Two theft suspects have been charged in connection with the assault of an Arlington County police officer at the Pentagon City mall over the weekend.
Police say the women, both from the District, “became combative” when an officer attempted to detain them following a theft from a store in the mall Saturday night.
They’re now facing a combination of assault on law enforcement, obstruction of justice, theft and contributing to the delinquency of a minor charges.
From an ACPD crime report:
ASSAULT ON POLICE, 161008041, 1100 block of S. Hayes Street. At approximately 9:20 p.m. on October 8, an officer working the mall detail received a call from a store employee advising that a larceny had just occurred in their store. The officer located individuals matching the description made by the mall employee and attempted to detain the subjects to conduct the investigation. The subjects became combative and struggled with the officer. Backup officers arrived on scene and the two subjects were taken into custody. Ebony Cloyd, 36, of Washington DC, was arrested and charged with assault on law enforcement, obstruction of justice, petit larceny and contributing to the delinquency of a minor (x3). She was held on no bond. Prana Bell, 41, of Washington DC was charged with obstruction of justice and contributing to the delinquency of a minor (x3). She was held on a $5000 secure bond.
An 11-year-old throwing plates out of a high-rise apartment prompted a large police response in Ballston over the weekend.
The incident happened around 9 p.m. Saturday at the Randolph Towers apartment building along N. Quincy Street. No injuries were reported.
From an Arlington County Police Department crime report:
DESTRUCTION OF PROPERTY, 161008040, 4000 block of N. 9th Street. At approximately 9:00 p.m. on October 8, police were dispatched to the report of an unknown subject throwing dishware from a high level balcony. The investigation revealed that an 11-year-old male juvenile in a mental health crisis was responsible. His family was referred to government services.
A number of nearby residents were tweeting about the incident as the sound of shattering plates could be heard echoing around the area.
County Offices Open for Columbus Day — Arlington County offices are open today during the Columbus Day holiday, but parking meters will not be enforced, according to the county’s holiday schedule. Courts, DMV locations and schools will be closed, while ART buses will run on a modified holiday schedule. [Arlington County]
Cyclist Cited for Eluding — There was a brief police pursuit of sorts Friday afternoon, involving a cyclist in the Courthouse neighborhood. “An officer activated his lights and sirens after witnessing the cyclist run a red light,” said Arlington County Police spokeswoman Ashley Savage. ‘When the cyclist refused to stop, the officer rode beside him and attempted to make verbal contact with the cyclist. The cyclist eventually stopped and was released on two citations, one for the red light violation and one for eluding.”
Public Art Initiative Coming to Courthouse — On Saturday, Oct. 15, the “Reimagine Civic” public art initiative will bring “C_vic,” an interactive sculpture, to Courthouse Square near the county government headquarters. The sculpture has a space between the first “C” and “V” where members of the community can stand, in place of the “I,” and take a photo. [InsideNova]
Existing field at Bluemont Park (photo via Arlington County)
Existing field at Bluemont Park (photo via Google Maps)
Floodplain map of Bluemont Park
Undeterred by the fact that the Arlington County Board already approved a contract for the project earlier this summer, a group of Bluemont and Boulevard Manor residents are continuing to fight the planned construction of a baseball and softball field in Bluemont Park.
Opponents of the project faced off with youth baseball and softball boosters — who support the new field and say it’s necessary to meet demand — at a community meeting Wednesday night. The “listening session” was organized by Arlington County, in response to opposition to the field that has been building since late summer.
A primary concern of the opponents: that the field will be fenced in, thus precluding other uses of what’s currently a poorly maintained but open baseball diamond. A temporary construction fence is already up at the site.
In a presentation during the meeting, county staff said the renovation will bring the field to “County and industry standards and address accessibility, safety and stormwater requirements.”
A county spokeswoman, meanwhile, said the discussion from the meeting and other community feedback will be considered by county staff and the County Board.
“The community is invited to share additional feedback on the website through October 14,” said Bryna Helfer, Arlington’s newly-appointed Director of Communications and Public Engagement. “The County Manager will update the Board at the November 10, 2016 County Board recessed meeting.”
Baseball field opponents said the meeting did not change any minds or clear up the process going forward.
“It was the usual dog-and-pony show,” said local activist Suzanne Sundburg.
“There were a number of speakers who supported the fencing, baseball-softball enthusiasts, naturally,” Sundburg said. “But they were evenly matched by the number of other park users in the community who do not want open space to be fenced off permanently for just a single sport that is played, at most 8 months a year.”
“Staff couldn’t answer any questions about the construction schedule,” she continued. “Nor could they provide any timetable or date for a follow-up meeting.”
Sundburg said that some county staffers “indicated that the plan was pretty much set and that only ‘tweaks’ would be possible at this late date,” while others “were more open to urging the board to consider ‘options.'”
Opponents have been using dataandquantitativeanalysis to make the case against a year-round, fenced in baseball field.
One emailed county staff with “data… assembled and analyzed over the past 3 weeks,” arguing that baseball fields are used for only a portion of daylight hours during the year and that there are enough fields for existing baseball and softball games. Another argument: that the project is within a floodplain.
“No one wants to prevent the existing field from being used for baseball, though several people asked whether rehabbing this particular field (to the tune of $700K) made sense, given the existing drainage problems, proximity to a Chesapeake Bay Resource Protection Area, and the fact that this field lies in a FEMA floodplain,” the resident wrote.
Arlington County Police are searching for a masked suspect who chased children around Madison Manor Park, near the W&OD trail, this morning.
The incident was reported just after 11 a.m. It comes amid “creepy clown” threats against schools and sightings of threatening figures in clown masks.
The suspect in this morning’s incident was wearing a gray sweatshirt and a clown “skull” mask, according to a police lookout. It was initially reported that the suspect was wielding an axe; later it was reported that it was actually a skateboard.
Multiple kids reported seeing the “clown.” Police are now searching for the suspect around the park and up and down the trail.
Most elementary and middle school students in Arlington do not have school today due to parent-teacher conferences.
Update at 11:40 a.m. — Another witness told officers that the suspect was a teenager with red hair, whom she saw take off the mask and run off with two other teen boys, according to police radio traffic.
It was a frightening scenario: someone calls, says they have kidnapped your dad, and if you don’t pay up they’ll kill him.
That’s what reportedly happened to one woman in Arlington yesterday afternoon.
Except the terror quickly gave way to relief when the woman’s dad called and said he was fine — while she was gathering the ransom payment. Police are now investigating the incident.
From an Arlington County Police crime report:
ATTEMPT FRAUD, 161006026, 300 block of N. Glebe Road. At approximately 2:58 p.m. on October 6, police were dispatched to the report of attempted fraud and telephone threats. The female victim received a phone call at approximately 12:48 p.m. from an unknown caller stating he had kidnapped and would kill her father unless she provided him with money. While attempting to retrieve funds, the victim’s father called her place of employment advising that he was not in danger. The victim then ended the call and contacted police. The investigation is ongoing.
The Staples store at 3804 Wilson Blvd in Virginia Square is slated for redevelopment, though the plans are still in the early stages.
Schupp Companies presented a plan to build a hotel on the site to the Ashton Heights Civic Association last month.
“My understanding is that the redevelopment would also replace the apartments on that side of N. Oakland [Street],” said a resident who was in attendance.
Ray Schupp said the exact details are still fluid and that his company will be working with residents to craft the plan.
“We have not decided exactly what we’ll do with the site,” Schupp told ARLnow.com. “We are exploring several options including a hotel. That being said we have been extremely pleased with the reception of the community to our new Hyatt hotel at Courthouse.”
“We will be working with the County staff and the neighbors on solutions to the Staples site,” Schupp continued. “Just as we developed a close relationship with Lyon Village homeowners and reached a win-win solution to the Courthouse site… we will work with the community and staff on this.”
Plans should begin to firm up within 3-4 months, said Schupp.
ACPD Officer Played in NFL — Arlington County Police officer Dorian Brooks was formerly an offensive lineman for the Pittsburgh Steelers. At 6’3″ and 280 lbs, Brooks has lost some weight from his playing days — which included a 2011 Super Bowl appearance — but remains an imposing figure on the beat. [WUSA]
Write-in Candidate: Congressman Stole My Porn — Write-in congressional candidate Mike Webb continued his press release barrage early this morning with a curious one: an evidence-free accusation that Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) broke into his home and stole cell phone chargers, digital cameras and an external hard drive containing his porn stash. The subject line of the email: “VIP Beyer Steals External ‘Sex Drive’ and Impotent Webb Wants Good Porn Bac [sic].” Webb inadvertently made headlines earlier this year by releasing an image showing tabs for porn websites on his computer, later claiming that he was just testing said sites for viruses. [PDF]
Flights Canceled Due to Matthew — Hurricane Matthew’s jaunt up the Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina coast is leading to numerous flight cancellations at Reagan National Airport. [WJLA]
New Bishop Is an Eagles Fan — The Diocese of Arlington’s incoming bishop, Michael Burbidge, is a big fan of the Philadelphia Eagles, the Redskins’ NFC East foe. He received the call telling him the pope had appointed him to replace Bishop Paul Loverde in Arlington during the recent Eagles-Steelers game — though he unknowingly let the call go to voicemail. [News & Observer]
Columbia Pike Fall Wine and Craft Beer Fest — Sponsored — Sample Columbia Pike’s unique wines and rare craft beers at this family-friendly, ticketed event. It’s taking place Saturday, Oct. 8 from 3-8 p.m. on Adams Street at Columbia Pike. Food and beverages from Pike restaurants will be available for purchase, and a children’s area and musical performances will keep all visitors entertained. [CPRO]
Just Listed highlights Arlington properties that just came on the market within the past week. This feature is written and sponsored by Team Cathell, “Your Orange Line Specialists.”
Arlington buyers have 63 new listings this week to choose from.
Most of those are in the lower to mid-price points of $300,000 to $850,000. But those buyers must have hit the snooze button this week because they ratified only 45 contracts. That’s the slowest pace since mid-August. Of those ratified, all but six were under the price of $1 million, possibly indicating that the higher end market has slowed considerably. Many of the sold homes this week had been on the market over 60 days, and three had been listed for about a year.
Interest rates this week held steady with no real change, leaving the 30-yr fixed rate still at 3.54%.
According to scanner traffic, a caller told police that her child saw a clown emerge from some woods in the Arlington Mill neighborhood around 11 a.m. today (Thursday).
“Police were dispatched to the 800 block of S. Frederick Street at approximately 11:36 for a possible clown sighting,” Arlington County Police spokeswoman Ashley Savage confirmed to ARLnow.com.
“There was a half an hour delay in reporting to police,” Savage continued. “Police arrived on scene and canvassed the area with negative results. An officer will remain in the area conducting extra checks. If citizens see anything suspicious, we encourage them to report information to dispatch immediately at 703.558.2222.”
On Monday ACPD stepped up its presence at schools in response to threatening messages on social media. Despite being exposed as youthful hoaxes in many parts of the country, numerous social media accounts — including the one pictured above — still purport to belong to local “clown gangs.”
Police take these reports seriously. Reporting party was young juvenile. Numerous citizens in area did not witness anything suspicious. https://t.co/hnHh1DtRx9
Supreme Court justices and protesters have both come to Arlington’s Virginia Square neighborhood for a dedication ceremony for George Mason University’s newly-named Antonin Scalia Law School.
The ceremony started at 11 a.m. at the law school, located at 3301 Fairfax Drive. Police have closed N. Kirkwood Road as a security measure.
The school was named for the late Supreme Court justice after GMU received $30 million in donation pledges. In addition to the six Supreme Court justices expected to attend this morning, members of the Scalia family are also on hand for the dedication.
The protesters say they’re demonstrating against the university’s decision to put “donor interests before those of its students and faculty.”
Two theft suspects have been charged in connection with the assault of an Arlington County police officer at the Pentagon City mall over the weekend.
