Frederick County grand jury indicts defendants for assault, rape, drug distribution
Sep. 22—A Frederick County grand jury on Friday handed down indictments against 11 men and one woman.
Frederick resident Christopher David Emad, 40, and William Everett Morris, 52, of Woodsboro, face numerous drug charges related to possession with intent to distribute, according to the news release. Maryland State Police stopped their vehicle on Interstate 70 westbound June 21 and allegedly found heroin, meth and fentanyl, plus drug paraphernalia, according to court documents. Emad was also indicted in a second distribution case from May 20 in the Walkersville area, in which state police reportedly found heroin, meth and fentanyl in his vehicle. Morris is being held without bail but it was not clear from court records whether Emad was being held.
Carlos A. Padilla-Moran, 39, of Frederick is charged with first- and second-degree assault for allegedly choking a pregnant woman in a local residence Aug. 20. He's being held without bail.
Mohammed Rownak, 40, of Frederick, is charged with first- and second-degree assault for allegedly strangling a woman at a local residence Aug. 31. He was released on $10,000 bail the day of his arrest, online court records show.
Frederick resident Antoine Darnell Whims, 33, faces two counts of first-degree assault and one count of second-degree assault for allegedly hitting a woman in the head with a gun and strangling her at a local residence Aug. 22. He is being held without bail.
Christian Allen James, 25, of New Market, was recently charged with second-degree rape, third-degree sex offense and second-degree assault for a rape that reportedly occurred Nov. 4, 2017, in Frederick. The alleged victim reported the stranger rape in 2017, but the Maryland State Police Crime Lab didn't get a DNA match until 2021, according to charging documents. James was released on $5,000 bail Aug. 25.
Potomac resident Dijon Torrence Minor, 24, was charged with first- and second-degree assault plus fourth-degree sex offense for allegedly assaulting a 17-year-old girl and suffocating her until she lost consciousness at a Frederick residence July 2. It was unclear from court records whether he was being held in jail.
Junior Anthony Francis, 40, of Walkersville, faces assault, sex offense and child kidnapping charges. Francis allegedly strangled a woman in a vehicle Aug. 28 and took her 1-year-old son, who was later found safe. He is being held without bail.
Frederick resident Evelyn Gomez-Gutierrez, 43, was charged with second-degree rape and two counts of third-degree sex offense. She was accused of sexually abusing a boy starting when he was 13 years old in March 2020, according to charging documents. She is being held without bail.
Gaithersburg resident Steven Darnel Webster, 33, and Berwyn Heights resident Donovan S. Bynes, 32, face numerous charges dating from Sept. 4. A Frederick County Sheriff's Office deputy patrolling by a Frederick hotel pulled over a vehicle with expired plates and saw a handgun in the driver's side door, according to charging documents. Police removed Webster and Bynes from the vehicle and allegedly found another handgun, ammunition, cocaine and drug paraphernalia. Each man faces firearms violations, while Webster is also charged with drug possession. Both are being held without bail.
The Frederick County State's Attorney's office noted in a press release an indictment is a charging document alleging criminal conduct. All defendants are considered innocent until proven guilty.
Follow Mary Grace Keller on Twitter: @MaryGraceKeller
