Late night drinks ended in a round of fisticuffs at Vienna’s Pazzo Pomodoro last Wednesday (July 12).
Officers were called to the Italian restaurant at 118 Branch Road SE around 1:30 a.m. after getting a report of a fight, the Vienna Police Department said in a summary of notable incidents from the week of July 7-13.
According to the report, bystanders told police that the conflict began when a man made “comments about a couple” at the restaurant’s bar, which is open until 1 a.m. on Sundays through Thursdays.
“One of the other patrons was offended by the comments and asked the man to stop,” the VPD said. “When the man continued with the comments, a fight ensued between the man, the patron, and the patron’s adult son.”
Other customers and employees were able to break up the fight before the police arrived and advised those involved of the process for pursuing charges, should they opt to go that route, according to the VPD.
In a separate, belatedly documented incident, police went to the 200 block of Harmony Drive SW on June 2 to settle a dispute between a resident and a group of teen boys.
Officers received two calls about the incident: one from the resident and another from a caller who claimed the resident had brandished a handgun.
The resident advised she heard a loud banging at her front door and she observed several teenage boys standing by the curb. The resident yelled at the boys, swearing and using racial slurs. When the boys began cursing back she called the police. The boys advised they left the local pool and were waiting for a ride when an unknown boy ran up to the resident’s door, knocked, and ran away. The resident then began yelling at them and emerged with a gun.
The resident told officers that she was holding her phone to call the police, not a gun — an assertion confirmed by a cell phone video that the boys recorded of the encounter, the VPD said.
Also in the department’s latest round-up, a traffic stop on June 30 led to the driver — a 30-year-old Herndon man — getting charged with carrying a concealed firearm without a permit, and a resident reported on July 13 that her dog got sick from ingesting rat poison while in her backyard.
“It is not known how the poison could have gotten into the resident’s yard,” police said.
At the Westwood Country Club on July 7, a “disgruntled” employee was trespassed after “breaking several plates, shoving the manager, and placing several employees in fear.”
In addition, a resident in the 1100 block of Moorefield Hill Court SW called police on July 10 to report that his dog walker had seen another woman who claimed to be a dog walker enter his home around noon that day:
At 7:30 p.m., a resident reported an incident from earlier in the day when his dog walker observed a woman walk through the carport and into his home. The woman immediately left saying she had the wrong house. The dog walker provided the resident with the woman’s description and the tag number from her vehicle. Officers went to the woman’s home and she advised them that she is a dog walker and accidentally walked into a home thinking it was her client’s address then quickly realized she was at the wrong house.
Photo via Google Maps
The man who fired multiple gunshots in Tysons Corner Center last summer has been sentenced to three years in prison, Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano announced today (Friday).
Noah Settles, a 23-year-old D.C. resident and rapper with the stage name No Savage, pleaded guilty on Feb. 9 to three counts of maliciously discharging a firearm in an occupied building and one count of using a firearm in the commission of a felony.
A Fairfax County Circuit Court judge also gave Settles 10 years of probation and barred him from returning to Tysons Corner Center, according to Descano’s office.
“Today, the justice system has shown that perpetrators of gun violence will be held accountable for their actions,” Descano said. “Firing a gun into a public space is a serious crime, one that endangered our community members and threatened their future sense of safety. In cases like these, it is the prosecutor’s job to ensure accountability and use the tools at our disposal to prevent this sort of dangerous incident from happening again.”
Settles sparked a panic at Tysons Corner Center on June 18, 2022 when he fired three gunshots during a busy Father’s Day weekend, according to police and prosecutors. No one was struck by the bullets, but three people were reportedly injured during the chaotic evacuation of the mall.
The Fairfax County Police Department later identified Settles as the man who had fired the shots, describing the incident as the escalation of an argument between two “crews” based in southeast D.C.
“During court hearings, video footage from mall surveillance cameras and bystanders’ phone show Settles getting into an altercation with another group of young people, fleeing briefly, then turning back to fire three shots by a mall kiosk,” Descano’s office said.
Settles was indicted by a grand jury on seven charges, but charges of attempted malicious wounding, brandishing a firearm and carrying a concealed weapon were dropped as part of the plea agreement.
Three years of jail time was the minimum sentence possible under his guilty plea. The maximum was 33 years.
Fairfax County residents will now be able to access some data related to local temporary gun removal cases.
On June 13 (Tuesday), Fairfax County Commonwealth Attorney Steve Descano released to the public a continuously updated digital dashboard that tracks ongoing and past Emergency Substantial Risk Orders — known more commonly as Red Flag Orders — as well as view demographic breakdowns of those subjected to ESROs by race, gender and age.
Instituted in 2020, Virginia’s red flag law gives the Fairfax County Police Department and Commonwealth’s Attorney the authority to temporarily remove a gun or guns from someone’s possession if they have probable cause that the individual poses a ‘substantial risk’ to themselves or others.
When contacted by community or family members seeking to initiate a red flag order under a civil order, law enforcement will begin an independent investigation to determine whether one is appropriate.
If an order is granted, individuals are barred from purchasing, possessing or transporting any firearms for up to 14 days with opportunities for extension.
Fairfax County is the only jurisdiction in the state with a team dedicated to red flag orders, Descano told FFXNow by email. The county is the source of 75% of red flag orders in Virginia, he said when announcing the new dashboard.
The dashboard is intended to improve public communications and demystify the court processes for the general public, similar to one on bond decisions that the prosecutor’s office launched last year.
“We wanted this dashboard to bring transparency and awareness to the community about this law and that it can be a tool that saves lives,” Descano wrote. “By showing that it is being used, I hope Fairfax residents will know that if they have a dangerous situation, they can pick up the phone and get help.”
In addition to allowing community members to be more knowledgable about Virginia’s red flag law, the dashboard aims to be a useful tool for prosecutors in guiding their work.
“The other important role of the dashboard is how it informs my prosecutors’ decision-making,” Descano wrote. “We’re using this internally to track cases and make sure nothing falls through the cracks, and that’s a key piece of our day-to-day work on these cases. We have about nine months of data now that we’re working with, and as we get more data on Red Flag Orders, we’ll be able to identify trends that may help us and law enforcement further protect the community and handle these cases.”
The Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office has opened 108 red flag cases since May 2022, 92% of them against men, according to the dashboard.
The data will expand over time as Descano’s office works to incorporate more and varied trends and demographics into the board, Public Information Officer Laura Birnbaum says.
“There’s a lot more in this story to tell about how these orders are coming to the police, who’s initiating them, who are the respondents and what kind of situations are we seeing these these orders come out. There’s more data and more trends to pull apart,” Birnbaum said. “…Are there times of year where we see more of these and others? What does that help inform us about other ways we could do gun violence prevention work?”
A Fairfax County judge has revoked the bond for one of the four people who allegedly stole from Nordstrom Rack and led police on a vehicle chase in Tysons last week.
The man allegedly behind the wheel during the pursuit, which involved collisions with multiple police cruisers, was initially granted a $5,000 personal recognizance bond by the Fairfax County General District Court on Thursday (June 8).
However, Fairfax County Circuit Court Judge Christine Leary agreed with prosecutors on Friday (June 9) that the man — a 24-year-old D.C. resident — could present a danger to the community if released.
“Given the allegations, the court has concerns about the safety of the community if this defendant is released,” Leary said before revoking the bond as requested by the Office of the Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney.
The man has been charged with grand larceny, conspiracy to commit grand larceny, stealing property with the intent to sell it, eluding police and two counts of assault on law enforcement.
According to the Fairfax County Police Department, officers with its Tysons Urban Team were called to Nordstrom Rack at 8027 Leesburg Pike for a reported larceny around 1:25 p.m. on June 6.
Upon seeing the officers, three men and a woman ran to a parked vehicle and drove away, hitting three FCPD cruisers in the process, police said. The individuals bailed out of the vehicle around 1:30 p.m. but were all eventually taken into custody.
About $1,690 worth of merchandise was stolen from Nordstrom Rack, Fairfax County Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Kaitlin Morgan told the court on Friday.
Though the FCPD previously said that a gun was found in the vehicle, a defense attorney representing the alleged driver said an officer indicated the firearm was actually on the woman when police recovered it.
The woman, an Alexandria resident, has been charged with carrying a concealed weapon in addition to grand larceny, property theft and fleeing law enforcement, according to court records. She and the other two men — both D.C. residents — were all released after arraignments on Wednesday (June 7).
Arguing that the bond should be kept in place, the defense lawyer questioned the prosecution’s allegation that his client was driving the car during the pursuit.
“There’s an allegation that my client was driving, but I’ve not been provided proof,” he said, telling Leary that the man has no history of failing to appear and there’s no indication violence was intended.
Morgan countered that, while the man’s past criminal history mostly involved theft charges, the use of a vehicle to ram police cruisers represented an “escalation” that posed “significant danger” to officers and other community members in the area.
She said the man was also seen “joking with his accomplices” about “spanking the police” in reference to the chase.
“Thankfully, no one was injured that day,” Morgan said.
Preliminary hearings for all four defendants in the case have been scheduled for Aug. 7.
A 21-year-old man has been sentenced to serve two years in prison for a fatal shooting at the Vienna Park apartments that the judge described as “a parent’s worst nightmare.”
What began as an intoxicated hangout between friends ended in tragedy when Vienna resident Andrew Gordiyenko shot 21-year-old Matthew Chadwick on June 10, 2021, according to defense attorney Erik Jurgensen’s recounting of the incident at a sentencing hearing on Friday (June 9).
Chadwick died at a hospital the following day, Vienna police reported.
Gordiyenko was arrested on March 14, 2022 and pleaded guilty on Jan. 31 to involuntary manslaughter and reckless discharge of a firearm. A felony charge of unlawful firing in an occupied dwelling had already been dismissed at a Sept. 12 preliminary hearing, per court records.
Fairfax County Circuit Court Judge Christie Leary sentenced Gordiyenko to five years of incarceration, suspending three of them, followed by two years of active probation. She admitted to struggling with how to balance the need to hold Gordiyenko accountable and the awareness that he didn’t intend to kill his friend.
“All I see is heartbreak,” Leary said, looking out at a courtroom with both Gordiyenko’s parents and Chadwick’s family and supporters. “…What this sentence boils down to is punishment only. I think he’s going to punish himself far worse than I ever could.”
Under the plea agreement, Gordiyenko faced a potential sentence of six to 36 months. At the request of Chadwick’s family, Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney Jenna Sands called for him to get the maximum term, while Jurgensen argued for a period on the lower end of that range.
“The Gordiyenko family will feel devastation, but it cannot equal the devastation” felt by the Chadwick family, Sands said, advocating for a sentence in line with the wishes of Chadwick’s family to give them “some small amount of control.”
Chadwick’s family declined to comment on the sentencing.
Vienna police officers were dispatched to the 100 block of Patrick St. SE in the early morning hours of June 10, 2021. Upon arriving, they found Chadwick inside an apartment with a gunshot wound to the head, according to the department’s news release.
Video submitted to the court showed Gordiyenko, Chadwick and a third person who was the apartment’s resident all handling the gun while under the influence of drugs and alcohol, Jurgensen said, acknowledging that it was “reckless behavior.”
“This case seems to have layer upon layer of sadness,” he said. “We have two young people that were friends, and one is gone and the other is responsible.”
The gun belonged to the third, unidentified person in the apartment. It was a “ghost gun,” a firearm with no serial number that can be assembled from a kit, according to the Office of the Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney.
Because ghost guns are technically purchased in parts, they’re not subject to background checks, and the lack of a serial number makes them difficult to trace. In Virginia, it’s not illegal to own a gun without a serial number — but it is a crime to be caught removing it, the commonwealth’s attorney’s office says.
Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano has advocated for stricter laws on ghost guns, but a bill that would criminalize sales, transfers and purchases died in a Virginia House of Delegates public safety subcommittee on Feb. 22.
“Matthew Chadwick’s death is the result of a tragic incident that didn’t need to end this way,” Descano said in a statement. “When ghost gun manufacturers use loopholes to evade even the most basic gun control laws, they enable access to deadly weapons. All too often, I see how the proliferation of guns in the hands of young people results in unnecessary harm and death.”
The Department of Justice implemented a policy last year that added ghost gun kits to the definition of firearms, requiring manufacturers to be subject to the same licensing and background check regulations as makers of traditional guns.
Kilmer Middle School was briefly put on alert this afternoon (Tuesday) while Fairfax County police searched Tysons for suspects in an alleged theft and hit-and-run at Nordstrom Rack.
Officers with the Fairfax County Police Department’s Tysons Urban Team responded to the clothing store at 8027 Leesburg Pike around 1:25 p.m. for a reported larceny, though an officer initially told the dispatcher that there was “no confirmed theft.”
The FCPD says four individuals fled when they saw the officers, first running on foot before getting into a vehicle and hitting three police cruisers.
According to scanner traffic, the individuals — described as three men and one woman — bailed out of the vehicle around 1:30 p.m. An officer then confirmed that there was a larceny, but it was not yet known whether it was petit or grand larceny.
A handgun was found in the vehicle, police said.
During the search, which involved K9 units and a helicopter, the police department advised that nearby Kilmer Middle School be secured with students scheduled to be released at 2:15 p.m.
“An area Middle School was briefly put on an elevated alert due to the fleeing suspects,” the FCPD said. “The school is no longer on an elevated alert.”
An officer confirmed at 2:26 p.m. that all four people had been taken into custody. Two of them were “evaluated for minor injuries,” police said.
The FCPD says the incident was a grand larceny, which is defined in Virginia as commercial thefts involving goods worth $1,000 or more. Charges haven’t been filed yet.
“Charging information will become available at a later time,” the FCPD said.
Photo via Google Maps
A man from Maryland was recently arrested in D.C. in connection with a gun store burglary in Newington, the Fairfax County Police Department announced yesterday (Monday).
Arrested by Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms agents on May 22, the 20-year-old is one of four men suspected by police of stealing 53 firearms from Dominion Defense (7200 Fullerton Road) between 3-4 a.m. on April 29.
According to the FCPD, security footage captured masked men “working together to gain entry into the business through a small opening above the door.”
“The men stole 53 firearms, which were a combination of long guns and handguns,” police said. “The fourth subject remained outside as a lookout. The suspects left in a gray Acura four-door sedan with no front license plate.”
The FCPD said 15 of the 53 stolen guns have been recovered by law enforcement, but didn’t provide details about how the guns were located.
“At this time, we cannot confirm if any guns have been involved in other crimes around the region,” an FCPD spokesperson told FFXnow.
The one identified suspect has been charged with burglary and larceny of firearms. He is currently being held without bond at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center.
The FCPD, ATF and National Shooting Sports Foundation are still offering a $11,000 reward to community members who provide information that helps identify the remaining suspects.
Detectives in the FCPD’s West Springfield Police District can be contacted at 703-644-7377. The department also accepts anonymous tips through Crime Solvers.
(Updated at 6:25 p.m.) A Florida man arrested in McLean yesterday (Tuesday) had guns in his car and was allegedly on his way to the CIA, Fairfax County police say.
The man was reported for trespassing at the Immanuel Presbyterian Church (1125 Savile Lane) around 11:11 a.m. The church is also the site of Dolley Madison Preschool and the Speech and Language Center of Northern Virginia.
“He’s acting strange. Caller approached, and subject stated he was going to walk his dog and he headed toward the CIA building,” a dispatcher said, according to scanner traffic on Open MHz.
The Fairfax County Police Department says that the man wasn’t armed when officers found him, but two guns, including an AK-47, were found in his car.
The 32-year-old man from Florida has been detained and charged with felony possession of a firearm on school property, according to the FCPD.
“We appreciate Fairfax County Police’s diligence in addressing this threat, and we will continue to cooperate with them to ensure the security and safety of our personnel and our facility,” a CIA spokesperson said.
The man was detained & search warrant executed on his vehicle. Two firearms (pictured) were recovered from the car. Eric Sandow, 32, of Florida was charged with felony possession of a firearm on school property. #FCPD
— Fairfax County Police (@FairfaxCountyPD) May 24, 2023
Dozens of firearms were stolen from a gun shop in the Newington area in an overnight burglary this past weekend, the Fairfax County Police Department says.
Over 50 firearms were taken from Dominion Defense (7200 Fullerton Road) between 3 and 4 a.m. on Saturday (April 29), according to police.
Four masked men were seen on security footage working together to gain entry into the business through a small opening above the door. Three of the four men stole 53 firearms, which were a combination of long guns and handguns. The fourth subject remained outside as a lookout. The suspects left in a gray Acura four-door sedan with no front license plate.
The FCPD’s Major Crimes Bureau has now partnered with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the National Shooting Sports Foundation to offer a $11,000 reward for information that will help them identify and locate the suspects.
“ATF will continue to collaborate with our partners by offering our investigative and analytical resources to ensure that the stolen firearms are recovered as quickly as possible,” ATF Washington Field Division Acting Special Agent in Charge Michael Weddel said in a news release. “More often than not, stolen firearms are used in a crime of violence that often leads to someone being injured or killed.”
As of today (Thursday), over 14,000 people in the U.S. have died from gun violence this year, more than half of them by suicide, according to data collected by the independent nonprofit Gun Violence Archive.
The FCPD advises anyone with information to contact detectives at its West Springfield Police District by calling 703-644-7377. Tips can also be submitted anonymously through Crime Solvers by phone (1-866-411-TIPS) and online.
A man who ended up in a shootout with state police and one Fairfax County officer after an extended chase on I-95 earlier this month has now been charged with attempted capital murder of a law enforcement officer.
Michael C. Davis, a 34-year-old man from North Chesterfield, was also charged on Wednesday (April 26) with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and eluding policy, the Virginia State Police announced yesterday. All three counts are felonies.
Served by VSP’s Fairfax office after consulting prosecutors in Prince William County, the newly announced charges come on top of a felony abduction charge against Davis. He’s accused of abducting a woman in Ithaca, New York, who was shot and killed during the gunfight with police on April 5.
According to state police, the encounter began at 9:40 p.m. when a trooper pulled over a Jeep Cherokee going south on I-95 near the Backlick Road exit in Springfield for having the wrong license plates on display.
“The trooper approached the Jeep, and spoke to both the adult male driver and adult female passenger,” police said. “It was not until the trooper returned to his patrol car to verify the driver’s information that he learned that the driver was wanted by New York State Police for abducting the adult female passenger.”
VSP’s account has been slightly revised from its initial report, which suggested the trooper was aware before he pulled the vehicle over that it was wanted for the abduction of 34-year-old Ithaca resident Tatiana David, thanks to a license plate reader alert.
Police say Davis fled south on I-95 “within seconds” of the trooper getting the notice about the vehicle’s connection to the abduction. The pursuit continued into Prince William County until the Jeep drove off the road and crashed into woods near the exit to Quantico.
“As soon as the troopers approached the SUV, Davis, who remained in the driver’s seat, began shooting at them. State police returned fire,” police said.
David died at the scene, though it remains unclear if she was shot by police or Davis. Her body was taken to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Manassas for an autopsy.
Also injured, Davis was transported for treatment at Inova Fairfax Hospital, where he was released on Tuesday (April 25), according to the VSP. He remains in custody without bond at the Prince William County Adult Detention Center.
A VSP spokesperson confirmed that the troopers involved in the shooting remain on administrative leave as the criminal investigation and a separate internal administrative investigation continue.
The Fairfax County Police Department said one of its K9 officers — seven-year veteran Pfc. Andrew Snow — also fired his gun while assisting in the pursuit. The department said earlier that Snow was “placed on modified restricted duty” but didn’t respond by press time when FFXnow asked if that’s still the case.
An internal affairs investigation by the FCPD and an independent review by the county’s police auditor are still underway.
No police were injured in the shooting. The VSP says two firearms were found at the scene.
