When a young woman got into the marked Maryland State Police car and drove away Monday morning, neighbors at a Woodlawn apartment complex knew something was amiss.

They were right. Tfc. Samuel G. Garrett was out of town, and his green-and-black 1996 Ford was being stolen. One neighbor called the Waterloo barracks, where Garrett is assigned, and two troopers staked out the complex, said Lt. R. Scott Mergenthaler, barracks commander.

While they waited, state police at the Golden Ring barracks got a call from a gas station worker in Essex, Mergenthaler said. A woman in a state police car had pumped $10 worth of gas, tried to pay with an invalid credit card, then fled in the police car without paying.

Several hours later, Mergenthaler said, the car returned to the apartment complex. Troopers arrested Julia Briana May, 26, of the 2000 block of McElderry St. She was charged with theft, unauthorized credit-card use and driving on a suspended license.

May is being held at the Baltimore County Detention Center on $25,000 bond.

Pub Date: 7/08/98