloysius Loghlan, 33, of West Chester, were seen fishing for striped bass in the Susquehanna River near Port Deposit on March 31. They were wearing waders and using heavy tackle as they fished the Rock Run rapids, an area just north of the closure line. The officer saw the men catch a striped bass, estimated to be about 28 pounds, snap photos and return it. The men admitted they were trying to catch stripers and did not realize they were in a closed area. If found guilty in Cecil County District Court on May 18, each man could be fined as much as $1,000.

• Mickel Quinn, 56, and Michael Patrick Quinn, 29, both of Colora, were charged with illegally fishing for river herring in Principio Creek in Perryville on April 18. Sixteen fish and their equipment were seized. They could each be fined $400.

• Jake Patton Ritter, 21, of Perryville, received citations for illegally fishing for striped bass and river herring at the confluence of the Elk and Bohemia rivers at 11:30 p.m. on April 13. Fifteen fish were seized. He must appear in Cecil County District Court at a time to be determined.

• David Francis Rooney, 27, of Howell, N.J., was caught striped bass fishing at Rock Run Landing in Port Deposit just past midnight on March 31. He is scheduled to appear in Cecil County District Court on May 25, where he could be fined as much as $1,000.