LEWES, Del. — The Maryland man arrested after police discovered a truck full of firearms and ammunition abandoned on Lewes Beach has waived his preliminary hearing in Court of Common Pleas and will take his case to Delaware Superior Court in Georgetown.
Alexander Gard, 30, is being held at Sussex Correctional Institution on $65,000 secured bail. He is represented by the Sussex County office of the state Office of Defense Services, the public defender’s office.
Alexander Gard following his arrest on several weapons charges (Lewes PD).
According to Lewes police, in the early morning hours on Tuesday, Sept. 23, officers responded to the 400 block of E. Savannah Road for a report of a suspicious man possibly experiencing a mental health crisis. Officers encountered Gard, who told them his truck had been stolen while he was at the Wawa on Route 1 and that he was in the area looking for it. Police offered to take him to Delaware State Police Troop 7 to file a report, but Gard declined, saying a friend would pick him up.
Soon after, officers located Gard’s truck abandoned on Lewes Beach. Inside, police found several firearms, additional weapons, and hundreds of rounds of ammunition. The discovery prompted nearby schools to go into temporary secure status and heightened security at a local hospital until the scene was secured.
Gard was formally charged with:
Five counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony by a person prohibited (Class B felony)
Six counts of possession of a firearm or ammunition by a person prohibited due to a prior violent felony conviction (Class D felony)
Lewes Police Chief Thomas Spell said investigators have found no evidence that Gard had a larger plan or intent but confirmed he was illegally possessing and transporting the weapons.