Police look into scope of cocaine scheme | Maryland Gazette (HometownGlenBurnie.com)

Detectives would not elaborate on the investigation at the Springhill Suites hotel, 189 Admiral Cochrane Drive in Annapolis. But they are looking into the history of deliveries to the hotel, according to Sgt. Brad Rattell, of the county police Special Enforcement Section.

Meanwhile, investigators are trying to find one of the three hotel workers charged in the case. She allegedly took off after two co-workers were arrested and charged with drug possession.

Police have a warrant for Nicole Tamika Freeman, 27, of Silver Leaf Lane in District Heights, charging her with possession of cocaine, possession with intent to distribute cocaine, possession of a large amount of cocaine, importing cocaine into Maryland and other offenses, according to Sgt. John Gilmer, a county police spokesman.

Co-workers Bernard King, 48, - Ms. Freeman's uncle - and Jovon Kirk Louis Savage, 22, both of Upper Marlboro, were charged Feb. 15 with the same offenses. However, all charges against the two men except possession of cocaine were dropped in District Court on Wednesday. Mr. King is being held at Jennifer Road Detention Center in Parole on $750,000 bond, police said. Mr. Savage is being detained on house arrest until his trial in May.

Prosecutors will seek new felony charges against the two men in the coming weeks, said Kristin Fleckenstein, a spokesman for the State's Attorney's

Office.

Sgt. Gilmer and prosecutors say this is customary when a felony drug case goes from district court to circuit court. Both said it is routine, and the dropped charges do not mean the case has "fallen apart."

The case stems from $1 million in drug busts linked to the hotel in February.

For a month, Anne Arundel and Prince George's County police investigated suspicious packages that were being delivered to the hotel. Police said packages of cocaine were being shipped from Landover, Calif., to the hotel addressed to fake guests.

According to police, when a package was en route, Ms. Freeman and her two co-workers would make a phony reservation under the fake name, so that it would appear as though the reservation was for a guest at the hotel. Once the package arrived, the three would take the fake reservation out of the computer system, police said.

On Feb. 7, Prince George's County police intercepted a package with 11 pounds of cocaine. A week later, county police seized another package, with 10 pounds of cocaine inside, and arrested Mr. King and Mr. Savage.

They could not find Ms. Freeman.

Detectives did not immediately release information on the drug bust in February because the investigation was ongoing, Sgt. Gilmer said. Police had hoped they could get to Ms. Freeman before she found out about the bust. But after a month elapsed, they decided to make the case public in hopes to draw the public's assistance in finding the woman.

Staff writer Scott Daugherty contributed to this report.