A masked man shattered the front glass door of Cartridges Galore, a video game store along Buckeystown Pike in Frederick, then walked inside and left without taking anything, according to the Frederick County Sheriff's Office. The break-in happened on September 5, and investigators are still trying to identify the suspect using surveillance images captured during the incident.
The store sits inside the Evergreen Square Shopping Center at 5732 Buckeystown Pike, a retail complex along the Maryland Route 85 corridor, according to LoopNet. Deputies reported that the man covered his face before shattering the business's front door and entering, as reported by WJLA. He left the store, and nothing appears to have been taken from the shelves.
Surveillance footage shows the suspect wearing a white tank top, pants, and Nike shoes, with tattoos visible on both arms, per the station's report. Those details are now the primary lead investigators have to work with, since the surveillance images show the man with his face covered. The sheriff's office has asked the public for any information that could help identify him.
Why the Suspect Left Without Merchandise Remains Unclear
It is not known what prompted the man to leave the store without taking any games, consoles, or other merchandise, and that gap remains part of the open investigation. Cartridges Galore operates eight brick-and-mortar locations across Maryland, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia, including stores in Cumberland, LaVale, Hagerstown, Frederick, State College, Johnstown, Altoona, and Morgantown, according to the retailer's own store locations page. Each of those storefronts relies on displaying physical game inventory, the kind of valuable, portable electronics that have made similar shops targets before.
A different Cartridges Galore location on Valley View Boulevard in Altoona, Pennsylvania, was broken into after a burglar smashed through the front glass door and made off with a PlayStation 5 console, an Xbox console, and controllers, the Altoona Mirror reported at the time. That earlier case involved the theft of game consoles and controllers from a retail game store. The chain is co-owned by Garrett Eagan, a McDaniel College alumnus who graduated from the Westminster, Maryland, institution in 2009.
Possible Charges Under Maryland Burglary Law
Maryland law offers prosecutors more than one path depending on what investigators can eventually prove about intent. Breaking and entering a commercial storehouse with the intent to commit theft is charged as second-degree burglary under Maryland Criminal Law § 6-203, a felony carrying up to 15 years in state prison, according to AntonLegal. But the statute requires proof of intent to commit theft.
A lesser charge is also possible. Under Maryland Criminal Law § 6-205, breaking and entering a commercial storehouse without proof of specific intent to steal — or possessing burglar's tools with intent to use them, or allow them to be used, in a burglary — can be charged as fourth-degree burglary, a misdemeanor punishable by up to three years in prison, per FrizWoods. The statutes set different requirements for the potential charges.
Investigation Into Cartridges Galore Break-In Continues
The investigation remains focused on identifying the suspect, who left the store after breaking the front glass door.
The Cartridges Galore break-in occurred at a commercial store. The LoopNet listing reports exposure to more than 23,000 cars per day and access to a signalized intersection.
Anyone with information about the Cartridges Galore break-in is asked to contact deputies at 240-457-0748. The office has asked the public to assist with the investigation.
