A Maryland man who fled police in a reportedly stolen vehicle is facing multiple charges of assault against Virginia state troopers.
According to the Virginia State Police, troopers received an alert around 3:41 a.m. yesterday (Sunday) that a gray sedan reported to have been stolen might be traveling on Richmond Highway (Route 1) in the Huntington area.
The vehicle was spotted by a trooper who turned on his lights and siren for a traffic stop, but the driver instead “sped away and initiated a pursuit,” police said.
As the chase moved onto the Capital Beltway (I-495) and then onto southbound I-95, the driver rammed a state police patrol vehicle four different times, according to the VSP:
As the pursuit approached Route 1 and Interstate 495, the suspect vehicle twice rammed a State Police patrol vehicle. The pursuit then continued onto Interstate 495 westbound, where the suspect struck the same trooper’s vehicle a third time, and then onto Interstate 95 southbound, where the trooper’s vehicle was struck a fourth time.
Police ultimately used a precision immobilization technique (PIT) maneuver to turn and halt the vehicle on I-95 near the Backlick Road exit, the VSP said.
“The driver then fled the vehicle on foot, but was taken into custody a few minutes later without further incident,” police said.
The driver — described as a 24-year-old man from College Park, Maryland — faces four charges each of assault on law enforcement, felony hit-and-run, misdemeanor hit-and-run and destruction of state property. He has also been charged with eluding law enforcement, grand larceny, driving without a license, not wearing a seatbelt and “being a pedestrian on the interstate.”
The last charge stems from the brief foot pursuit, a VSP spokesperson confirmed.
Police also arrested two adults who were passengers in the sedan on outstanding warrants.
The Fairfax County Police Department said in its year-end crime report for 2023 that it saw an uptick in assaults against police officers compared to 2022.
Image via Google Maps
A Pimmit Hills man has been accused of possessing child porn and having sex with a teenager who was reported missing in New York.
Detectives arrested 20-year-old Muammer Steve Demir on Friday (March 15) after they found him with the teen at a house in the 7300 block of Sportsman Drive, the Fairfax County Police Department announced today (Monday).
Demir was in possession of child sexual abuse material when police arrived at the house, according to the FCPD.
The FCPD says its Missing Person Unit and Child Exploitation Unit detectives were notified yesterday that a missing teen from New York may be in Fairfax County, and their investigation led them to Demir’s house.
“Detectives learned Demir drove to New York in August of 2023 and then brought the juvenile back to Virginia,” the FCPD said.
Demir has been charged with having carnal knowledge of a child and possessing child abuse material, but additional charges are expected, according to police. He’s currently in custody at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center without bond.
The teen has been reunited with her family, the FCPD said.
After an arraignment on March 15, Demir is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on June 25, per Fairfax County General District Court records.
A driver involved in one of the two fatal pedestrian crashes that occurred on the Capital Beltway this past Sunday (March 10) was allegedly intoxicated and didn’t have a valid license, according to the Virginia State Police.
Carlos Nunez Morales, a 26-year-old Woodbridge resident, has been charged with driving under the influence, involuntary manslaughter and driving with a revoked or suspended license after police say he hit and killed a pedestrian on I-495 near the Telegraph Road exit in the Rose Hill area.
According to the VSP, Morales was driving a 2003 Dodge Ram in the westbound lanes of I-495 around 3:38 a.m. when he veered off the left side of the interstate and hit Gregory Bruington, Jr., who was changing a tire on a 2017 Volkswagen Golf parked on the highway’s left shoulder.
Bruington, a 30-year-old man from Newport News, died at the scene, and a 24-year-old, female passenger in the Volkswagen “was seriously injured,” a police spokesperson said in an update this morning (Thursday).
“Nunez Morales suffered minor injuries,” state police said. “He was not wearing a seat belt.”
The crash occurred just minutes before a separate crash in the eastbound lanes of I-495 near the same exit that also killed a pedestrian.
Around 3:53 a.m., responding state troopers came across a woman identified as Vanessa Schwartz, a 35-year-old Alexandria resident, lying in the interstate.
The VSP later reported that Schwartz had stepped into traffic and was hit by the driver of a 2005 Honda Accord that was traveling east on I-495 in the right-center lane
“The Accord was then struck by a 2021 Acura RDX, and the Accord then struck the jersey wall. A 2023 Nissan Rogue then struck the RDX,” police said.
Schwartz died at the scene.
Both of Sunday’s crashes on I-495 remain under investigation.
Fairfax County police are also still seeking information about a third fatal pedestrian crash that took place shortly after midnight on Sunday in Mount Vernon. In that crash, the driver of a 2015 Hyundai Sonata that had been reported stolen allegedly hit James Johnson, 63, of Hybla Valley on Janna Lee Avenue and fled the scene.
A man who barricaded himself in his West Falls Church home on Sunday (March 10) is facing multiple criminal charges, including assault and abduction.
According to the Fairfax County Police Department, a woman told officers that afternoon that she had been abducted and assaulted by a “known suspect” in the Mosby neighborhood.
The woman ran up to the intersection of Chestnut Avenue and Annandale Road around 2:23 p.m., reporting that her boyfriend had assaulted her, a dispatcher said on the police scanner on Open MHz. She had visible marks on her face.
“The victim sustained injuries considered non-life threatening and was treated at the hospital,” the FCPD said in a news release published yesterday (Monday).
The man, identified as 33-year-old Silvio Meza Jr., was wanted by the FCPD for allegedly failing to appear in court on drug possession charges, police said.
Meza was in his home in the 6700 block of Chestnut Avenue and refused to come out, according to police, who learned that he “may have been armed with a rifle.” Special Operations Division, Crisis Negotiations Team and Crisis Response Team officers responded to assist.
The barricade situation lasted over seven hours, concluding around 9:45 p.m. when Meza surrendered and was taken into custody.
In addition to being served the outstanding warrant for failing to appear in court, Meza has been charged with assault, strangulation, abduction, possession of a firearm and possession of ammunition by a convicted felon.
UPDATE: Suspect in custody! The barricade has been resolved. Follow our blog for available updates https://t.co/QsTzdpgf0U
— Fairfax County Police (@FairfaxCountyPD) March 11, 2024
Local police have uncovered a drug operation in Reston that involved the discovery of 1,800 THC vape cartidges, 36 pounds of marijuana and other narcotics, along with guns.
The Fairfax County Police Department says its Gang Intelligence Unit uncovered the stash after they were alerted in February to a juvenile suspected of dealing narcotics and illegally possessing firearms.
The investigation led detectives to execute three search warrants for homes last Friday, March 8. At the juvenile’s home in the 11500 block of Cypress Point Circle, detectives found a 9mm rifle, handgun, ammunition, suspected psilocybin mushrooms, and suspected narcotics, according to the FCPD.
A search of a home in the 11201 block of Reston Station Blvd led to an even bigger haul: six pounds of marijuana, over 880 suspected THC vape cartridges, 160 suspected THC edibles, 690+ suspected Adderall pills, and further evidence of narcotics distribution, according to police.
A third search warrant in the 1500 block of Scandia Circle also uncovered 1000+ suspected THC vape cartridges, suspected THC oil, Marijuana seeds, and further evidence of narcotics distribution.
The 27-year-old resident of the Reston Station Blvd home was charged with one count of possession with the intent to distribute schedule I/II narcotics and four counts of possession with the intent to distribute marijuana.
Two Reston men are facing multiple charges — including attempted murder in one case — after allegedly getting involved in police pursuits on the Capital Beltway last Thursday (March 7).
The first chase began around 9:54 p.m. when a Virginia State Police trooper moved to stop a Jeep Cherokee SRT for reckless driving on I-495 near S. Van Dorn Street in Rose Hill, according to the VSP.
“The Cherokee refused to stop for the trooper and a pursuit was initiated,” state police said. “During the course of the pursuit, the driver of the Jeep threw a firearm out the window. The firearm struck the ground and then the trooper’s vehicle.”
After the chase got off the Beltway, the driver hit the trooper’s vehicle with the Jeep at the Braddock Road and Twinbrook Road intersection in the Kings Park West area, the VSP said. The Jeep ultimately came to a stop on Twinbrook Road.
The driver — identified by police as Jevon T. Mark, 23, of Reston — was taken into custody and charged with assault on a law enforcement officer, eluding police, throwing missiles, reckless driving and one felony count of hit and run.
Police also detained and released two passengers in the vehicle, and the gun reportedly thrown out of the Jeep was found.
“The incident remains under investigation,” the VSP said.
The second high-speed chase of the night came less than an hour later. At 10:45 p.m., the VSP were alerted by a Maryland law enforcement agency to a stolen 2015 Chevrolet traveling across the American Legion Bridge into Virginia.
When a state trooper attempted to initiate a traffic stop on I-495 near Braddock Road, the driver refused and sped away at a high rate of speed, the VSP said. State police attempted to bring the vehicle to a stop near the Glebe Road exit in Arlington using a “pursuit intervention technique.”
Though fuzzy, a traffic camera video captured by public safety watcher Dave Statter shows the vehicle careening into a ditch by the exit ramp.
According to the VSP, the driver crawled into the trunk of the vehicle to try and hide from the troopers, who took him into custody without incident.
During the pursuit, the car rammed into one of the trooper’s cars. The trooper suffered minor injuries.
Abiselome Belachew, a 21-year-old Reston resident, has been charged with attempted capital murder of a law enforcement officer, one felony count of hit-and-run for hitting the trooper’s vehicle, one felony count of eluding police, auto theft and driving on a suspended license.
A helicopter-assisted search resulted in the arrest of a man suspected of robbing a bank in Great Falls.
Shortly before 11 a.m. yesterday (Sunday), the suspect reportedly entered the Wells Fargo bank at 750 Walker Road, displayed a firearm and took cash. He left in a car before police officers arrived on the scene, according to the Fairfax County Police Department.
When canvassing the area, officers saw a gray Acura speed through a red light near I-495. Fairfax One was able to locate the car as the suspect fled to Maryland.
“Fairfax One directed Montgomery County police officers to the suspect’s location, where they were able to safely take him into custody,” the FCPD said.
A 61-year-old man from Maryland was arrested. The FCPD says evidence of the robbery was found in the car. He was taken to a jail in Montgomery County and held pending extradition to Fairfax County on a bank robbery charge.
FCPD is seeking more information about the case. Here’s more from FCPD on how to get in touch:
Detectives would like to speak to anyone who may have information about this case. Those with information are asked to please call our Major Crimes Bureau at 703-246-7800, option 5. Tips can also be submitted anonymously through Crime Solvers by phone – 1-866-411-TIPS (866-411-8477), and by web – Click HERE. Download the ‘P3 Tips’ App and follow the steps to “Fairfax Co Crime Solvers.” Please leave contact information if you wish for a detective to follow up with you.
Detectives have charged a 17-year-old boy with DUI-related manslaughter and maiming in a Nov. 20 crash that killed one teen and seriously injured four others in Fairfax County’s Idylwood area.
In a news release, Fairfax County police said the boy was driving under the influence in a 2003 Lincoln Aviator when he crested a hill on Shreve Road “at a high rate of speed” around 5 a.m. that morning.
The boy struck a tree near Pioneer Lane and the vehicle spun, ejecting the five teenage passengers, the release said. None were wearing seatbelts.
One of the teens died Nov. 27 from his injuries. The four other passengers were seriously injured and have since been released from the hospital.
On Thursday (Feb. 29), detectives obtained warrants charging the driver with DUI-related manslaughter, four counts of DUI maiming and refusal to take a breath test, the release said.
Last night, patrol officers arrested the driver at his Pimmit Hills home. He was held without bond at the Fairfax County jail. His name has not been released because he is a juvenile.
Image via Google Maps. This article was written by FFXnow’s news partner InsideNoVa.com and republished with permission, though the headline has been changed. Sign up for InsideNoVa.com’s free email subscription today.
A man who allegedly stole a medical transport vehicle from Inova Fairfax Hospital last week has been located and arrested, Fairfax County police announced over the weekend.
Rickey Lowe, 32, of Manassas was arrested on Friday (Feb. 23) by Fugitive Tracking and Apprehension Unit detectives who found him “near a hotel in Manassas,” the Fairfax County Police Department said in a news release on Saturday (Feb. 24).
According to police, Lowe was a passenger in a 2015 Toyota Corolla that was reported stolen from Prince William County on Feb. 14. When officers spotted the sedan near Fair Oaks Mall at around 12:30 p.m. on Feb. 19, the driver took off, reportedly speeding out of the mall parking lot and onto eastbound Route 50.
“The driver quickly changed directions and drove towards the westbound I-66 ramp,” the FCPD said in an earlier news release. “The driver lost control of the Corolla, entered the embankment, and struck a small hill sending it airborne. The vehicle landed against a concrete wall on the exit ramp of westbound I-66 toward Route 50 eastbound.”
All five occupants of the Corolla were hospitalized with injuries, but while receiving treatment, Lowe allegedly left the emergency room at Inova Fairfax Hospital “in his medical gown with an IV still in his arm and then stole an ‘MMT’ Medical Transport vehicle,” police said.
The vehicle was later found in the 4200 block of Annandale Road in Annandale, but officers didn’t locate Lowe.
Upon his arrest on Friday, Lowe was transported to the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center, where he was held on a $2,000 bond. He has been charged with grand larceny.
The driver of the Corolla — identified by police as Xxeavius Romoance Marlow, 29, of Manassas — has also been charged with grand larceny. After getting treated for injuries from the crash, he was taken to the county jail, where he’s currently in custody without bond.
Fairfax County General District Court records indicate that Lowe remains in custody after an arraignment this morning. He faces a preliminary hearing scheduled for May 29, while Marlow’s preliminary hearing will be held on June 12.
Fairfax County police have made an arrest in one of two fatal pedestrian crashes that occured on Richmond Highway this past weekend.
Kelechi Uzodinma, 61, of Woodbridge was arrested on Sunday (Feb. 18) after allegedly hitting a pedestrian in the Richmond Highway and Brevard Court intersection in Mount Vernon’s Woodlawn neighborhood around 10:40 p.m., the Fairfax County Police Department reported today.
According to police, Uzodinma was driving south on Richmond Highway (Route 1) in a 2015 Lexus GS 350 when he hit Alexandria resident Heliodoro Luna-Perez, who was crossing the roadway near Brevard Court “outside of a crosswalk.”
There are no crosswalks at that intersection, where Brevard Court leads into the Pinewood South condominiums. Google Maps indicates that the closest striped crosswalks are about 0.3 miles to the south at Frye Road and a half-mile to the north at Russell Road.
Luna-Perez was hit while in a southbound lane, the FCPD says. He was transported to a hospital, where he died early Monday (Feb. 19) morning at 51 years old.
According to the police, Uzodinma fled the scene before officers arrived. He was found less than an hour later “almost 2 miles away from the scene,” the police department said.
Uzodinma has been charged with a felony hit and run and is currently in custody at the Adult Detention Center on a $2,500 bond.
“Detectives continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the crash,” the FCPD said. “Alcohol was deemed to not be a factor for Uzodinma in this crash and speed is still under investigation.”
According to Fairfax County General District Court records, Uzodinma is scheduled for an arraignment on Friday (Feb. 23) and a preliminary hearing on May 29.
Records indicate that he got cited for an infraction on Jan. 13 for driving 55 mph in a 35-mph zone. He was released on a summons in that case, where he will get an adjudicatory hearing on Feb. 27.
Luna-Perez was the second pedestrian to die in a traffic crash in Fairfax County this year after another man was killed on Thursday, Feb. 15 while crossing Richmond Highway before the Belfield Road intersection in Belle Haven.
Police haven’t publicly identified the victim in that crash yet, citing a need to inform his family.
There have been three fatal crashes on Richmond Highway this month, including one on Feb. 14 where a 19-year-old driver died after rear-ending a dump truck.
According to the FCPD, the county hadn’t had any fatal pedestrian crashes at this point in 2023.
Image via Google Maps
