LEXINGTON PARK — Two people arrested at a Lexington Park home Wednesday are charged with keeping a shotgun and a loaded rifle despite prior convictions that bar them from having guns, after detectives searching the house reported finding suspected fentanyl and synthetic marijuana, the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office said.
Detectives from the Criminal Investigations Division served search and seizure warrants Nov. 4 at a residence in the 47000 block of Sewell Road, according to a sheriff’s office release issued Thursday. They arrested two occupants, Thomas Emanuel Gross, 40, and Shameka Levae Harrod, 34.
The gun counts carry the heaviest exposure. Under Maryland law, a person barred by a disqualifying conviction who possesses a rifle or shotgun commits a felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison. The sheriff’s office did not say what earlier convictions disqualify Gross and Harrod, and it did not list their hometowns.
What detectives say they found
According to the release, the search turned up:
- Suspected fentanyl
- Suspected synthetic cannabinoids, commonly called K2
- A Winchester Model 37A shotgun and 12-gauge shells
- A .22-caliber rifle, loaded with a round in the chamber, and boxes of .22-caliber ammunition
- Drug paraphernalia
The sheriff’s office did not release the amount of drugs recovered or say what led detectives to the house.
The charges
Both Gross and Harrod face multiple drug and firearms counts, including possession of a controlled dangerous substance, possession with intent to use drug paraphernalia, and possession of a shotgun and a rifle after a conviction for a disqualifying crime, the release said.
Possession of a controlled dangerous substance other than cannabis is a misdemeanor in Maryland, carrying up to a year in jail and a $5,000 fine on a first conviction, with longer maximums for repeat convictions. A first paraphernalia offense is punishable by a fine of up to $500. The firearms counts, filed under the state’s ban on rifle and shotgun possession by disqualified people, are felonies with a 15-year maximum.
Deputies took both to the St. Mary’s County Detention and Rehabilitation Center to await bond hearings. The charges are allegations, and both are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
Part of a run of Lexington Park cases
The arrests add to a string of gun and drug cases in Lexington Park this fall. In October, a Lexington Park man was charged with 11 gun and drug counts, and deputies reported finding 24 grams of fentanyl in a separate case. In September, three people were charged after a raid that turned up three guns and roughly 300 grams of cocaine. In July, a Lexington Park man was charged after detectives said they found a machine gun.
Fentanyl remains the main driver of overdose deaths statewide even as those deaths fall. Maryland recorded 1,315 overdose deaths in 2025, a 26% drop and a 10-year low, but 906 of them involved fentanyl. The state’s quarterly intoxication reports track deaths by county.
Anyone with information about this case can call the sheriff’s office at 301-475-8008, or 911 in an emergency. Anonymous tips can be texted to 847411 starting with “SMCSO,” submitted at FirstSheriff.com/tips or through the SMCSO app, or phoned in to Crime Solvers at 301-475-3333, which may pay a reward for information leading to an arrest.
