Kevin Spacey Pulled Over at DCA — “After appearing in court Monday morning to address sexual assault allegations in Massachusetts, actor Kevin Spacey had yet another brush with law enforcement in the afternoon, this time around Reagan National Airport.” [TMZ, WTOP]

Family Trio All Serves on ACPD — “33 years ago, Corporal Diane Guenther swore she’d never date another police officer. Police Lieutenant Mark Guenther persuaded her otherwise, and they married a year after they started dating. Their daughter, Harley, just celebrated two years as an Arlington County police officer.” [WDVM]

Police Holding Outreach Meetings — The Arlington County Police Department’s latest quarterly outreach meetings will be held at the Fairlington Community Center on Thursday, Jan. 24 and at Arlington Central Library on Tuesday, Jan. 29. Both meetings start at 7 p.m. [Twitter]

Group to Hold Forum on Entrepreneurship — “The Arlington branch of the American Association of University Women (AAUW) will feature a program on starting a business, led by the founders of Amazing Women Entrepreneurs. The meeting is slated for Monday, Jan. 14 at 7:30 p.m. in Room 527 of Arlington Mill Community Center. The community is invited.” [InsideNova]

Federal Workers Driving for Uber to Make Ends Meet — “‘With the government shutdown, you have more people working for the government doing Uber, and for the full-time Uber drivers, that is really affecting us too, and our money,’ said rideshare driver Nate Murrell.” [WJLA]

Flickr pool photo by Michael Coffman


Residents of the River Place apartment complex in Rosslyn were startled by a noisy arrest by Arlington Police last night (Thursday).

County police spokeswoman Ashley Savage says officers served a warrant for a suspect in the 1011 block of Arlington Boulevard around 6 p.m. and took the person “into custody without incident.”

“The criminal investigation is ongoing and there is no ongoing threat to the community related to this incident,” Savage told ARLnow.

However, ARLnow readers reported hearing loud bangs at the time of arrest, and saw at least a dozen police in tactical gear on the property, which sits near the intersection of Wilson Blvd and Route 50.

One reader even mentioned seeing a car “pinned in by some old junker cars and police vehicles in the parking lot” of the apartment complex.

Savage did not offer other details on the arrest.

Photo courtesy of Cynthia Carabelli


(Updated at 4:05 p.m.) An apparent out-of-control driver struck an electronic sign and a light pole, which then toppled onto a stroller, at a busy Clarendon intersection Friday afternoon.

The crash happened shortly after 2 p.m. at the intersection of Wilson Blvd and Washington Blvd, which is currently under construction as part of the Clarendon Circle intersection improvement project. Tire tracks are visible on the road where the driver entered the intersection before coming to a stop across from Asiatique restaurant.

Three pedestrians, including two children, were evaluated for injuries, according to Arlington County Fire Department spokesman Capt. Ben O’Bryant. Neither the pedestrians nor the driver were transported to the hospital.

The driver was cited by police, according to ACPD spokeswoman Ashley Savage.

“It was determined the driver of the striking vehicle was traveling on Wilson Boulevard when he attempted to merge into another lane to avoid construction. As he was doing so, the driver allegedly struck another vehicle, struck two construction signboards and hit a light pole causing it to fall,” she said. “Medics evaluated multiple people on scene but no serious injuries were reported. The driver remained on scene and was cited with failure to maintain proper control of the vehicle.”

The westbound lanes of Wilson Blvd approaching the crash scene were blocked for a period of time, but have since reopened.


Police have arrested an Alexandria man in connection with a shooting on S. Glebe Road last weekend.

Arlington Police say they worked with their counterparts in Alexandria to arrest 24-year-old Juan Francisco Rivera Pineda in the city yesterday (Jan. 3).

Police believe Rivera Pineda shot a man near the intersection of S. Glebe Road and S. Arlington Ridge Road, near the county line, around 7 p.m. last Sunday (Dec. 30).

The victim was rushed to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries, but he’s expected to survive his wounds.

Rivera Pineda is now facing charges of aggravated malicious wounding and use of firearm in the commission of a felony.

He’ll face a hearing on those charges in Arlington General District Court on April 2 and is currently being held without bond in the Arlington County Detention Center.

Photo courtesy of Arlington Police


(Updated at 7:10 p.m.) Arlington police have arrested a woman in connection with a fatal stabbing in the Arlington Mill neighborhood on New Year’s Day.

Police announced tonight (Wednesday) that they’ve charged 60-year-old Linda Marie Snow with second degree murder, after she allegedly stabbed another woman along the 5100 block of 8th Road S. around 10 a.m. yesterday (Tuesday).

Investigators believe Snow began fighting with the victim, identified as 64-year-old Alice Carter of Arlington, inside a home in the area, leading to the stabbing.

Carter was rushed to an area hospital, where she soon died.

Snow is being held without bond at the Arlington County Detention Center. She’s set for a hearing in Arlington General District Court on March 28.

Photo courtesy of Arlington County Police Department


(Updated on 8/30/19 following dismissal of charges against suspect mentioned below)

An Arlington man is now facing charges after police say he threatened one of his neighbors with a gun in the midst of an argument over noise.

County police say they were called to a Columbia Heights apartment complex along the 1200 block of S. Courthouse Road to respond to the dispute around 10:30 a.m. on Dec. 22.

When officers arrived, they heard that 26-year-old Jason [Redacted] walked over to one of his neighbors’ apartments and was “irate that the victim was making noise inside his residence,” police said.

[Redacted] continued yelling for a while, but eventually returned to his own home. A short time later, “when the victim went to the suspect’s residence to apologize, the suspect opened the door and allegedly brandished a firearm at the victim.”

Police subsequently arrested [Redacted] and charged him with one count of brandishing a firearm. He’ll face a hearing on that charge on Feb. 19 in Arlington General District Court.

Full details from a county crime report:

BRANDISHING, 2018-12220100, 1200 block of S. Courthouse Road. At approximately 10:23 a.m. on December 22, police responded to the report of a brandishing. Upon arrival, it was determined that the victim was inside of his residence when he heard someone knocking on the door. The victim opened the door and encountered the suspect, who was irate that the victim was making noise inside his residence. The suspect continued to yell at the victim, but eventually returned to his residence. Shortly later, when the victim went to the suspect’s residence to apologize, the suspect opened the door and allegedly brandished a firearm at the victim. Jason [Redacted], 26, of Arlington, Va., was arrested and charged with Brandishing a Firearm.

And here are other highlights from the past two weeks of crime reports, including some we’ve already reported:

ROBBERY,  2018-12210017, 3000 block of Columbia Pike. At approximately 1:31 a.m. on December 21, police were dispatched to the report of two shoplifters in custody. Upon arrival, it was determined that two males entered a business and began selecting merchandise. One male allegedly exited the store in possession of merchandise without paying. An employee then challenged the second suspect and became engaged in a physical altercation. The second suspect returned to the business and became engaged in the struggle, in which the employee was assaulted, resulting in minor injury. A bystander intervened and assisted with controlling the suspects until police arrival. Bernart Rivas, 19, of Alexandria, Va., was arrested and charged with Robbery. Petitions for Robbery were sought for the juvenile suspect.

ROBBERY, 2018-12210291, 300 block of S. Taylor Street. At approximately 9:49 p.m. on December 21, police were dispatched to the report of a robbery. Upon arrival, it was determined that the victim, who was working as a delivery driver at the time of the incident, exited his vehicle to make a delivery and was approached by a male suspect who brandished a firearm and demanded cash. The victim gave him an undisclosed amount of cash and the suspect fled the scene prior to police arrival. The victim was not injured. A K9 track was initiated, but yielded negative results. The suspect is described as a black male wearing dark clothing.

CARJACKING, 2018-12220035, 2600 block of Crystal Drive. At approximately 2:19 a.m. on December 22, police responded to the report of an armed carjacking just occurred. Upon arrival, it was determined that the victim was idling in his vehicle when a vehicle occupied four times pulled up behind him. Two male suspects exited the vehicle and approached the victim. One suspect brandished a firearm and one suspect brandished a knife and ordered the victim out of his car. The suspects fled in the victim’s vehicle prior to police arrival. Suspect One is described as a black male, approximately 5’5″-5’7″, with a thin build and short, black hair, wearing all black clothing. Suspect Two is described as a black male, approximately 5’5″-5’7″ and slightly taller than Suspect One, with a thin build and short, black hair, wearing all black clothing.

ROBBERY (late), 2018-12210224, 2100 block of 15th Street N. At approximately 5:45 p.m. on December 21, police were dispatched to the late report of a robbery. Upon arrival, it was determined that at approximately 5:00 p.m., an unknown male suspect entered a business and began to select merchandise and conceal it in a backpack. The employee confronted the suspect and instructed him to pay for the merchandise. The suspect attempted to force his way past the employee and a brief struggle ensued over the suspect’s backpack. The suspect brandished a knife and fled the store with the backpack of merchandise prior to police arrival. The suspect is described as a black male, approximately 22-25 years old, wearing a gray hat, a black jacket with a gray hood, a blue shirt, black shoes and black pants, carrying a black backpack. The investigation is ongoing.

BURGLARY (late), 2018-12210044, 900 block of N. Kenmore Street. At approximately 4:50 a.m. on December 21, police were dispatched to the late report of a burglary. Upon arrival, it was determined that between 12:15 a.m. and 2:50 a.m., an unknown suspect(s) forced entry to a business, causing damage, and stole an undisclosed amount of cash. There is no suspect(s) description. The investigation is ongoing.

ROBBERY, 2018-12230139, 1600 block of Crystal Drive. At approximately 5:02 p.m. on December 23, police were dispatched to the report of a robbery by force. Upon arrival, it was determined that the suspect entered a business and opened the cash register, taking an undisclosed amount of cash. An employee attempted to stop the suspect, but was pushed out of the way. The suspect fled on foot, prior to police arrival. The suspect is described as a black male, approximately 5’10”-6’0″, 220-230 lbs., with short curly red or orange hair, wearing white earbuds, light colored ripped jeans, and brown and white shoes. The investigation is ongoing.

BURGLARY, 2018-12230212, 4700 block of Dittmar Road. At approximately 9:59 p.m. on December 23, police were dispatched to the report of a possible trespasser. Upon arrival, it was determined that friends of the victim arrived at the victim’s residence while the victim was out of town and allegedly observed a large number of people inside the residence. A known suspect then exited the residence and left the scene, along with numerous other unknown subjects, prior to police arrival. Upon entry to the residence and further investigation, trash and a large mess inside were located inside, items of value were determined to be missing, numerous items were tampered with and the victim’s vehicles had been removed from the garage. With the assistance of the victim, officers on scene were able to make contact with the known suspect and he later returned to the residence. One of the victim’s vehicles was subsequently located nearby and a second vehicle was determined to be stolen. Devonta Corbet, 19, of Arlington, Va., was arrested and charged with Burglary, Unauthorized Use of a Vehicle and Grand Larceny: Motor Vehicle Theft.

BURGLARY, 2018-12260012, 1300 block of S. Joyce Street. At approximately 5:30 a.m. on December 26, police were dispatched to the report of a burglary just discovered. Upon arrival, it was determined that between 3:31 a.m. and 4:45 a.m., an unknown suspect forced entry to a business, causing damage and stole an undisclosed amount of cash and items of value. There is no suspect description. The investigation is ongoing.

ASSAULT ON LAW ENFORCEMENT 2018-12200073, 1100 block of S. Hayes Street. At approximately 10:13 a.m. on December 20, police were dispatched to the report of a disorderly female. Upon arrival, it was determined that the female suspect was yelling and acting disorderly inside the mall. As the officer approached the suspect, she grabbed the officer by the arm to pull him towards her, punched him with a closed fist and kicked him multiple times before she was taken into custody. The officer was not injured. The suspect refused to provide her personal information on-scene and while in booking. She was booked under the assumed name Jane Doe and charged with Assault & Battery on Police, and Failure to ID. She was held on no bond.

ROBBERY, 2018-12170009, 900 block of S. Buchanan Street. At approximately 1:05 a.m. on December 17, police were dispatched to the report of trouble unknown. Upon arrival, it was determined that the two victims were walking in the area when a known male suspect began following them. When the victims arrived at their destination, they asked the suspect to leave, however, the suspect threatened the victims and stole one victim’s cell phone before fleeing on foot prior to police arrival. A warrant for robbery was obtained for the suspect.


A Clarendon gym owner will now spend years behind bars, after admitting that he tried to buy large quantities of cocaine from undercover police officers.

Pascal Laporte, the owner of Clarendon Fitness, has pleaded guilty to federal drug charges alleging that he tried to buy and then distribute more than 500 grams of cocaine. Laporte will now face anywhere between five and 40 years in prison, according to documents filed in federal court.

Federal prosecutors first charged Laporte back in late August, claiming that he unwittingly spoke with a police informant for close to a year as he looked to find a supplier to sell him hundreds of kilograms of cocaine on an ongoing basis.

The informant eventually arranged a drug deal with Laporte in the parking lot of the Arlington Traditional School in fall 2017, and he subsequently mentioned that he hoped to provide associates in Florida and South Carolina with drugs for distribution. He was arrested in a Tysons-area hotel, when he attempted to exchange $45,000 for drugs in a deal with two police officers posing as Mexican gang members.

Laporte founded the Clarendon gym, located at 2907 Wilson Blvd, back in 2010.

The terms of his plea agreement stipulate he’ll have to hand over the $45,000 in cash he brought to his meeting with police officers to the federal government, in addition to a 2011 Jeep Wrangler he used to conduct these drug transactions.

Laporte is set to be sentenced on Jan. 25 in federal court.

Meanwhile, a video featuring Laporte is still displayed prominently on the Clarendon Fitness website.


A woman was killed in a reported stabbing in the Arlington Mill neighborhood Tuesday morning.

Police are investigating the New Year’s Day incident as a “suspicious death” but have released few other details. Officers were called to the scene on the 5100 block of 8th Road S. around 10 a.m.

“Based upon the preliminary investigation, this appears to be an isolated incident with no known threat to the community,” Arlington County Police said on Twitter. “Police remain on scene investigating.”

Map via Google Maps


Arlington County Police are investigating a shooting that happened last night on S. Glebe Road.

A man was shot at the intersection of Glebe and S. Arlington Ridge Road, two blocks away from Gunston Middle School, around 7 p.m., according to police. The victim is expected to survive and police are still seeking the shooter.

More from an ACPD press release, issued just after noon today (Monday):

The Arlington County Police Department’s Homicide/Robbery Unit is investigating a shooting that took place on the evening of December 30, 2018.

At approximately 7:03 p.m., police were dispatched to the report of trouble unknown at the intersection of S. Glebe Road and S. Arlington Ridge Road. Upon arrival on scene, officers located a male victim suffering from trauma to the upper body and immediately began performing life saving measures. The victim was transported to an area hospital with life-threatening injuries. Following medical treatment, the victim’s condition has been upgraded to stable and he is expected to survive his wounds.

This incident remains an active criminal investigation. At this time, no suspect(s) have been identified and there are no suspect(s) descriptions. Anyone with information related to this incident is asked to contact Detective J. Trainer of the Homicide/Robbery Unit at 703-228-4185 or [email protected].

Information may also be provided anonymously through the Arlington County Crime Solvers hotline at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477).

File photo


Drivers on I-395 were alarmed to discover a man walking shirtless and barefoot near the highway’s Shirlington exit yesterday afternoon (Thursday).

Virginia State Police spokeswoman Corinne Geller told ARLnow that motorists spotted the man walking just south of Exit 6 in the highway’s northbound lanes.

She added that officers first received a call about the incident around 1:30 p.m. Thursday, and a reader tweeted a video of the incident to ARLnow around 2 p.m.

The video shows the man wandering in lanes of traffic, prompting a state trooper and other cars to abruptly stop and pull over.

The trooper and another man eventually guided him onto the shoulder — Geller said the other man in the video was an “off-duty federal agent” pitching in to help.

Geller says the man was subsequently taken to a local hospital “for medical and mental evaluation.”

https://twitter.com/jgordss/status/1078380451713245184


Experts Expect Arlington Appreciation — “The quarterly survey, sponsored by Zillow and conducted by Pulsenomics LLC, asked more than 100 real estate economists and investment experts for their predictions about the U.S. housing market… Denver, Washington, Atlanta and Dallas ranked as the four markets most likely to outperform the national average rate of home-value appreciation.” [InsideNova]

Registration Open for MLK Day of Service — “Volunteer Arlington, a program of Leadership Center for Excellence, will host the second annual MLK Day of Service on Monday, January 21 from 8:30 a.m. until 12:00 p.m. Those looking to turn a day off into a ‘Day On’ can register free of charge.” [Volunteer Arlington]

Incoming: 25 New ACPD Officers — “On December 18, 2018, family, friends, and fellow officers gathered to celebrate the graduation of Session 139 from the Northern Virginia Criminal Justice Training Academy (NVCJA), who took their oath to serve and protect the residents of Arlington County.” [Arlington County]

A Brief History of Rosslyn — “The many tall office buildings… make Rosslyn look more like a modern city than Washington does. It got that way by not being included in the District of Columbia — the result of political decisions that propelled the two neighboring cities in vastly different directions over the centuries. After all, Rosslyn wasn’t always this glossy — far from it.” [Politico]

Flickr pool photo by Erinn Shirley


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