police

Attempted Robbery, Arlington Style

By ARLnow.com

Only in Arlington would someone (allegedly) attempt a robbery using a wine opener as a weapon.

From ACPD:

ATTEMPT ROBBERY-ARREST, 11/8/2010, 2900 block of S. Glebe Road On November 6 at 11 pm, a man attempted to rob another man of money by threatening him with a wine opener. Police located the suspect. Carlos Leyton, 28, of Alexandria, was charged with Attempted Robbery and Possession of a Fake I.D. He was held without bond.

The rest of this week’s Arlington County crime report should be released later today.

Metrobus Among the Vehicles Ticketed by Police in Rosslyn

By ARLnow.com

A Metrobus operator was among the unlucky drivers who did not heed warnings of stepped-up traffic enforcement in Rosslyn today.

Arlington police officers positioned themselves at the busy intersection of Wilson Boulevard and North Lynn Street during the morning traffic rush and the lunch time pedestrian rush, in an effort to catch people violating basic traffic safety laws. During the course of the morning rush hour alone, they handed out 33 citations to drivers and gave 50 verbal warnings to pedestrians and cyclists.

The enforcement was part of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Government’s eighth annual Street Smart safety campaign, which officially launched today with a lunchtime press conference in Rosslyn.

“They key message here is: we’re not pointing the finger at the motorist, we’re not pointing the finger at the pedestrian, we’re not pointing the finger at the bicyclist… when you’re talking about prevention, we all have a responsibility,” said Arlington Police Chief Douglas Scott.

“Pedestrians, bicyclists and cars need to coexist and watch out for each other,” said Arlington County board member Mary Hynes, who told reporters that her own daughter was once struck and injured by a bus. (Clarification: Ms. Hynes’ daughter was struck by a bus in Europe. It was not a Metrobus. This article, which remains in its original form, did not mean to imply the type of bus involved in that incident.)

Scott said the police department will have stepped-up enforcement in the morning and evening rush hours throughout the course of the two-week campaign.

Among those nabbed during today’s lunch time enforcement was a Metrobus operator, who was issued a $91 ticket for making a right turn on to North Lynn Street from the center lane of northbound Wilson Boulevard. At one point, after the officer left to run his information, the bus operator slammed his window shut as television news cameras rolled.

Each year, a whopping 1,000 traffic citations are issued at just the Wilson Boulevard-Lynn Street intersection, according to police.

(more…)

Police to Issue Tickets in Rosslyn for Pedestrian Safety

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 7:45 a.m.) Police will be out in force in Rosslyn today to promote pedestrian safety. They’ll be issuing citations to cars that don’t yield to pedestrians and warnings to jaywalkers and cyclists who ignore traffic laws.

The enforcement will be taking place in the area of North Lynn Street and Wilson Boulevard between 7:00 and 9:00 a.m. and 12:00 and 1:00 p.m.

Citations for failure to yield to pedestrians in a crosswalk carry a hefty fine of between $100 and $500 in Arlington.

Although police will only be issuing warnings to pedestrians, a citation for failure to obey signs and signals wouldn’t take too big of a chunk out of your pay check — the maximum fine is $5.

The enforcement is timed to kick off the Metropolitan Washington Council of Government’s Street Smart fall pedestrian safety campaign. The campaign encourages “proper yielding to pedestrians and drivers alike.”

In 2009, there were 78 pedestrian and cyclist-related deaths in the Washington area, which is more than one quarter of all traffic-related fatalities in the region. Local police departments are trying to decrease that number.

Arlington’s police chief, three Arlington County board members and representatives from other local jurisdictions will hold a press conference about pedestrian safety at 12:30 this afternoon in Rosslyn.

Arlington Declines To “Opt-Out” of ICE Database

By ARLnow.com

Arlington officials were given two options for opting out of the Secure Communities immigration enforcement program today, neither of which they liked.

Arlington County Manager Barbara Donnellan, Police Chief Doug Scott and Sheriff Beth Arthur met with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials to find out how communities can withdraw from the program, which has drawn fire from immigrant rights advocates.

The meeting followed the county board’s unanimous September vote to opt-out of Secure Communities, and statements to the press from ICE Director John Morton, saying such a withdrawal was impossible.

The meeting seemed to add weight to Morton’s assertion.

“ICE stated clearly — and with finality — that local activated communities do not have the option of withholding information from the program, although communities can opt not to learn the results of immigration queries,” Donnellan wrote in a memo to county board members following the meeting.

“ICE stated that Secure Communities is a federal information-sharing program — which links two federal fingerprint databases,” Donnellan wrote. “The program does not require state and local law enforcement to partner with ICE in enforcing federal law. State and local law enforcement do not have any role in enforcing immigration law.”

The agency gave Arlington two options for opting out of the program. The first option was to opt-out of receiving the results of ICE’s database inquiry.

(more…)

Police: Man Arrested for Forcing Women to Perform Sex Act in Crystal City

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 2:35 p.m.) An Arlington man has been arrested and accused of forcing two women to perform sex acts at gunpoint in a Crystal City apartment building.

The man, 33-year-old McKinley C. Joyner, used the web site Backpage.com to hire a prostitute, according to police. After the woman arrived at his apartment on the 2100 block of Jefferson Davis Highway, Joyner pointed a gun at her and forced her to perform a sex act, police said in a statement.

A friend of the victim, who was waiting in the lobby, then went up to check on her. Investigators say Joyner let her in and then forced her to perform a sex act at gunpoint, as well.

Police arrived at the scene around 8:00 a.m. Thursday morning, after being called by the woman’s escort agency. The agency became concerned after not being able to get in touch with their employee, police explained.

Joyner was arrested and charged with two counts of forcible sodomy. Other charges are pending, police say. He’s currently being held without bond at the Arlington County Detention Facility.

Joyner is listed as a co-founder and partner in New York-based firm Blazetrak, LLC, which specializes in allowing fledgling artists to “get directly in touch with established industry experts and celebrity talent.”

The company’s PR agency has not returned a call for comment.

Update at 4:40 p.m. — Joyner’s biography has been removed from the Blazetrak website.

Police Release Surveillance Images From August Sex Assault

By ARLnow.com

Arlington police have released surveillance images of a man suspected in a robbery, abduction and sexual assault in South Arlington.

Police say the man forced his way into a hotel room and restrained two women: a mother and daughter who were visiting from Canada. He sexually assaulted the daughter, who was in her 50s, and then stole electronics and cash as he left.

“The suspect is described as an African American male approximately 40 years old, 5’8″ and 180 lbs,” police said in a statement. “He appeared unshaven and was wearing a grey t-shirt with a design on it, tan cargo shorts, white shoes and a black baseball cap.”

The release of the images comes almost three months after the crime, which occurred on Aug. 14 at the Best Western hotel on South Glebe Road.

It took a while for detectives to track down the victims in Canada and make a positive identification on the suspect, police spokesperson Det. Crystal Nosal told ARLnow.com.

See additional surveillance photos here.

Crime Report: Heck of a Getaway Edition

By ARLnow.com

A 19-year-old who was driving without a license allegedly tried to flee after being pulled over by police, according to this week’s Arlington County crime report. The teen eventually crashed into a guardrail on I-395.

ATTEMPT MALICIOUS WOUNDING-ARREST 11/02/10, 1900 block of S. Pollard Street. On November 1, an officer pulled over a vehicle. The driver of the vehicle drove away abruptly and almost struck the officer. The vehicle then crashed into a guardrail. William D. Jones, 19, of Alexandria was charged with Attempt Malicious Wounding, Disregarding a Police Order, Driving While Suspended, and Hit and Run. He was held without bond.

The rest of this week’s crime report, including yesterday’s Taser incident at the Pentagon City Best Buy, after the jump.

(more…)

Arlington’s First Responders Say: Be Brave and Shave

By ARLnow.com

Arlington’s police, firefighters and sheriff are encouraging residents to “be brave and shave” to raise money for childhood cancer research.

On Sunday, from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m., dozens of people will get their locks sheared off at Westover Library (1644 North McKinley Road) for a good cause. The proceeds will benefit the Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders at Children’s National Medical Center.

The event is being held at the same time another sponsored by Montgomery County’s police and firefighters.

Arlington police held a bake sale two weeks go to raise money the event.

Safety Tip: Don’t Load Your Bike Onto a Moving Bus

By ARLnow.com

A safety tip for those who take their bike with them on public transit: don’t try to put your bike on a bus as it’s moving.

That’s apparently what happened Friday afternoon on Columbia Pike.

Police originally received a call for a man lying injured in the roadway near the Pike and South Oakland Street. A bike was also lying nearby. It was then reported that a Metrobus, which was no longer on scene, might have been involved.

Metro investigated the incident using surveillance video from the bus. From spokesperson Ron Holzer:

After an investigation, which included examination of video from the Metrobus camera system, it was determined that the bus never made contact with the pedestrian, who put himself in harm’s way by attempting to load his bicycle onto the moving bus.

The bike appears to be damaged in the photos, but a police source told us that was the same condition the bike was in before the accident.

The man was treated for non-life threatening injuries at a local hospital.

Police Called on GOP Volunteer at Patrick Henry Elementary

By ARLnow.com

Election officials called police when a Republican precinct captain became unruly outside Patrick Henry Elementary School in Arlington Heights this afternoon.

The man, a local resident named John Moroz, Jr., said he was passing out voting guides outside the school — as he has done every year since 1998 — when a voter directed profane language at him for being a Republican.

Moroz said he started shouting at the man, who left the scene by the time police arrived.

After he calmed down, Moroz complained to police about the lack of parking in the parking lot. No police action was taken, and Moroz ultimately returned to his volunteer duties.

View More Stories