crime

Event to Explore the Gangs of Arlington

By ARLnow.com

Arlington may have a relatively low crime rate and a reputation for being a idyllic “urban village,” but there are still gangs — including the notorious MS-13 street gang — operating in our midst.

An event next week will remind residents that Arlington is not without gang activity and gang-related violence.

On Tuesday, April 17, Leadership Arlington will be holding a panel discussion entitled “Arlington County Gangs: Exploring the Shadows of Our Urban Mayberry.” Part of the organization’s spring speaker series, the event will focus on “the threats that gang activity present to the Arlington community,” “contributing factors to youth participation in gangs” and “initiatives in place to address gang-related violence.”

The speakers include Robert “Tito” Vilchez of the Arlington County Task Force, a member of the Arlington County Police Gang Unit, and Meredith McKeen of Northern Virginia Family Services.

Gang activity might not be visible to many residents, but it is to many of Arlington’s youth. One in six Arlington Public Schools students know at least one person who is involved in gang activity, according to the event invitation.

The panel discussion will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the WETA building (2775 S. Quincy Street). Tickets are $40 for the general public and $30 for Leadership Arlington members. Lunch is included in the price of admission.

WMATA Launches Anti-Sexual Harassment Campaign

By Katie Pyzyk

Metro has officially embarked on an awareness campaign to fight incidents of sexual harassment against people using the system.

“This purpose of this outreach is to let people know that it’s not okay to sexually harass people on Metro,” said Metro General Manager and CEO Richard Sarles on WMATA’s website. “We are encouraging anyone who may be harassed to report the incident to Metro Transit Police.”

Phase one included this week’s launch of an online reporting system. Victims have the option of remaining anonymous, but all reports will be sent directly to Metro Transit Police. An email address, [email protected], has also been set up to allow customers to send photos or video to assist in an investigation.

According to the website, reportable behavior includes “extended leering, sexual comments, indecent exposure, stalking and groping.” Even if an incident doesn’t seem like a crime, victims are asked to still report what happened so Metro can spot trends and try to prevent future crimes from occurring. Right now, WMATA does not track such statistics.

“Prior to this initiative, we were not collecting data on reported harassment that did not rise to the level of a crime,” said WMATA spokesman Dan Stessel. “Over the next few months, we will track the data, develop a baseline for future comparisons, and report statistics publicly on a quarterly basis.”

A number of Arlington incidents of harassment on Metro have been made public over the last couple of years. An apparent repeat offender at the Courthouse station was reported to police by at least one woman whom he grabbed after taking a cell phone photo up her skirt. Another apparent repeat offender has been reported at the Pentagon stop in posts on the advocacy website Collective Action for Safe Spaces.

“The changes that Metro is making to address public sexual harassment and assault is a testament to the hundreds of stories we received on our site,” Collective Action for Safe Spaces Co-founder Chai Shenoy said on WMATA’s website. “We see this partnership as a step in the right direction and a model for other transit agencies around the world to follow.”

As part of the anti-harassment initiative, soon customers will see posters for the campaign displayed on buses and in train stations. Materials will be handed out throughout the system. Metro is also working on enhancing training for its employees on the front lines.

Crime Report: Cash Briefcase Edition

By ARLnow.com

A would-be crime victim said “no deal” to a criminal who tried to steal his briefcase full of cash.

The attempted robbery took place in a Crystal City parking garage. According to this week’s Arlington County crime report, the victim was able to hang on to his briefcase even after the suspect struck him in the back of the head.

ATTEMPTED ROBBERY, 04/02/12, 2400 block of S. Crystal Drive. At 5 am on April 2, a victim was walking from his car to his place of work, when he was struck in the back of the head by an unknown object by a subject. The suspect attempted to steal the victim’s briefcase, which was carrying approximately $1,000 cash, but was unable to get the victim to release his grip. The suspect fled the scene on foot and the victim alerted a building security guard. The suspect is described as a black male, approximately 5’9″ tall and 250 lbs. At the time of the attempted robbery, the suspect was wearing all black, with a black ski mask covering his face.

The rest of this week’s crime report, after the jump.

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Crime Report: Caught With One’s Pants Down Edition

By ARLnow.com

In this week’s Arlington County crime report, a woman called police after walking past a parked car in Rosslyn and spotting the driver with his pants down.

EXPOSURE, 03/23/12, 1400 block of N. Key Boulevard. On March 23, at 7:15 am, a female victim reported seeing a male subject sitting in a parked vehicle with his pants down as she walked past. The victim took a picture of the subjects car, which caused the subject to drive away. The victim did not wish to press charges.

In Ballston, a man ran from police after officers tried to stop him for questioning. Police say they recovered more than two pounds of pot from the man’s backpack.

POSSESSION WITH INTENT TO DISTRIBUTE (MARIJUANA), 03/23/12, 900 block of N. Taylor Street. On March 23 at 4:20 pm, officers attempted to stop a male suspect in relation to a robbery and a foot pursuit ensued. The suspect was eventually apprehended and a backpack with over 2 lbs of pre-packaged marijuana was found in his possession. Arif Hassan Ahmed, 24, of Arlington, VA, was charged with possession with intent to distribute and was held without bond.

The rest of this week’s crime report, after the jump.

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St. Paddy’s Day Crime Statistics

By ARLnow.com

The statistics on St. Patrick’s Day are in from the Arlington County Police Department. Police responded to more than two dozen alcohol-related incidents as revelers packed local bars to celebrate the holiday.

ACPD reported the following crimes on Saturday, denoted by the number of separate incidents officers responded to.

  • Drunk in Public — 13
  • Assaults where alcohol was involved — 7
  • Driving Under the Influence — 4
  • Urinating in Public — 1
  • Drunk parent at bar with baby (referred to Child Protective Services) — 1

Each incident resulted in at least one arrest or summons, according to police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck.

Crime Report: Bar Fight Leads to Finger Bite

By ARLnow.com

In this week’s Arlington County crime report, a man allegedly had the tip of his finger bitten off by an acquaintance during a fight outside of a bar. Doctors were unable to reattach the finger tip, according to police.

MALICIOUS WOUNDING BY MOB, 03/18/12, 2600 block of N. Pershing Drive. At 2:15 am on March 18, a victim was assaulted outside of a bar by known subjects. During the fight, the victims right index fingertip was bitten off by one of the subjects. Rudy Sales Perez, 21, of Arlington, and Jose Lopez Sales, 23, of Arlington, were charged with malicious wounding by mob and held without bond.

Also in this week’s report, a man was pistol-whipped and robbed after trying to meet up with a woman he met online.

ROBBERY, 03/16/12, 5000 block of Columbia Pike. On March 16 at 8:25pm, a male victim was robbed at gunpoint by two subjects. The victim had been involved in online solicitation earlier in the day and had come to Arlington to meet up with the female. The victim contacted the female by cell phone and was told a family member would meet him to escort him to her residence. When the victim was led to a wooded area, two subjects brandished handguns and demanded him to lay down. The victim was pistol-whipped and robbed of $80, a cell phone and 2 Metro cards. The suspects are described as black males, thin builds, approximately 6′ and 5’6″, and both were wearing black Northface jackets, black pants and baseball hats.

The rest of this week’s crime report, after the jump.

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Arlington Homicide-Free for Two Years, But ACPD Staffing Levels a Concern

By ARLnow.com

As of today, Arlington County has been homicide-free for exactly two years. It’s the first time Arlington has gone this long without a homicide in the 72-year history of the Arlington County Police Department.

“Reaching this mark is only possible through a combination of effective policing, excellent medical care, successful prosecution and cooperating communities; all of which we have experienced in Arlington County the past two years,” police chief M. Douglas Scott said in a statement.

The county has not recorded a single homicide since March 14, 2010, when a 20-year-old man was stabbed to death in the Lyon Park neighborhood. The suspect in the case later pleaded guilty to second degree murder.

Amid the celebration of the murder-free milestone, however, there’s some concern within the department that there are not enough cops on the street to ensure that the recent, broader drop in crime continues. Despite a growing population and new post-9/11 anti-terrorism responsibilities, Arlington’s police force has actually shrunk slightly since 2001.

Whereas there were 362 sworn officers in Fiscal Year 2001 for a population of 189,983, there are currently 359 sworn officers for a population of 213,400 in FY 2012. That means ratio of officers to every 1,000 residents is 1.68, compared to 1.91 in FY 2001. That ratio is expected to get even narrower — to 1.67 — if the current recommended FY 2013 budget is adopted. (The population is expected to grow to 215,000 while the budget doesn’t provide for any additional officers.)

By comparison, in 2010 Alexandria’s officer/resident ratio was 2.19, and D.C.’s ratio was 6.52, according to a law enforcement source. Just to match Alexandria’s ratio, Arlington would need to hire more than 100 new officers.

“Our numbers are extremely low,” a police official told ARLnow.com. “Obviously we’re working efficiently, I don’t think anybody would deny that… [but] at some point in time, I’m not sure how much lower our ratio can go” without a corresponding increase in crime.

Crime Report: Domestic Violence Edition

By ARLnow.com

In this week’s Arlington County crime report, two men are accused of particularly vicious instances of domestic violence. Both alleged crimes took place yesterday (Tuesday) while in public.

At 11:50 a.m. on Tuesday, a man is accused of holding down a woman and threatening her in Crystal City, before a Good Samaritan intervened.

ABDUCTION/ASSAULT & BATTERY, 03/13/12, 2600 block of Jefferson Davis Highway. On March 13 at 11:50 am, a male subject and a known female victim were involved in a verbal argument. When the female attempted to flee the scene on foot, the male subject knocked her to the ground and threatened her while holding her around the neck to the ground. A witness came to assistance of the victim, recovered a knife from the subject and police arrived a short time later. James Curtis, 43, of Washington, DC, was charged with domestic assault and battery and abduction. Curtis was held without bail.

Later that day, a man was accused of breaking a car window and trying to pull a woman through the broken window, before she was able to drive away and lead him on a car chase that ended at a fire station.

ATTEMPTED MALICIOUS WOUNDING, 03/13/12, 1900 block of S. Walter Reed Drive. At approximately 8:10 pm on March 13, a victim was involved in a verbal argument with a known subject when the subject punched her vehicle window out and attempted to pull her from the vehicle. The victim was able to drive away but the subject followed her, striking her vehicle several times with his vehicle. The victim was able to stop at a local fire station and the suspect fled. Officers apprehended him a short distance away. Michael Hallmon, 50, of Arlington, was charged with attempted malicious wounding, felony hit and run, domestic assault, driving while intoxicated, refusal to submit to a breath test and possession of marijuana. He is being held without bond.

As always, all suspects are innocent until proven guilty. The rest of this week’s crime report, including the motivation behind Friday’s Buckingham shooting, after the jump.

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Crime Report: Creepy Behavior at Ballston Mall

By ARLnow.com

There were two incidents of men arrested for downright creepy behavior at Ballston Common Mall on Monday.

First, a man was arrested for allegedly masturbating while watching women work out at the Ballston Sport & Health Club in the mall.

INDECENT EXPOSURE, 03/05/12, 4200 block of Wilson Boulevard. At 6:20 am on March 5, a subject was seen masturbating in a public area of the mall while he was watching women exercise through a gym window. Alexei Rodriguez, 37, of no fixed address, was charged with indecent exposure and trespassing. He is being held without bond.

Just three hours later, a man was arrested for allegedly hiding inside a stall in the women’s bathroom.

PEEPING TOM, 03/05/12, 4200 block of Wilson Boulevard. On March 5 at 9:40 am, a male subject was found in a female bathroom stall peeping into the remaining area by Mall Security. Jacques Toube, 50, of Riverdale, MD, was charged with peeping and was held on a secured bond.

The rest of this week’s crime report, after the jump.

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Crime Report: Police Impersonation Edition

By ARLnow.com

A man impersonating a police officer stole cash from a man’s wallet last week after asking to see his identification and vehicle registration. From the latest Arlington County crime report:

IMPERSONATING A POLICE OFFICER, 02/25/12, 3700 block of N Lee Highway. Just prior to noon on February 24, an unknown subject impersonated a police officer and stole $160 cash from a man’s wallet after asking to see identification and vehicle registration. The suspect is described as a white male, approximately 45 years old, 5’9″ tall, with an average build. The suspect was reportedly driving a black convertible Ford Mustang.

Also last week, a burglar entered a residence and stole gear belong to a U.S. Park Police officer.

BURGLARY, 02/25/12, 2100 block of S. 26th Street. Between 10 pm on February 24, and 4 am on February 25, an unknown subject entered a residence and stole various items. Stolen items included a laptop, iPad and U.S. Park Police issued duty gear. There is no suspect description.

The rest of this week’s crime report, along with a previously-reported police impersonation home invasion, after the jump.

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Crime Report: Crapper Attacker Edition

By ARLnow.com

Someone broke into an Alcova Heights apartment last week, used the bathroom, and didn’t flush. From this week’s Arlington County crime report:

UNLAWFUL ENTRY, 02/17/12, 3600 block of S. 5th Street. Between 7:45 am, on February 14, and 6 pm, on February 15, an unknown subject entered the victim’s apartment and used the bathroom. There were no items reported missing. There is no suspect description.

According to Arlington County Police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck, the bathroom bandit may not have flushed, but he or she did, at least, turn off the lights.

“An unknown subject defacated in the victims toilet and didn’t flush,” Sternbeck said in an email. “The suspect also turned off interior lights in the residence that were left on… there were no signs of forced entry.”

Sternbeck said he could not recall any similar incidents in Arlington in recent memory. The rest of this week’s crime report, after the jump.

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