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Zak Failla

Assistant Managing Editor

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Equal parts Lois Lane, J. Jonah Jameson and Vicki Vale, Zak! has traveled from coast-to-coast covering small and big town community news in both in print and online for nearly a decade since his graduation from the award-winning Roy H. Park School of Communications at Ithaca College in 2010.

Before settling into the Hudson Valley, Zak! previously spent time in the New York Daily News newsroom and worked for hyperlocal digital news outlets on Long Island. He wrote sports for The Ithacan and The Ithaca Journal before taking his talents to the Pacific Northwest, where he served as the sports editor at the Shoshone News-Press until heading back east to work with Daily Voice.

Zak Failla's Contributions

Police & Fire
Attempted Abduction Suspect Captured Less Than 48 Hours After Virginia Trail Attack: Police Attempted Abduction Suspect Captured Less Than 48 Hours After Virginia Trail Attack: Police
Attempted Abduction Suspect Captured Less Than 48 Hours After Virginia Trail Attack: Police He didn't stay a mystery for long. Less than two days after Fairfax County Police released a composite sketch of a man accused of trying to drag a woman into the woods at a busy Annandale park, detectives say the suspect is now in custody. Police announced Tuesday evening, June 23, that the alleged predator wanted in connection with an attempted abduction and indecent exposure at Wakefield Park had been arrested. Authorities have not yet released the suspect's identity or any charges. Police said there is no ongoing threat to the community. The arrest comes after detectives publicly relea…

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by Zak Failla
Obituaries
Prom, Graduation, Then Tragedy: DC Teen Daijah Cherry Remembered After Maryland Shooting Prom, Graduation, Then Tragedy: DC Teen Daijah Cherry Remembered After Maryland Shooting
Prom, Graduation, Then Tragedy: DC Teen Daijah Cherry Remembered After Maryland Shooting Prom photos. Graduation pictures. A diploma still fresh in her hands. Less than two weeks later, Maryland detectives were investigating the killing of 18-year-old Daijah Cherry. The recent H.D. Woodson High School graduate from Washington, DC, was fatally shot late Friday, June 19, outside a home in the 1400 block of Doewood Lane in Capitol Heights, according to Prince George's County Police. Officers responded to the area at approximately 11:05 p.m. and found Cherry suffering from gunshot wounds outside the residence. She was rushed to a hospital, where she later died. Now, as detectives…

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by Zak Failla
News
Maryland Man Arrested At Dulles After Child Porn, Bestiality Material Found On Phone: CBP Maryland Man Arrested At Dulles After Child Porn, Bestiality Material Found On Phone: CBP
Maryland Man Arrested At Dulles After Child Porn, Bestiality Material Found On Phone: CBP Border protection officers made an unexpected seizure at Dulles International Airport over the weekend, landing a Maryland man behind bars. Chesapeake Beach resident Matthew Hunter Stewart, 28, was charged in Virginia for possessing child sexual exploitation and bestiality material after officers discovered the imagery on his cellphone on Sunday, June 21, federal authorities announced. Stewart was referred to a secondary CBP examination after he arrived on a flight from Keflavik, Iceland, officials said. In addition to a baggage examination, CBP officers searched Stewart's electronic …

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Playing With Fire: Suspect Accused Of Lighting Mulch Fires Tracked To Virginia Mall Playing With Fire: Suspect Accused Of Lighting Mulch Fires Tracked To Virginia Mall
Playing With Fire: Suspect Accused Of Lighting Mulch Fires Tracked To Virginia Mall It started with burning mulch. It ended with an arrest at a mall. A 42-year-old man with no fixed address is facing charges after allegedly setting multiple mulch fires, according to the Fredericksburg Fire Department. Crews were called shortly after 4:30 p.m. on Monday, June 22, to the 3000 block of Plank Road in Fredericksburg, where multiple mulch fires had been reported, officials said. While firefighters were responding, witnesses told emergency personnel they had seen someone intentionally ignite one of the fires and gave authorities a description of the suspect. That kicked off a s…

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by Zak Failla
Business
Bomb Threat Forces Evacuation Of Springfield Town Center As Police Search Mall (DEVELOPING) Bomb Threat Forces Evacuation Of Springfield Town Center As Police Search Mall (DEVELOPING)
Bomb Threat Forces Evacuation Of Springfield Town Center As Police Search Mall (Developing) Shoppers were suddenly sent scrambling out of one of Northern Virginia's busiest malls Tuesday evening. Police evacuated Springfield Town Center in Virginia on June 23 after receiving a reported bomb threat, prompting a large law enforcement response and an ongoing search of the property. In Springfield, Fairfax County Police said officers were called to the mall shortly before 5:30 p.m. after a person reported a bomb threat from an unknown number. Out of what police described as an abundance of caution, the shopping center was evacuated while the department's Explosive Ordnance Disposal U…

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by Zak Failla
Traffic
Man On Route 50 Overpass Shuts Down Highway In Both Directions During Rush Hour (DEVELOPING) Man On Route 50 Overpass Shuts Down Highway In Both Directions During Rush Hour (DEVELOPING)
Man On Route 50 Overpass Shuts Down Highway In Both Directions During Rush Hour (Developing) A man sitting on an overpass fence brought one of Maryland's busiest highways to a standstill Tuesday afternoon. Traffic ground to a halt in Prince George's County on June 23 as police shut down Route 50 in both directions near the Whitfield Chapel Road overpass while negotiators worked to reach a man in crisis above the highway. The incident was first reported around 2:35 p.m., when transportation officials logged police activity at US 50 and Whitfield Chapel Road.  All eastbound and westbound travel lanes were eventually closed, along with multiple shoulders and ramps, according to …

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Huff, Huff, Pass Out: Virginia Woman Busted Using CO2 In Sheetz Parking Lot, Sheriff Says Huff, Huff, Pass Out: Virginia Woman Busted Using CO2 In Sheetz Parking Lot, Sheriff Says
Huff, Huff, Pass Out: Virginia Woman Busted Using CO2 In Sheetz Parking Lot, Sheriff Says Most people stopping at Sheetz leave with a coffee, a burrito, or maybe a bag of chips. According to the Stafford County Sheriff's Office, a Virginia woman allegedly opted for something a little different: repeatedly huffing CO2 canisters in her car until she kept passing out. Deputy Baldi was called to the Sheetz at Washington Square Plaza at approximately 3:35 p.m. on Monday, June 22, for reports of drug activity. Before the deputy arrived, witnesses reported watching the woman tilt her head down, lose consciousness for several minutes, then suddenly snap back awake, only for the cycle t…

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by Zak Failla
News
Bank Workers Saved Dementia-Stricken Vietnam Vet From Caregiver Who Stole Thousands In VA: Feds Bank Workers Saved Dementia-Stricken Vietnam Vet From Caregiver Who Stole Thousands In VA: Feds
Bank Workers Saved Dementia-Stricken Vietnam Vet From Caregiver Who Stole Thousands In VA: Feds A Vietnam War veteran trusted the wrong caregiver. A woman hired through a Department of Veterans Affairs program to help care for the elderly veteran admitted in federal court Tuesday, June 23, to stealing from him after authorities say she helped drain his bank account, forged his VA benefit checks, and left him living in deplorable conditions in Virginia. Then, some well-intentioned bank employees stepped in to make the save. Now, Melissa Diana Simmons, 50, of Boones Mill, is facing time behind bars after she pleaded guilty to forgery of government checks in US District Court, acco…

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
'My Dad! My Dad!': Virginia Police Officer Rescues 2 Trapped In Overturned SUV (WATCH) 'My Dad! My Dad!': Virginia Police Officer Rescues 2 Trapped In Overturned SUV (WATCH)
'My Dad! My Dad!': Virginia Police Officer Rescues 2 Trapped In Overturned SUV (Watch) "Can you hear me?" The screams coming from inside an overturned vehicle in Virginia made it clear someone needed help. Bodycam footage released Tuesday, June 23, shows Master Police Officer B. Mundon rushing toward a wreck in Fauquier County after motorists flagged him down while he was driving home, according to the Prince William County Police Department. The video shows Mundon arriving to find a vehicle flipped onto its roof in a wooded area with two people trapped inside. One victim could be heard screaming in pain from inside the wreckage. Another appeared to be unresponsive. …

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by Zak Failla
Obituaries
Maryland Family Mourns Mom Killed In Hit-And-Run Who Called Her Kids Every Day Maryland Family Mourns Mom Killed In Hit-And-Run Who Called Her Kids Every Day
Maryland Family Mourns Mom Killed In Hit-And-Run Who Called Her Kids Every Day The calls came every day. Good morning. Good night. Sometimes more than once in between. Now, a Maryland family is learning how to live without them after Debra "Debbie" Hooker was killed in a tragic hit-and-run crash, leaving behind heartbroken children, grandchildren, and a community now rallying around her family. In Solomons, friends and coworkers have launched a GoFundMe campaign to support Debbie's daughter, Jessica Hooker, as she faces unexpected funeral expenses and the sudden loss of the woman who was always just a phone call away. For those who knew Debbie, she was much more tha…

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by Zak Failla
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