police

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Opening Date Set for Aquatics Center — The new Long Bridge Park Aquatics and Fitness Center will open on Monday, Aug. 23, the Arlington Dept. of Parks and Recreation announced yesterday. [Twitter]

Local Org Resettling Afghan Refugees — “Besides Lutheran Social Services, the [Arlington-based] Ethiopian Community Development Council, the International Rescue Committee, and Catholic Charities do a lot of work to resettle Afghan [Special Immigrant Visa] holders in this area. Christy McCaw of African Community Center DC  Metro, the ECDC’s resettlement branch, says her organization needs leads on apartments that will rent to newcomers without proof of income.” [Washingtonian]

Broken Water Main Causes Pressure Problems — From the Arlington Dept. of Environmental Services yesterday: “A crew is stabilizing a broken water main that has caused pressure issues in the vicinity of Campbell Elementary School along S. Carlin Springs Road. Pressure should be returning to normal within the hour. Traffic diverted around work site. The break is on a 20-inch main. Greatest impact of pressure loss along Carlin Springs Rd from Rt 50 south to Columbia Pike and near the intersection of Wilson Blvd and George Mason.” [Twitter]

New W-L History Marker Under Consideration — “Four years after the installation of a marker celebrating the history of Washington-Lee High School was scotched by leaders of the county school system, a proposed revised marker – honoring the school now known as Washington-Liberty – is wending its way through the development process.” [Sun Gazette]

Next Community Convo with Police Chief — “Join Chief Penn and members of ACPD at the next Community Conversations with the Chief to share your thoughts on the future of policing in Arlington! Our next conversation will take place on Friday from 10 AM to 12 PM at Metro 29 Diner located at 4711 Lee Highway.” [Twitter]

Huske Signs Sponsorship Deal — “2020 U.S. Olympic medalist [and Arlington resident] Torri Huske announced that she’s signed a swimwear deal with TYR on Friday, making her the third high-profile swimmer set to begin their freshman year of college to do so. Huske, 18, will join Stanford University in the upcoming collegiate season. Terms of the deal have not been made public.” [SwimSwam]

Youth Baseball Team’s Championship Run — “Overcoming four tournament losses, the 9-under Arlington Storm Black managed to finish second in the Babe Ruth World Series. The Storm lost in the ultimate title game of the baseball tournament in Jensen Beach, Fla., by a 7-3 score, to Florence, Ala. The meeting was the fourth between the teams in the competition. About 90 minutes earlier that same day, Arlington had previously routed Florence, 11-1, to force a playback game between the two teams in the championship round.” [Sun Gazette]

Reminder: N. Glebe Road Closure — “All lanes of N. Glebe Road between Military Road and Chain Bridge Road, in the northern tip of Arlington, [are now] closed for construction… The nine-day closure is the culmination of the $10 million rehabilitation project for the nearly 50-year-old bridge over Pimmit Run, just before Chain Bridge. Between Friday, Aug. 13 and Monday, Aug. 23, crews will work to replace the entire bridge deck and its underlying beams.” [ARLnow]

Man Stabbed at Clarendon Bar in Seemingly Random Attack

By ARLnow.com

A man sitting at a bar in Clarendon was repeatedly stabbed in a seemingly random attack on Saturday.

The stabbing happened at 7:30 p.m. at Spider Kelly’s (3181 Wilson Blvd).

“Upon arrival, officers located the male victim suffering from a laceration and the suspect being held down by witnesses,” Arlington County police said today in a crime report. “The investigation revealed that while the victim was sitting at the bar, the suspect allegedly approached him from behind and began repeatedly striking the victim with a sharp object.”

“The victim was transported to an area hospital with serious injuries,” ACPD said. “Patrick Casey, 34, of No Fixed Address was arrested and charged with Aggravated Malicious Wounding. He was held on no bond.”

Spider Kelly’s co-owner Nick Freshman said the attack looks “like a completely random act” by someone “who came in off the street.” The suspect walked in and started attacking a customer near the front of the restaurant without provocation, Freshman said, adding that his security staff jumped in and tackled the suspect, holding him until police arrived.

“I’m incredibly grateful to our staff and our security team… [they were] able to quickly detain the perpetrator and secure the weapon,” he said. “We’re praying for [the victim].”

“It was really pretty terrifying,” Freshman added. “It’s left our whole team pretty shook. I’m so sorry something like this happened.”

Asked about the suspect’s motive and about the weapon used, a police spokeswoman declined to provide additional details.

“There’s no additional details to provide at this time,” said ACPD’s Ashley Savage. “This remains an active criminal investigation and detectives continue to review evidence and conduct interviews to determine the events that preceded the incident. Anyone with information related to this incident is asked to contact the Arlington County Police Department’s Homicide/Robbery Unit at 703-228-4180 or [email protected].”

Local TikTok Personality to Face Trial, But Notches Partial Court Victory

By ARLnow.com
Local TikTok personality Coco Briscoe, in a video she posted which shows her being served with a protective order (via TikTok)

Update on 9/30/21: Charges against Briscoe were dropped earlier this week.

Earlier: Coco Briscoe, the local TikTok personality arrested for violating a protective order amid a spat with local restaurants, has had that protective order lifted.

Briscoe was in Arlington General District Court Wednesday afternoon for her arraignment. A judge also heard arguments about whether the 72-hour Emergency Protective Order issued early Monday morning by an Arlington magistrate should be extended.

During the hearing, the woman who asked for the protective order — Charlotte, an employee of  Celtic House Irish Pub on Columbia Pike — testified that she was “terrified” of Briscoe and her army of devoted social media followers.

Charlotte said Briscoe was a regular customer at Celtic House but things between her and the bartenders deteriorated over time. At one point, Charlotte testified, she and Briscoe encountered each other in Georgetown and Briscoe followed her, yelling “crazy bitch.”

In another incident, Charlotte testified that Briscoe had been drinking for ten hours straight when she took a brief video of her riding her bike near the bar and sent it in a group chat to other Columbia Pike restaurant employees — including employees of Rebellion on the Pike, another target of Briscoe’s ire — to warn them, given what she described as Briscoe’s erratic behavior.

Briscoe somehow obtained the message sent by Charlotte and has since been posting TikTok videos about it and her spat with the restaurant employees. The videos accuse Charlotte of “stalking” Briscoe and of revealing her location in the group chat, as well as using Briscoe’s credit card and ID in order to obtain her name and date of birth for the protective order.

In addition to allegations against Charlotte, Briscoe accuses a larger group of Celtic House and Rebellion employees of creating social media accounts and fake online dating profiles to “bully, stalk and harass” her. In her videos, she expresses concern about her safety and that of other women who patronize the bars.

The videos also infer that police are protecting the bars and Charlotte, who is reportedly dating an Arlington officer, given that a police report filed by Briscoe did not result in action against any of them.

The videos have prompted many of Briscoe’s nearly 25,000 TikTok followers to come to her defense in social media comments, in negative online reviews of the restaurants, and via emails and phone calls.

“Unfortunately this bar is unsafe for single women,” a woman named Elizabeth from South Carolina posted on Rebellion’s Yelp page, echoing Briscoe’s accusations. “Several bartenders… have stalked, harassed and created an unsafe environment.”

“Be careful here, the bartenders like to share your location with a group of stalkers, get personal information off your credit card and share it with them. This happened to my friend,” wrote a woman named Nora from Utah. “When confronted the manager/owners did not investigate or fire the employee who was doing this.”

“Absolutely disgusting @ArlingtonVaPD for not protecting Coco after she filed a report with you,” an Arlington woman named Julie posted on Twitter. “And abusing your power to rush ridiculous restraining orders against her. Scary to thing as a woman in Arlington you are sh-t out of luck if your stalker has a friend that’s a cop.”

Charlotte testified that Celtic House has been getting “hundreds” of phone calls from angry followers of Briscoe, accusing Charlotte of things and calling her names.

A single mom, Charlotte said she has had to take unpaid leave from work, move away from her apartment, and bring her son to live with his father for fear of his safety.

“I’m afraid to be in my house. I’m afraid to be in this courtroom with her,” she testified. “I just want to be left alone and don’t want attention.”

An attorney for Briscoe briefly questioned Charlotte, who said she could have been more “tactful” with her message to the group.

(more…)

Local TikTok Star Arrested Amid Spat with Restaurants

By ARLnow.com
Local TikTok star Coco Briscoe, in a video she posted which shows her being served with a protective order (via TikTok)

Update on 9/30/21: Charges against Briscoe were dropped earlier this week.

Earlier: An Arlington woman has been arrested for allegedly ignoring a court order not to talk about a local restaurant employee on her popular social media accounts.

Crystal Briscoe, known to her nearly 25,000 TikTok followers as Coco, was arrested Monday morning at her apartment along Columbia Pike for violating a Emergency Protective Order (EPO) issued just five hours before. She is scheduled to be arraigned in Arlington General District Court tomorrow (Wednesday) afternoon.

The charge against her is a Class 1 misdemeanor, punishable in Virginia by up to 12 months in jail and a fine of up to $2,500.

The arrest follows several days of posts from Briscoe on TikTok and Instagram in which she alleged an elaborate plot to harass her online via social media comments and fake online dating profiles created by employees at two Columbia Pike restaurants: Rebellion on the Pike and The Celtic House Irish Pub & Restaurant.

Briscoe called one particular employee a “stalker” and alleged that the employee was able to obtain the protective order because she is dating an Arlington County police officer.

A 39-year-old Virginia native who moved to Arlington during the pandemic after a time in Southern California, where she worked as a Zumba instructor and a comedy writer, Briscoe gained a following on TikTok for her candid commentary on the D.C. dating scene. She said in a video over the weekend that the harassment started following a bad date at one of the restaurants, after which the employees — who she dubs “the Pikeys” — started to bully her, take videos of her, and “plant” a person to date her.

In another TikTok post she threatened to call the FBI about the alleged harassment and suggested, without evidence, that the restaurants were complicit in their employees’ behavior.

“Call your dogs off, Rebellion and Celtic. Or I will do everything in my power to have your businesses shut down. Everything. I’ve only asked you to leave me alone,” she said. Each TikTok post has garnered tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of views, along with hundreds of supportive comments from Briscoe’s fans, who have also flooded the Yelp pages for Rebellion and Celtic House with negative reviews.

(Both Yelp pages have since been locked to new reviews in response to “unusual activity” and “increased public attention.”)

Yelp reviews for Rebellion on the Pike left by fans of TikTok star Coco Briscoe (via Yelp)

A police spokeswoman said the protective order was issued by a magistrate early Monday morning, ordering Briscoe to stop posting on social media about one particular person, and was quickly violated.

“On Sunday, August 8th, police responded to the Magistrate’s Office for the report of harassment,” said ACPD’s Ashley Savage. “At approximately 2:29 a.m. on August 9th, the Magistrate issued an Emergency Protective Order (EPO) for the petitioner against Ms. Briscoe.”

“At approximately 5:35 a.m., officers… served Ms. Briscoe with the EPO and explained the conditions of the order which included ‘respondent is to keep the peace, not discuss petitioner on social media,'” Savage continued. “Ms. Briscoe subsequently violated the conditions of the EPO and an arrest warrant for violation of Virginia Code § 16.1-253.2. Violation of provisions of protective orders was issued by the Magistrate. At approximately 7:30 a.m., officers responded… and took Ms. Briscoe into custody without incident on the outstanding warrant.”

Briscoe was released on her own recognizance, court records show. A defense attorney was not listed. Briscoe could not be reached for comment.

(more…)

Craigslist Car Sale Leads to Armed Carjacking

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 5:15 p.m.) A person trying to sell their car online — reportedly via Craigslist — instead became the victim of a carjacking.

Police say they were called to the 2400 block of S. Glebe Road, near the I-395 ramps, just before 4 p.m. yesterday.

“Upon arrival, it was determined that the victim and suspect connected online regarding the sale of a vehicle,” said Arlington County Police Department spokeswoman Ashley Savage. “They agreed to meet to conduct a test drive, during which the suspect pulled into a parking lot. When the victim asked the suspect what he was doing, the suspect allegedly reached into his bag and brandished a firearm. The victim was able to exit before the suspect fled the scene in the vehicle.”

Officers checked I-395 immediately after the carjacking but were unable to locate the vehicle, which was described as a black 2015 Lexus RC with an Arizona license plate.

ACPD continues to investigate the crime, Savage said.

Arlington and the region saw a spate of carjackings last year and early this year, though authorities have been cracking down and fewer have been reported since police started conducting stepped-up patrols.

Police Investigating Possible Abduction Attempt in Cherrydale

By ARLnow.com

A boy was walking his dog in Cherrydale when a stranger tried to engage him in conversation and then started following him around.

That’s according to Arlington County police, who describe the Saturday afternoon incident near the intersection of N. Monroe Street and 18th Street N. as an attempted abduction.

The suspect fled the scene in a black SUV and remains at large. Police say they are still investigating.

More from an ACPD crime report:

ATTEMPTED ABDUCTION, 2021-08070159, N. Monroe Street at 18th Street N. At approximately 3:47 p.m. on August 7, police were dispatched to the report of a suspicious person. Upon arrival, it was determined that the juvenile male victim was walking his dog in the area when the unknown male suspect attempted to engage him in conversation. The victim ran from the scene and observed the suspect following after him. As the victim returned to his residence, he observed the suspect turn and run back towards his vehicle. The suspect is described as an unknown race male, approximately 5’9″ to 5’10” tall, 170 – 180 lbs with long black hair. He was wearing a black long sleeve shirt, black ski hat, black pants with a tear on the right leg above the knee, a black mask and gray shoes. The suspect vehicle is described as a black SUV. A canvass of the area by responding officers concluded with negative results. The investigation is ongoing.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Langston Blvd Plan Meets Resistance — “Following this May’s release of area planning maps and a presentation on density from consultant AECOM, a furious screed was published by Lyon Village Civic Association president John Carten. Though the process is still in the community engagement phase that precedes concrete recommendations, the hint of possible changes in the General Land Use Plan prompted the Lyon Village group to predict a parade of horribles.” [Falls Church News-Press]

New Clarendon Apartment Building Sold — “Trammell Crow Residential has sold the Alexan Earl, a 333-unit multifamily building at 1122 N. Hudson St., to Lincoln Property Co. for $192 million… The Earl represents the first phase of the long-planned Red Top Cab redevelopment… Shooshan continues to plan for the second phase, a roughly 250-unit building fronting Washington Boulevard at the intersection with 13th Street North. It expects to start demolition this fall.” [Washington Business Journal]

Online Fundraiser for Fallen Officer –” The family of George Gonzalez started a memorial fund Sunday for the Pentagon Force Protection Agency officer who was fatally wounded Tuesday on the platform of the Pentagon Transit Center… By 3 p.m. on Monday, the GoFundMe campaign had already raised $15,000, outstripping its original goal of $1,000.” [Patch, GoFundMe]

Local BBQ Joint Competing in ‘World Championship’ — “Arlington’s Smokecraft Modern Barbecue… has been invited to compete in the Jack Daniel’s World Championship Invitational Barbecue.  Taking place in Lynchburg, TN on on October 8th and 9th, ‘The Jack’ as it is known, is widely considered the world’s most prestigious barbecue competition.” [Press Release]

Va. AG Continues to Fight Robocalls — “Attorney General Mark R. Herring today urged the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to fight back against the scourge of illegal robocalls by moving up the deadline for smaller telephone companies to implement caller ID technology. Attorney General Herring joined a bipartisan coalition of 51 attorneys general have in submitting comments to the FCC.” [Press Release]

Pentagon to Require Vaccinations — “The Pentagon will require members of the military to get the COVID-19 vaccine by Sept. 15, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a memo on Monday. About 64% of active duty military members are fully vaccinated, a low enough rate to pose concern for potential outbreaks and international deployment.” [Axios]

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Fallen Pentagon Officer Remembered — “George Gonzalez was a proud New Yorker, ever loyal to his home turf of Brooklyn and the New York Yankees. He was also a proud Army veteran, having served a ferocious tour at the height of the Iraq War, always mindful of his comrades who didn’t come home. And he was a proud police officer, like his older brother, having served as an airport security agent, a federal jail guard and finally a Pentagon police officer.” [Washington Post]

DCA Passenger Traffic Still Down — “The airport’s passenger count in July was down 35.2 percent from the same month in 2019… The biggest challenge facing Reagan National will be an ongoing dearth of business travel. While some airline executives are expecting to see some rebound this fall, the U.S. Travel Association predicts that business-travel spending will not be back to pre-pandemic levels until 2024.” [Sun Gazette]

VHC’s New Lobby Piano Debuts — “We were honored to host Arlington resident, Andrea as our first volunteer to play the Steinway B Grand Piano featured in our newly refurbished lobby. The piano was recently gifted to Virginia Hospital Center by Sid and Reva Dewberry, longtime Arlington residents and VHC  donors.” [Twitter]

Local Workers Want Telework to Continue — “Nearly half (48 percent) of area workers have teleworked in the past month, according to the Washington Post-Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University poll, and more than half want to continue to telework at least some of the time. With a larger population working remotely, fewer people and less money would come to dense commercial areas that rely on a steady stream of people.” [Washington Post]

Flickr pool photo by John Sonderman

JUST IN: Man Shot in Crystal City Hotel

By ARLnow.com

A man was shot at a hotel in Crystal City early Saturday morning.

The shooting happened shortly after 1:30 a.m. Police say they initially responded to a hotel on the 1300 block of S. Eads Street for a report of gunshots heard, then found a man with a gunshot wound in the parking lot and evidence of shots being fired in a hotel hallway.

The victim is expected to survive.

On social media, a tipster described “a massive police/SWAT presence at the Embassy Suites this morning” around 4 a.m. No arrests were made, however, and police are still investigating the incident.

The hotel is across from the Amazon HQ2 construction site.

More from an ACPD press release:

The Arlington County Police Department’s Homicide/Robbery Unit is investigating a shooting that took place in a Crystal City hotel during the early morning hours of August 7, 2021.

At approximately 1:41 a.m., police were dispatched to the 1300 block of S. Eads Street for the report of shots heard. Upon arrival, officers located an adult male in the parking lot of a hotel suffering from a gunshot wound and immediately began performing emergency first aid until medics arrived. He was transported to an area hospital with injuries that are considered non-life threatening.

During the course of the investigation, officers located evidence in the hallway confirming multiple shots had been fired inside the hotel. Detectives interviewed several occupants of the hotel as they continue to work towards determining the events that preceded the shooting.

This remains an active criminal investigation and anyone with information related to this incident is asked to contact the Arlington County Police Department’s Homicide/Robbery Unit at 703-228-4180 or [email protected]. Information may also be provided anonymously through the Arlington County Crime Solvers hotline at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477).

ACPD: Combative Theft Suspect Arrested After Striking Officer

By ARLnow.com

A D.C. man is in jail after allegedly stealing a cell phone and hitting a police officer on the head.

The incident happened around 11:15 a.m. Thursday in Clarendon and drew a large police response. The Arlington County Police Department says they were called after a 37-year-old man stole a cell phone from someone he knew and refused to return it.

Arriving officers spotted the suspect walking along Clarendon Blvd “and attempted to stop him to investigate the alleged larceny,” ACPD said in a crime report.

“The suspect refused to comply and continued walking in the opposite direction. The suspect then turned around and shoved one of the officers before turning and walking away,” the department said.

At that point the officer radioed for backup, and numerous other officers began rushing to the scene, near The Crossing Clarendon retail center. As more police arrived and tried to detain the combative suspect, “actively resisted and struck an officer in the head,” said ACPD. “The officer sustained minor injuries.”

“With the assistance of additional officers, the suspect was detained, but continued to actively resist, kicked towards the officers and attempted to bite an officer,” the crime report continues. “Maurio Johnson, 37, of Washington D.C., was arrested and charged with Assault & Battery on Police (x2). He was held on no bond.”

A witness tells ARLnow that police used restraints and a police van to transport the man to jail, a few blocks away.

“Big response with about a dozen cops and 6 cars,” the witness said. “Guy was tied up hand and feet and put in wagon.”

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Mistargeted Alert Wakes Up Arlingtonians — Numerous Arlington residents from around the county erroneously received an emergency phone alert about a boil water advisory in Northeast D.C. around 2 a.m. Thursday morning. [Twitter]

Huske Talks About Olympic Experience — “By coming so close to winning an individual medal, then earning a second-place silver on a relay team, Torri Huske’s rated her recent swimming experience at the Summer Olympic Games as a success for the 2021 Yorktown High School graduate. ‘It was all a really good learning experience, and I took a lot away from the Games, like needing to work on the little things,’ Huske said. ‘The swimming was different that anything I had been to before because it was spread out over nine or 10 days. I’m very thankful for what I got to do.'” [Sun Gazette]

Amazon Pushes Back Office Return — “Amazon.com Inc. revised its back-to-office timeline again and told employees it wouldn’t resume regular in-person work until Jan. 3, according to an internal message viewed by the Business Journal. The company had set Sept. 7 as the official return date, after announcing it expected employees to be in the office at least three days per week.” [Washington Business Journal]

Youth Baseball Team in Nat’l Championship — “I write to congratulate our 9YO Arlington Storm Black team on finishing runner-up in the Cal Ripken World Series! No team in [Arlington Babe Ruth’s] 36-year history has had as successful a season… We could not be prouder.” [Twitter]

Crash Disrupts Traffic, Show on the Pike — “Crash in front of Arlington Cinema n Drafthouse. It’s delayed the start of tonight’s film.” [Twitter, Twitter]

ACPD Again Holding Community Police Academy — “The Arlington County Police Department is now accepting applications for the 25th Community Police Academy (CPA), formerly the Citizen’s Police Academy. The CPA is an educational program designed to create better understanding and communication between police and the community they serve.” [ACPD]

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