Howard County man to serve 15 years for burglaries in Bethesda, Potomac, Rockville
Police caught the 52-year-old in the act using a drone
By
Elia GriffinApril 16, 2026 11:29 a.m.
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Make a ContributionA Howard County man is expected to spend 15 years is prison in connection with six burglaries that occurred from December 2024 to August 2025 at homes in Bethesda, Potomac and Rockville, according to the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office.
On Tuesday, Circuit Court Judge Bradford McCullough sentenced Edward Maurice Bryant, 52, of Columbia, to 108 years in prison, with all but 15 years suspended for the burglaries. Bryant must also serve five years of supervised probation upon release.
On March 4, Bryant pleaded guilty to three counts of first-degree burglary, two counts of theft over $100,000, one county of theft between $1,500 and $25,000, and one count of fourth degree attempted burglary, according to the state’s attorney’s office.
Michael Tomko, Bryant’s attorney, did not immediately respond to Bethesda Today’s request for comment on Thursday morning.
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Bryant would steal valuable items from homes, such as designer goods, jewelry, cash and handbags, according to the state’s attorney’s office.
Stolen items such as a Gucci belt and jewelry found at Edward Bryant’s home following a search warrant. Photo credit: Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office 
Designer bags found at Edward Bryant’s home during a search warrant. Photo credit: Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office
On Aug. 16, Bryant was spotted by a Montgomery County police officer who was surveilling him, according to police. Police later deployed a drone and followed Bryant as he drove in his vehicle.
The drone captured Bryant park his vehicle near Temple Street and Valley Road in Bethesda and then ride a bicycle several blocks to the 6000 block of Cardigan Road, according to police and the state’s attorney’s office. Bryant then hid the bike and walked to the back of a house in the neighborhood.
Footage from the drone captured Bryant climbing onto a back porch and entering through a second-floor window, police said. After remaining in the house for 20 minutes, police said, Bryant climbed out of the window, left the area on his bicycle and returned to his vehicle.
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At his vehicle, police were waiting for him and arrested him, according to the state’s attorney’s office.
Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy said in a statement Wednesday that the video evidence from the drone was “invaluable” for state prosecutors in the case.
“We salute the police for seeking out increasingly sophisticated tools to solve crimes as technology evolves, and we are grateful that the defendant will no longer be able to target people in our community,” McCarthy said.
Officers executed a search warrant on Bryant’s home in Columbia and found items believed to be connected to the burglaries, including a Gucci belt, Rolex box, Hermes bracelets and designer bags, according to the state’s attorney’s office.
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Originally published at Bethesdamagazine