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.
(Updated at 6:10 p.m.) A woman who was allegedly abducted in New York died last night (Wednesday) after a police chase that started on I-95 in Springfield ended in gunfire near Quantico.
According to Virginia State Police, at 9:40 p.m., one of its troopers attempted to stop a Jeep Cherokee traveling south on I-95 near the Backlick Road exit for having the wrong license plates on display.
“When the trooper activated his lights and sirens, the Jeep pulled to the shoulder of I-95 near Exit 167 in Fairfax County,” police said. “The trooper made contact with the driver and returned to his patrol car.”
While checking the driver’s identity, the trooper learned that the driver — a 34-year-old adult man from North Chesterfield — was wanted in New York for allegedly abducting a woman — now identified as Tatiana David, 34, of Ithaca — earlier that day.
#VSP is investigating a pursuit & shooting that occurred on I-95 near Exit 148 in Prince William County. pic.twitter.com/VnjuzY6NZ0
— VA State Police (@VSPPIO) April 6, 2023
As the trooper returned to the Jeep to investigate, the vehicle “pulled away at a high rate of speed,” prompting a pursuit that extended into Prince William County, police said.
The fleeing vehicle initially crashed near the 152 mile marker, when it struck the guardrail, but kept going south on I-95. State police vehicles positioned around the Jeep to contain it and bring it to a stop. Near Exit 148 in Prince William County, the Jeep ran off the right side of the road and crashed into the woods. As troopers approached the SUV, the driver began shooting at them. State police returned fire.
During the shootout, the driver and David, a passenger in the Jeep, were both injured. The driver was transported to Inova Fairfax Hospital with injuries considered life-threatening, while David died at the scene.
“Her remains have been transported to the Office of the Medical Examiner in Manassas for examination and autopsy,” VSP said.
New video: It shows the high speed #chase from Newington to Quantico leading to the I-95 shootout where scores of shots were fired. It shows the driver repeatedly eluding #police as they tried to box it in & stop it. https://t.co/RCx0ypLPaF@SafetyVid @ffxnow @anobleDC
— Dave Statter (@STATter911) April 6, 2023
None of the police involved in the pursuit, including Fairfax County police officers who assisted, were injured. Also not injured were the Fairfax County Police Department helicopter and K9 officers called to assist.
One of the K9 officers fired their gun, according to the FCPD, which identified the officer as a seven-year veteran of the department.
“Per policy, that officer has been placed on modified restricted duty,” the FCPD said.
All the state troopers involved in the shooting have been placed on administrative leave while the incident is under investigation, the VSP said.
According to police, a firearm was found in the Jeep.
“State police is working with New York authorities in regards to the abduction investigation,” the VSP said. “Charges are pending.”
Southbound I-95 was closed to traffic in the Quantico area for the police investigation. As of 8:20 a.m., just two lanes had reopened, according to the Virginia Department of Transportation, which advised drivers to find an alternate route.
Update #Quantico: I-95SB: Center lane now opening, two lanes will now be open total. Pls expect delays or use alternate route.#VATraffic https://t.co/2JITovBnw0
— VDOT Northern VA (@VaDOTNOVA) April 6, 2023
A 25-year-old man whose extensive stash of fentanyl was discovered after a police pursuit in Lorton last summer now faces over 11 years in prison.
A federal judge sentenced Alpha Amin Kamara to 135 months in prison on Friday (March 10) for engaging in a conspiracy to distribute thousands of counterfeit pills containing fentanyl around Northern Virginia, federal prosecutors announced.
Identified as an Alexandria resident, Kamara was arrested on June 26, just days after being released from custody in connection to an earlier drug trafficking case.
More from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia:
According to court documents, Alpha Amin Kamara, 25, engaged in a conspiracy to distribute thousands of fentanyl pills from May 2022 until his arrest on June 26, 2022. Kamara was serving a term of home confinement when he entered the conspiracy, following his release from the custody of the Bureau of Prisons just days earlier. He immediately began distributing fentanyl pills to customers in northern Virginia, which he obtained through the U.S. Postal Service from sources in Arizona and Washington state.
On June 26, 2022, while driving a stolen vehicle, Kamara led police on a chase at speeds in excess of 140 miles per hour on Interstate 95. The resulting crash led to the discovery of over 18,000 fentanyl pills in the back of the stolen vehicle.
A day after his arrest, Kamara was released on his own recognizance, a decision attributed to a Fairfax County General District Court judge, according to FOX5.
His release came even though he had recently exited house arrest and was still under supervised custody for a 2017 case, where he was found guilty of possessing a firearm in furtherance a drug trafficking crime.
According to news reports from that time, Kamara was arrested by U.S. Marshals in December 2017 after a 12-hour standoff with police in Norfolk. In 2018, he was sentenced to five years in prison as part of a larger case known as “Operation Tin Panda.”
A day after he was released from Fairfax County jail last June, Kamara was arrested again by federal agents and held on federal charges, FOX5 reported. He was sentenced Friday at the U.S. District Court in Alexandria by Senior Judge T. S. Ellis, III.
Photo via Google Maps
One person is dead and another critically injured after a car apparently going well over the speed limit drove off an I-95 ramp in Springfield, crashed into trees, landed on a separate highway ramp and collided with another vehicle on Monday (Nov. 14).
According to the Virginia State Police, which responded to the crash at 11:16 a.m., the incident began as 19-year-old Bryan Osorto-Tejeda of Fredericksburg drove a 2013 Honda Accord north on I-95, taking the ramp to go west on Franconia Road (Route 644) “at a high rate of speed.”
“The Honda then ran off the left side of the road, through the guardrail and became airborne,” the VSP said in a news release yesterday. “As it traveled, it struck several trees, overturned and landed on the ramp from Route 644 to I-395 north where it was struck by a 2018 Toyota Highlander which subsequently struck the jersey wall.”
Update: Both ramps expected to be closed for a few more hours. Continue to seek alternate routes. https://t.co/fEzpiKQjiK
— VDOT Northern VA (@VaDOTNOVA) November 14, 2022
The Honda’s passenger — identified as Odaly Y. Hernandez, 19, of Woodbridge — died at the scene after being “ejected from the vehicle,” according to police, who say she wasn’t wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash.
Osorto-Tejeda was transported to Inova Fairfax Hospital with serious injuries. State police said he was also not wearing a seatbelt and got ejected from the car.
The driver and three passengers in the Toyota, including a 3-year-old girl and 4-year-old boy, were taken to a hospital to receive treatment for minor injuries, according to VSP. They were all wearing seatbelts or “age appropriate safety restraints,” in the case of the kids, police said.
“The preliminary investigation suggests the vehicle was traveling in excess of 100 mph,” VSP spokesperson Shelby Crouch told FFXnow.
The speed limit on I-95 and I-395 at the Route 644 interchange is 55 mph, according to VDOT’s speed limits map.
VSP says it is investigating “extreme speed” as a contributing factor and has charged Osorto-Tejeda with failure to maintain proper control.
Virginia classifies reckless driving as a Class 1 misdemeanor with a minimum fine of $250, but it can be elevated to a Class 6 felony if the person convicted had their driver’s license suspended or revoked at the time and the reckless driving directly caused a fatality.
There have been at least two other fatal crashes at the I-95/Route 644 interchange this year: one in May where a driver died after their vehicle caught fire and a hit-and-run in October, where an allegedly intoxicated driver killed a pedestrian whose car was disabled.
Image via Google Maps
(Updated at 10 a.m.) A Springfield resident who was allegedly driving while drunk hit and killed a man whose vehicle became disabled on I-95 yesterday (Tuesday).
Identified as Jose Davi Hernandez-Zelayandia, 35, of Woodbridge, the victim had stopped to assess his 2011 Honda Accord on the shoulder of the interstate’s southbound lanes at the exit to Old Keene Mill Road in Springfield, Virginia State Police said in a news release.
At 3:06 p.m., he started to get back into the car when “a 2022 Nissan Sentra ran off the road and struck him,” according to police.
“The Nissan then attempted to leave the scene, but was stopped by witnesses,” the VSP said.
Hernandez-Zelayandia was taken to Inova Fairfax Hospital, where he died from his injuries.
The Nissan driver, 61-year-old John O. Hess, was not injured, according to state police, which has a crash reconstruction team assisting with the investigation. He has been arrested and charged with a DUI and felony hit-and-run.
Hernandez-Zelayandia is the fourth pedestrian killed in Fairfax County this month, following fatal crashes in Fair Oaks on Sunday (Oct. 9), on Richmond Highway in Fort Belvoir last Thursday (Oct. 6), and in Annandale on Oct. 2.
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Two Rescued from Vehicle Crash on I-95 — “Approximately 3 a.m. [Saturday], units were on scene of a one vehicle crash, I-95 NB prior to Telegraph Rd. Rescue Squads 426 and 411 extricated two patients who were heavily entrapped in a pick up truck. Fire Department, City of Alexandria, VA assisted. Transported w/ non-life-threatening injuries.” [FCFRD/Facebook]
Seven Displaced by Annandale House Fire — “At 3:09 a.m., units dispatched for a house fire in the 3900 block of Terrance Drive, Annadale. Units arrived with fire showing. Multiple occupants were removed or assisted from the home by #FCFRD. No reported injuries. 7 displaced.” [FCFRD/Twitter]
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Annandale School Starts Principal Search — “Annandale Terrace parents will soon have an opportunity to participate in the selection process for a new principal. The current principal, Lisa Pilson, will start a new job July 1 as director of early childhood curriculum and grants management with Fairfax County Public Schools.” [Annandale Today]
Lifeguard Shortage Not an Issue in Reston — As of Wednesday (June 8), Reston Assocation has managed to hire 186 lifeguards for its swimming pools, a number it didn’t meet last year until September. While many pools across the country have struggled to find staff, RA says it retained 71% of lifeguards from last year and will continue hiring through the season to prepare for next year. [Patch]
It’s Monday — Humid and partly cloudy throughout the day. High of 85 and low of 72. Sunrise at 5:44 am and sunset at 8:37 pm. [Weather.gov]
Truck Fire Shuts Down I-95 South — “Saturday around 4:30 p.m., units were dispatched for a Truck Fire on I-95 South at Mile Marker 161. Multiple Vehicles on fire being transported by 18-Wheeler Vehicle Carrier, located in local lanes. Multiple Lanes were shutdown in southbound lanes. No reported injuries.” [FCFRD/Twitter]
BB Gun Drawn in Reston Over Smoking Confrontation — A security guard was surrounded by 10 juveniles outside a business in the 11900 block of Market Street on May 31 after telling them that smoking was not allowed there. One of the juveniles displayed a handgun that police later determined was “a replica style Glock BB gun.” No injuries were reported, but police intend to seek petitions for charges. [FCPD]
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Firefighters Rescue Kitten in Woodlawn — “On Saturday, May 28, a crew from Woodlawn Fire Station (Tower 424) responded to a non-emergency call from the Mount Vernon area about a whimpering kitten that had been stuck in a tree for over an hour. The team of first responders, led by Lt. Dave Bender, used the bucket to access the kitten and bring it to safety.” [On the MoVe]
See Photos from Reston Pride — The 2022 Reston Pride Festival was held at Lake Anne Plaza on Saturday (June 4). The festival’s fifth iteration featured more than 65 vendors, drag and spoken word performances, the acapella quartet Kinsey Sicks, and more. [Washington Blade]
Things to Do in Fairfax County This Summer — Fairfax County’s guide to the season highlights outdoor concerts, swimming pools and water parks, a “family adventure pass” to county rec centers, the Fairfax County Public Library’s summer reading program, and the recently launched “Potomac Banks” tourism campaign. [Fairfax County Government]
It’s Monday — Clear throughout the day. High of 79 and low of 61. Sunrise at 5:45 am and sunset at 8:33 pm. [Weather.gov]
Metro Leaders Step Down — Metro General Manager and CEO Paul Wiedefeld and Chief Operating Officer Joe Leader resigned, effective immediately, last night (Monday) after the transit agency pulled 72 operators for failing to recertify. Wiedefeld had been set to leave on June 30 but says he wanted to “provide a more timely transition to Interim General Manager Andy Off.” [WMATA]
Mosby Woods Residents Split Over Possible Street Renamings — “The increasingly diverse neighborhood named after Confederate army battalion commander John S. Mosby…is another battleground, with the [Fairfax] City Council set to decide in June whether nine streets in Mosby Woods should be called something else.” [The Washington Post]
Pipe Replacement to Disrupt Wolf Trap Area Traffic — “Lawyers Road (Route 673) just south of Carhill Road will have one lane of alternating traffic in each direction via flagging Tuesday, May 17 through Wednesday, May 18, between 9 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. each day to replace a stormwater pipe…Through traffic will be detoured via Garrett Street, Trott Avenue, Vale Road, Hunter Mill Road and back to Lawyers” [VDOT]
Police Share Details on I-95 Crash — “The woman who died in last week’s fatal three-vehicle crash on Interstate 95 in Springfield, Virginia, was identified Monday by Virginia State Police….Speed and driver distraction are being investigated as contributing factors in the crash.” [WTOP]
Herndon IT Company Bought for $4.2B — “Herndon information technology contractor ManTech International Corp. (NASDAQ: MANT) said Monday morning it has agreed to be acquired by D.C. private equity powerhouse The Carlyle Group Inc. (NASDAQ: CG) in an all-cash transaction valued at $4.2 billion.” [Washington Business Journal]
Decision Nears on Lake Accotink Dredging — Fairfax County will make a final decision “in just weeks” on how to address sediment build-up in Springfield’s Lake Accotink. The options currently on the table would transport the sediment to a nearby industrial park or pipe it to Wakefield Park, where it would then be taken to a quarry via I-495, raising environmental and traffic concerns. [ABC7]
Reston Association’s Pool Season Underway — “Our Pools season has officially started! Check out these scenes from opening weekend at North Shore and Lake Audubon! Thanks to all who came out! We’re ready to have an amazing summer at the Pools!” [RA/Twitter]
Bear Sightings Might Become More Common — “Due to warmer weather, bears are beginning to move throughout the county. Be safe by securing your trash cans and bird feeders, reducing the likelihood of on of our hairy friends popping up in your community.” [Pat Herrity/Twitter]
It’s Tuesday — Clear throughout the day. High of 73 and low of 58. Sunrise at 5:56 am and sunset at 8:18 pm. [Weather.gov]
A person has died after a three-vehicle crash occurred early this morning (Monday) on I-95 in the Springfield area.
According to the Virginia State Police, troopers responded to a crash in the interstate’s southbound lanes at the 169 mile marker (Franconia Road) around 3:33 a.m.
“The impact of the crash caused one of the vehicles to strike the cement Jersey wall and catch fire,” VSP spokesperson Corinne Geller said in a statement. “A passerby was able to pull the passenger from the burning vehicle.”
The driver of the burning vehicle has been confirmed as the fatality. The passenger was transported to Inova Fairfax Hospital for treatment of serious injuries.
The occupants of the other two vehicles involved in the crash did not report any serious injuries, the VSP says. An investigation of the crash is currently underway.
