Man pleads guilty to armed robbery outside Hollywood Casino in Perryville

The defendant — Aaron Michael Kelly, 23, of Middle River — pleaded guilty to armed robbery and theft of more than $100 and less than $1,500 on March 6 as part of a plea agreement reached by Assistant State’s Attorney Ellis Rollins and Kelly’s lawyer, Assistant Public Defender Edwin B. Fockler IV, court records show.

In exchange for Kelly’s guilty pleas, prosecutors dismissed 15 related charges against him, including first-degree assault, reckless endangerment and loaded handgun on person, according to court records.

Cecil County Circuit Court Administrative Judge Brenda A. Sexton accepted Kelly’s guilty plea and set his sentencing for May 16. Armed robbery carries a maximum 20-year sentence and theft of more than $100 and less than $1,5000 is punishable by up to six months in jail.

The armed robbery occurred at approximately 4:30 a.m. on April 9 outside the Hollywood Casino in the 1200 block of Chesapeake Overlook Parkway, court records show. Kelly got out of a black 2017 Chevrolet Traverse and walked to a nearby parked vehicle, where he opened the driver’s side door and pressed a handgun against the head of a woman behind the wheel while demanding money, according to court records.

After the victim surrendered her cash, Kelly returned to the Traverse and then it drove away, police reported.

Hollywood Casino staff provided Perryville Police Department investigators with security-camera video of the suspect sport utility vehicle, including its license plate, and that allowed detectives to track the Traverse to the unit block of Liberty Street in Aberdeen, where the unattended vehicle was parked in front of a residence, court records show.

Because officers noticed three guns “in plain view” inside that suspect SUV, investigators impounded the Traverse and later conducted a court-approved search of it, police said.

Investigators found and confiscated a .45 caliber Glock handgun, a loaded 9mm “ghost gun” and an AR-15 rifle, also believed to a be ghost gun, police added. A ghost gun is a privately-made firearm that lacks serial numbers, making such a weapon difficult to trace.

“The Ghost 9mm handgun had light-colored lower half that concurred with what the victim/complainant described the suspect’s gun as looking like,” according to court documents.

The casino’s security system also helped investigators place Kelly at the armed robbery scene, according to court records, which further indicate that a video gleaned from a camera shows Kelly walking from the Traverse to the victim’s vehicle, which is parked in front of the Traverse, at 4:34 a.m. on April 9 — when the armed robbery occurred — and then walking back the suspect vehicle seconds before it drives off the property.

In addition, the casino’s security system produced a “clear picture” of the MVA identification card that Kelly presented to staff at approximately 1:30 a.m. April 9, when he entered the Hollywood Casino, court records show.

The investigation led to Kelly’s arrest in Harford County on May 19, about six weeks later, police said. During the investigation, police added, detectives showed the victim six photos of possible suspects and, within about 15 seconds, she selected a photo of Kelly and identified him as the man who held a handgun to her head and robbed her, police added.