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State police intervene in race on I-395, leading to chase and multi-vehicle crash

Southbound I-395 approaching the exit to Edsall Road in Springfield (via Google Maps)

Multiple people were taken to the hospital early yesterday morning (Sunday) after an attempted drag race on I-395 turned into a police pursuit, resulting in a crash.

According to the Virginia State Police, troopers responded to southbound I-395 around 12:16 a.m. in response to an alert that two drivers were trying to race each other along the interstate in the Springfield area.

When police attempted to make a traffic stop, one of the drivers took the exit at Edsall Road, and the other — the driver of a Toyota Camry — “sped away in the southbound lanes of I-395,” the VSP said.

“As the Camry attempted to get away, it ‘split the lane’ and tried to drive between two other southbound vehicles,” police said in a news release. “The Camry collided with both causing them to both lose control and crash near Exit 2 for Edsall Rd. Meanwhile, the Camry continued on a short distance before finally coming to a stop.”

The Camry driver — identified as a 19-year-old man from Silver Spring, Maryland — and a passenger in the sedan were both transported to a local hospital, as were individuals in the two other vehicles involved in the crash. The injuries in all cases were deemed non-life-threatening.

The Camry driver has been charged with eluding police, racing that results in an injury, damage to property and tail-light violations.

“The incident remains under investigation,” the VSP said.

Separately, state police are investigating two crashes that occurred in the I-66 West Express Lanes near the Fairfax County Parkway exit in Fair Lakes around 3:43 a.m. yesterday — an incident that coincidentally also involved a Toyota Camry.

A westbound Toyota Camry lost control, hit the right jersey wall, and then came to rest in the left travel lane. The crash caused the vehicle to lose power and go dark. Moments later, a Range Rover traveling in the left travel lane was unable to avoid striking the Camry.

Two passengers in the Range Rover were not wearing seat belts and were ejected from the vehicle. Both of them were transported to area hospitals for treatment of life-threatening injuries. The driver and a third passenger refused medical treatment at the scene.

The driver of the Camry was transported to an area hospital.

Image via Google Maps

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Police: Reston men charged after hitting trooper vehicles during chases on Beltway

A Virginia State Police vehicle (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

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.

Person dies in Springfield crash after car plunges off I-495 onto train tracks

The westbound I-495 exit to I-395 North (via Google Maps)

(Updated at 11:40 a.m.) One person was killed early this morning (Tuesday) after their vehicle apparently drove off the Capital Beltway (I-495) near the Springfield Mixing Bowl and crashed onto railroad tracks below.

An initial investigation indicates that a Kia was headed west on I-495 towards northbound I-395 when it veered off the interstate near exit 170B, according to Virginia State Police, which responded at 1:19 a.m.

“The vehicle went over the side cement barrier and landed on the railroad tracks below. The impact of the crash caused the vehicle to immediately catch fire,” the VSP said in a news release.

In an update at 11:48 a.m., police confirmed that the person who died was the Kia’s driver and lone occupant.

Some ramps at the interchange were closed, but the scene has now been cleared, and Virginia Railway Express trains are up and running, WTOP reported shortly after 6:30 a.m.

“The remains have been transported to the Office of the Medical Examiner in Manassas for examination, autopsy and positive identification,” the VSP said.

Photo via Google Maps

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Driver wanted by FCPD rams state trooper vehicle during I-395 chase

Fairfax County police car lights (file photo)

The Fairfax County Police Department recovered a vehicle it was searching for last night (Wednesday) with the help of the Virginia State Police, which arrested the driver after an intense pursuit on I-395.

The 2006 Cadillac sedan landed on the FCPD’s radar on Jan. 29, when one of its officers pulled the vehicle over for a traffic violation around 8:25 p.m.

“The officer approached the car and during the encounter, the driver fled at a high rate of speed,” the police department told FFXnow.

The officer opted not to pursue the car after identifying the driver and owner as Nelson Bowman, a 31-year-old D.C. resident, the FCPD says. Instead, the officer got a felony warrant for speeding to elude law enforcement, which was entered into the national and state criminal information databases.

That information led a Virginia State Police trooper to flag the car at 8:55 p.m. yesterday on northbound I-395. An automated license plate reader notified the trooper that the vehicle was wanted by Fairfax County police.

“The trooper activated his emergency lights and sirens to initiate a traffic stop, but the Cadillac refused to pull over and sped away northbound on I-395,” VSP said. “A pursuit was initiated.”

During the chase, the Cadillac “rammed” one of the pursuing trooper’s vehicles, pushing it off the interstate and into a jersey wall, according to a state police news release. The trooper was taken to a hospital for an evaluation and treatment of “minor injuries.”

The chase concluded when the sedan stopped on the George Washington Parkway near Route 50 in Arlington County, per state police:

The pursuit ended when the Cadillac stopped on the George Washington Parkway near Route 50. The driver fled on foot. The driver was apprehended a short time later and taken into custody. A passenger was also taken into custody and later released. A handgun was recovered from inside the Cadillac.

State police charged the driver of the Cadillac, Nelson Bowman, 31, of Washington, D.C., with one felony malicious wounding on law enforcement, one felony assault of a law enforcement officer, one felony count of eluding police, one felony count of illegal possession of a concealed firearm, one felony count of hit and run, one felony count of destruction of property and one misdemeanor count of obstruction of justice.

Tractor-trailer crash spills sewage at Springfield Mixing Bowl, creating backups

A tractor-trailer overturned on a I-395 South ramp in Springfield, spilling sewage (via VDOT)

A tractor-trailer carrying sewage flipped over on I-395 in Springfield earlier today (Thursday), resulting in a tough morning commute for drivers headed away from D.C.

The Virginia Department of Transportation reported at 7:35 a.m. that the vehicle had overturned and spilled its contents on the southbound I-395 ramp to southbound I-95. All lanes were blocked.

Drivers already on the highway were directed to detour to the Capital Beltway (I-495) or Old Keene Mill Road, while VDOT advised those not yet caught up in the jam to seek alternate routes.

By 8 a.m., vehicles were able to get by on the left shoulder, and VDOT said that there had been no injuries. However, the department revealed that the truck’s contents turned out to be sewage.

“Pls check 511Virginia before you go bc things can get backed up,” the department tweeted.

Per 511Virginia, VDOT’s live traffic camera site, the southbound right shoulder remains closed, and traffic backups extend approximately 1.5 miles, as of 9:38 a.m.

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