A 23-year-old man from Arlington has been charged with manslaughter in connection to a Feb. 16 crash in Bailey’s Crossroads that resulted in the death of a 93-year-old woman.
The Fairfax County Police Department announced on Thursday (April 4) that its detectives believe Isai Jimenez Paz was speeding when he allegedly crashed into a Toyota Corolla at the Leesburg Pike and South Jefferson Street intersection.
“[He] was driving a Toyota GR86 at a high speed westbound on Leesburg Pike,” the FCPD said in an updated news release. “The driver of a Toyota Corolla attempted a left turn onto a service road near South Jefferson Street from the eastbound lane of Leesburg Pike. Jimenez Paz struck the Corolla.”
The occupants of both vehicles, including the drivers and one passenger in each, were all transported to nearby hospitals for treatment. Falls Church resident Gladys Bilbao, the Corolla passenger, died from her injuries on Feb. 21.
Jimenez Paz, his passenger and the Corolla driver have since been discharged from the hospital, according to police.
Detectives arrested Jimenez Paz and charged him with involuntary manslaughter on April 3, the FCPD said. Released from custody on a secured bond, he’s scheduled for an arraignment this Wednesday (April 10) and a preliminary hearing on July 15, according to Fairfax County General District Court records.
There have been two fatal crashes on Leesburg Pike this year, both of them in the Bailey’s Crossroads area. Police also announced last week that the driver in a crash that killed a motorcyclist at Glen Carlyn Drive on March 10 has been charged with failing to yield on left turn.
Image via Google Maps
The Town of Herndon is conducting an external review after the Fairfax County Criminal Justice Training Academy said it will stop sending graduates to the Herndon Police Department.
The move came after Herndon Police Chief Maggie DeBoard reportedly took issue with graduation certificates that were signed in Chinese by the academy’s director, Major Wilson Lee, who is Chinese American.
“This is not acceptable for my agency,” she wrote to Lee in an email, according to a report by the Washington Post. “I don’t want our Herndon officers to receive these.”
In a statement released yesterday (Thursday), Herndon Town Manager Bill Ashton II said the town is reviewing the incident to “determine intent by all parties.”
“Our objective is to restore our mutually beneficial working relationship with the county but also — and more importantly — to convey without qualification that officers of the Herndon Police Department are steadfast in their commitment toward protection and public safety for all members of our community,” Ashton wrote.
According to NBC4, which first reported the dispute, Lee has signed the certificates in Chinese since becoming director of the training academy a year ago. But after seeing the signatures prior to a March 7 graduation ceremony for 61 law enforcement trainees, DeBoard asked the academy to reissue the certificates for Herndon’s incoming officers.
Her email to Lee argued that the certificates should be signed in English, which is “the language that they are expected to use as an officer,” the Post reported.
The Fairfax County Police Department declined to reissue the certificates, and DeBoard’s request “led to a heated discussion” between her and Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis at the graduation ceremony, according to the Post. DeBoard told NBC4 that Davis “inappropriately accused me of being racist and made other disparaging remarks to me.”
According to the Post’s report, Deputy County Executive Thomas Arnold notified DeBoard in a March 18 letter that he was terminating the Town of Herndon’s affiliation with the academy, effective June 1, calling DeBoard’s actions “inconsistent with the culture of Fairfax County and our One Fairfax Policy.”
Adopted by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors in 2017, the One Fairfax policy dictates that all government officials consider racial and social equity issues when providing services and creating public policy.
In the statement, Ashton said inclusiveness and respect for all members of the community are “operating tenets” of the HPD.
“It is unfortunate that Chief DeBoard’s recent interaction with Fairfax County’s Criminal Justice Academy has been viewed as discriminatory,” Ashton said. “I have personally known Chief DeBoard for over 12 years and this interaction is completely inconsistent with the dedicated public servant that I know, who has served this town and Fairfax County with honor and distinction for many years.”
When contacted by FFXnow, the FCPD said it did “not have comments on this topic at this time.”
Here’s what the department wrote to the Post:
“Our last several recruit classes are majority minority as we make historic strides to better reflect the community we serve. Any expressed sentiments that appear to take issue with these realities are unfortunate and not reflective of Fairfax County’s commitment” to its One Fairfax policy.
DeBoard became the first female police chief in Northern Virginia when she was appointed to lead Herndon’s department in 2012. She served as head of the Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police in 2020 and 2021.
Established in 1985, the Fairfax County Criminal Justice Academy provides training to recruits who go on to serve the FCPD, the Fairfax County sheriff’s and fire marshal’s offices, and the Herndon and Vienna police departments.
Several people have been identified and charged in connection to a “street takeover” in Springfield on Sunday (March 31).
The Fairfax County Police Department announced today (Wednesday) that detectives arrested and charged an 18-year-old man from Woodbridge and a 17-year-old Arlington man who allegedly took part in a rowdy “mob” in a parking lot in the 6600 block of Electronic Drive around 3 a.m.
When officers pulled into the parking lot on Sunday, they found a “large group of individuals driving recklessly in circle,” police said in a news release.
According to the release, when a police cruiser drove up to confront the group, they encircled the vehicle, preventing it from moving. At least one individual attempted to remove the cruiser’s license plate, while others “acted disorderly.”
Authorities described a chaotic scene where a group blocked an officer’s vehicle, climbed on it, and aggressively banged on the windows. The situation escalated when an individual was seen brandishing what appears to be a rifle from a car.
As dozens of officers from across the county responded, the crowd involved in what police are calling a “street takeover” began to disperse. At least one video of the incident was posted on Instagram.
Video posted by the page “dmvmoviemaker,” w/ 800 followers on Instagram, shows more of the chaos that transpired during Easter Sunday’s 3am car ‘takeover’ in Springfield, VA. An officer was struck by one of the cars as well. Several arrest warrants have already been issued. #FCPD pic.twitter.com/2VKAWen5Zq
— DMV News Live (@DCNewsLive) April 2, 2024
According to police, one person at the scene drove off “at a high rate of speed,” hitting an officer who suffered “minor injuries.” A pursuit of the fleeing vehicle was initiated but later aborted.
That same morning, Prince William County Police responded to a similar incident around 12:36 a.m. at the Market at Opitz Crossing shopping center in Woodbridge, where there was reportedly a “car meet-up,” according to WJLA.
Following an investigation, the FCPD says the 18-year-old from Woodbridge has been charged with reckless driving after a crash involving a cruiser. The 17-year-old Arlington man was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct and abduction for jumping on the police cruiser and preventing the officer from leaving.
The driver who allegedly hit and injured the police officer has been identified as an 18-year-old from Catonsville, Maryland. Detectives obtained warrants for felony hit and run, speed to elude, and driving without a license, but the warrants haven’t been served, per the release.
Police also have a warrant for a 20-year-old from Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, charging him with abduction, assault on a law enforcement officer, obstruction of justice, and wearing a mask in public.
“Detectives from our Criminal Investigation Division and Special Investigation Division are actively investigating the assault on our officer as well as the reckless driving,” the FCPD said. “Additional arrests are anticipated as detectives continue to investigate.”
The driver involved in last month’s fatal motorcycle crash on Leesburg Pike (Route 7) has been charged with failing to yield on a left turn.
The Fairfax County Police Department announced yesterday (Monday) that its detectives had arrested the 35-year-old man from Bailey’s Crossroads and charged him with the traffic violation. He was released from custody after being served a summons.
An investigation found that the driver was headed west on Leesburg Pike in a 2000 Acura sedan and attempted to turn left onto Glen Carlyn Drive around 11 p.m. on March 10, according to the police.
“This caused the victim, who was riding a motorcycle at the time, to collide with Machado’s vehicle,” the FCPD said.
Alejandro Portillo, a 19-year-old from Arlington, was riding a 1996 Yamaha motorcycle east on Leesburg Pike in the left through-lane when he crashed into the sedan, police said in the initial news release.
Officers responded to the scene in Bailey’s Crossroads around 11:10 p.m. Portillo was taken to a hospital, where he died that evening.
Like in a 2022 crash on West Ox Road that killed a motorcyclist, the police investigation found that the driver’s actions in this case didn’t meet Virginia’s standards for a reckless driving or involuntary manslaughter charge, according to the Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office.
Failure to yield the right-of-way can constitute reckless driving under state law, but it only applies in instances where the driver “fails to bring his vehicle to a stop immediately before entering a highway from a side road when there is traffic approaching” within 500 feet of the entrance.
“Though this tragic incident resulted in the death of one of our community members, the charge brought against the defendant is the appropriate one and reflects the alleged facts of the case,” Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office spokesperson Laura Birnbaum said.
Court proceedings in the West Ox Road crash concluded on Feb. 27 with the driver being fined $50, an outcome that “disappointed” the mother of Andrew Dearing, the motorcyclist who was killed.
According to the Fairfax County General District Court, Virginia imposes uniform fines for traffic offenses that can’t be altered by a clerk or magistrate, though it doesn’t restrict the amount that a judge could charge if the case reaches a court hearing. The total for failing to yield on a left turn is $97, including court costs and processing fees.
The driver in the crash that killed Portillo is scheduled to appear in court for an adjudicatory hearing on July 3, according to court records.
Image via Google Maps
(Updated at 4/3/24) A Fairfax County judge has ruled there’s enough evidence to proceed with charges against a Reston au pair linked to a fatal shooting over a year ago.
Circuit Court Judge Michael Lindner found probable cause yesterday (Monday) to charge Juliana Peres Magalhaes, 23, in the Feb. 24, 2023, deadly shooting of Joseph Ryan, 39, at her employer’s Herndon-area home in the 13200 block of Stable Brook Way.
Police discovered Christine Banfield with stab wounds to her upper body and Ryan with two gunshot wounds to his upper body. Banfield was transported to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead. Ryan was declared dead at the scene.
Though the shooting and stabbing occurred in February, Peres Magalhaes wasn’t arrested until October. She remained employed by Brendan Banfield, Christine Banfield’s husband, throughout that period. The investigation into Christine Banfield’s death is ongoing, and no charges have been filed yet.
Although the judge determined there was a “fair probability” that Peres Magalhaes had used a firearm to fatally shoot Ryan, yesterday’s hearing was just an initial step to assess whether there was sufficient evidence to warrant a trial.
The hearing
Peres Magalhaes faces charges of second-degree murder, meaning the killing was intentional but not planned. However, at the preliminary hearing, prosecutors outlined events leading to Ryan’s death and introduced new evidence they said suggests the killing might have been premeditated.
Witnessess summoned for the four-hour hearing by Fairfax County Senior Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Eric Clingan included Fairfax County Police Detective Stephen Carter, who testified that, on the morning of Feb. 24, Peres Magalhaes left the Banfield residence to take their 4-year-old daughter to a zoo.
Brendan Banfield left earlier that morning and was allegedly at a nearby McDonald’s when he received a call from Peres Magalhaes. She reported seeing a stranger’s car in the Banfield’s driveway when she returned to the house to get their daughter’s lunch.
Brendan Banfield allegedly drove back home and went inside with Peres Magalhaes. Upon entering the bedroom, they encountered Ryan, who was fully dressed and allegedly holding a knife to an undressed Christine Banfield.
An initial 911 call was made from Peres Magalhaes’s phone at 7:47 a.m. A second call at 8:02 a.m. came from both her and Brendan Banfield, who allegedly told the dispatcher that he shot Ryan after seeing his wife get stabbed multiple times.
According to prosecutors, Banfield shot Ryan in the head before the first 911 call was placed. Peres Magalhaes told investigators that he instructed her to grab another gun from a closet several feet away that she then fired at Ryan. Assistant Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Meghan Kessler confirmed the second gunshot wound was the cause of death.
Peres Magalhaes’s lawyers argue she acted in self-defense. However, Kessler testified that Ryan’s head wound likely left him incapacitated, hindering his movement and vision. Prosecutors contended that, given Ryan’s condition after the first shot, there was no need for a second one. Read More
(Updated at 4:25 p.m. on 3/28/2024) Fairfax County police have arrested an Arlington man who allegedly shot two women, including his wife, at a day care center in West Springfield.
Officers were dispatched to the West Springfield KinderCare at 8518 Bauer Drive at around 2:14 p.m., according to the police scanner on Open MHz.
“Right now, all we have is an unknown suspect shooting outside, still trying to get more,” the dispatcher said.
Based on a preliminary investigation, police believe Julio Pascual Sejas, 41, of Arlington, approached the day care center in an attempt to speak to his wife, who works there, Fairfax County Police Department Deputy Chief Brooke Wright said at a press conference around 5:15 p.m.
When she declined to open the front door, Sejas fired three shots through the door, hitting his wife and another employee of the day care, Wright says. Both women were transported to a hospital with injuries determined to be not life-threatening.
There were more than 70 children inside KinderCare at the time of the shooting, but none of them witnessed it or appear to even have registered that it happened, according to Wright. The children were evacuated to the West Springfield District Police Station (6140 Rolling Road), where they have all now been reunited with their parents or guardians.
“I’m so relieved that kids were not harmed today, because we are talking too much about kids and gun violence that’s happening,” Wright said. “We want parents to know that we’re going to be protecting children as best we can.”
The FCPD announced at 6:37 p.m. that Sejas has been arrested. Detectives had obtained warrants charging him with two counts of aggravated malicious wounding, two counts of using a firearm in the commission of a felony and three counts of shooting into a school building.
The arrest occurred within three hours of detectives obtaining the warrants. According to a news release from the FCPD, detectives found Sejas at Dulles International Airport, where “he was attempting to pick up family members who were arriving in Virginia.”
At the earlier press conference, Wright said no protective order was sought against Sejas “to my knowledge,” but the nature of his relationship with his wife is still under investigation. He is currently in custody without bond at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center.
KinderCare offers day care and after-school programs for kids ranging from toddlers to 12 years old, including programs that are available during school breaks.
Image via Google Maps
Fairfax County police officers issued almost 5,700 citations and warnings during the first phase of their year-long “Road Shark” safety campaign, the department announced this morning (Wednesday).
A collaboration with the Virginia State Police, the initiative aims to crack down on aggressive and unsafe driving by increasing patrols in high-crash areas and promoting education about traffic laws and responsible driving behavior.
“Our dedicated officers and Virginia State Troopers play a pivotal role in the effectiveness of this campaign aimed at curbing the presence of reckless drivers in Fairfax County,” the Fairfax County Police Department said.
The first wave of this year’s campaign took place during the week of March 17-23. Some drivers were caught speeding over 100 mph, including in a 35-mph zone in at least one case, according to the FCPD.
The 5,695 warnings and citations issued exceeded the 3,786 violations recorded in the first wave of last year’s “Road Shark” campaign, which launched around the same time in response to a surge of pedestrian fatalities in 2022.
Like last year’s effort, the 2024 campaign will consist of four week-long waves. The second one will begin on April 22, the FCPD says.
Photo via FCPD
A man who sexually assaulted two women in the Annandale area on consecutive days last week is now in custody, police say.
Kevin Lopez Altan, 24, of Annandale was arrested on Friday (March 22) after allegedly raping a business owner multiple times two days earlier and separately attacking a Northern Virginia Community College student the previous day, the Fairfax County Police Department announced this afternoon (Monday).
At a press conference, Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis described the assault against the business owner in particular as “abhorrent and inhumane.”
“There is no reason beyond he is evil personified. He’s brutal in his attacks on women. He’s relentless in his attacks on women,” Davis said. “…We’re proud that we were able to put him in handcuffs, but we can’t begin to explain criminal misconduct like his.”
According to police, a man tried to enter a business near John Marr Drive around 11 a.m. on Wednesday (March 20). Since the business was closed, the owner, a 59-year-old woman, told him that he couldn’t enter two times before he forced himself inside when she opened the door to tell him a third time.
The man then held the woman captive inside her own business for “several hours,” police said.
“Throughout this nightmare, the suspect sexually assaulted the victim repeatedly and threatened to kill her if she didn’t do exactly what he told her to do,” Sully District Station Captain Dan Spital said. “The victim found the moment when the suspect’s attention was diverted and bravely took that opportunity to escape.”
After escaping, the woman managed to run to a nearby business, where she asked someone for help. The 911 call came in at 10:13 pm., according to the FCPD.
While investigating the case, FCPD detectives learned that the Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA) Police were looking into an attempted sexual assault that had been reported around 8:50 p.m. on Thursday (March 21) at its Annandale campus.
The 20-year-old woman who got attacked is a current student and was able to get assistance from a nearby student in fending off the assault, NOVA Police Chief William “Jake” Jacoby said at the press conference.
After comparing notes, including a composite sketch created by the FCPD, investigators from the two departments determined they were looking for the same individual, according to Spital.
Lopez Alton was identified by a NOVA Police officer who coincidentally recognized a description from FCPD detectives of the suspect’s “unique” tattoos and “mannerisms.” The officer had encountered Lopez Alton in his previous work as a Fairfax County sheriff’s deputy.
When FCPD investigators found that Lopez Alton’s fingerprints matched ones found at the Annandale business, police launched a manhunt for him, targeting shopping centers around Annandale where he was “known to hang out,” Spital said. He was ultimately arrested in the Heritage Center (7617 Little River Turnpike) round 1:20 p.m. on Friday. Read More
An 18-year-old suspect turned himself in last night in connection with the fatal shooting of a 14-year-old Westfield High School student on Wednesday (March 20), police say.
The Fairfax County Police Department announced the arrest of Ismael Cruz-Delcid, 18, of Herndon at a press conference this morning (Friday).
Police suspect Cruz-Delcid knew the victim, who died after being shot outside the Sonesta Extended Stay Suites in the McNair area of Herndon. Another teen was shot at during the two rounds of firing but managed to escape without injury.
The FCPD identified Cruz-Delcid as a suspect in the shooting yesterday. He has been charged with second-degree murder, the use of a firearm in the commission of a felony and felony distribution of cocaine.
The drug charge stems from “a previous narcotics investigation,” police previously stated.
The shooting happened around 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday after a verbal argument between the three teens in the hotel parking lot.
Police Chief Kevin Davis emphasized that, while it’s unclear if the encounter was gang-related, the victims knew each other, characterizing the encounter as a “neighborhood association.”
Davis lamented the proliferation of guns in small disputes as a nationwide challenge.
“Seemingly petty disputes are resolved with firearms,” Davis said.
Police said that the teens were involved in ongoing verbal disputes that remain under investigation.
Cruz-Delcid turned himself shortly after 11 p.m. last night after a discussion between law enforcement and an attorney. He did not provide any statement to police and is being held without bond.
The suspected shooter recently graduated from Mountain View Alternative High School in Centreville, according to police.
Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Michelle Reid said the school system is providing counseling to students at Westfield and Herndon High School, along with other high schools on an as-needed basis.
Fairfax County police are still searching for a teen who they believe fatally shot another teenager yesterday (Thursday) outside the Sonesta Extended Stay Suites in the McNair area of Herndon.
The Fairfax County Police Department has identified Ismael Cruz-Delcid, 18, of Herndon as the suspect in the shooting, which allegedly followed a physical altercation between three teens.
The encounter began after Cruz-Delcid pulled into the hotel’s parking lot in the 13700 block of Coppermine Road yesterday afternoon, according to police. At some point, he and two other teens began fighting.
“Cruz-Delcid then disengaged from the fight, pulled out a firearm, and shot at the victims,” the FCPD said. “Only one of the victims was struck and the second victim was not injured. Cruz-Delcid left his Honda Civic at the scene and took off on foot after the shooting.”
Officers arrived the scene shortly after 3:35 p.m. and found the teen who got shot suffering from gun shot wounds “to the upper body,” police said. After attempting life-saving measures, responders transported the boy to a hospital, where he died.
At a media briefing yesterday, FCPD Deputy Chief Brooke Wright said at least three shots were fired, and it wasn’t yet clear how many hit the victim. Another teen who wasn’t hit remained at the scene.
Police said the shooter was seen headed toward neighboring Coates Elementary School, prompting Fairfax County Public Schools to place the school under secured status just before students were scheduled to leave.
Detectives have obtained warrants that would charge Cruz-Delcid with second-degree murder and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. The FCPD says he is involved in “a previous narcotics investigation,” prompting detectives to also get a warrant for cocaine distribution.
“Our officers, our Fugitive Track and Apprehension Unit, and our Organized Crime and Intelligence Bureau are working to locate Cruz-Delcid,” the FCPD said.
