Zak Failla

Assistant Managing Editor

[email protected]

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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

Arlington, VA
Breaking News
District Man Who Crashed Handyman's Carjacked Honda During Police Pursuit In MD Convicted: DOJ District Man Who Crashed Handyman's Carjacked Honda During Police Pursuit In MD Convicted: DOJ District Man Who Crashed Handyman's Carjacked Honda During Police Pursuit In MD Convicted: DOJ
District Man Who Crashed Handyman's Carjacked Honda During Police Pursuit In MD Convicted: DOJ The 21-year-old District man who carjacked a handyman at gunpoint and proceeded to crash his car days later will have years in prison to reconsider his actions, federal authorities announced. Gianni Saunders was found guilty on Tuesday, Jan. 30 of carjacking a handyman as he got out of his vehicle in the 2800 block of Denver Street SE in May last year after he was called to make repairs. According to prosecutors, on May 24, 2023, the handyman pulled up to make repairs inside a residential building; however, he was instead met by Saunders, who was armed with a handgun and extended magazine, …

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by Zak Failla
Fredericksburg, VA
Your Community
Students Cited For Assault, Battery By Mob For Fight That Led To Lockdown At VA School: Sheriff Students Cited For Assault, Battery By Mob For Fight That Led To Lockdown At VA School: Sheriff Students Cited For Assault, Battery By Mob For Fight That Led To Lockdown At VA School: Sheriff
Students Cited For Assault, Battery By Mob For Fight That Led To Lockdown At VA School: Sheriff Staff members were assaulted and several students are facing discpline after a wild day at a Stafford County High School that could have further consequences moving forward. All hands were on deck on Monday morning at Brooke Point High School on Courthouse Road, when a large fight broke out, prompting a rapid response from the Stafford County Sheriff's Office, which was called in due to the number of students involved. A spokesperson for the agency said that deputies and school staff were able to separate the warring parties, though the incident "would spark numerous disturbances throughout…

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by Zak Failla
Arlington, VA
Breaking News
Felon Driving With Child, Woman In SUV Busted With Illegal Guns, Fentanyl During DC Stop: Feds Felon Driving With Child, Woman In SUV Busted With Illegal Guns, Fentanyl During DC Stop: Feds Felon Driving With Child, Woman In SUV Busted With Illegal Guns, Fentanyl During DC Stop: Feds
Felon Driving With Child, Woman In SUV Busted With Illegal Guns, Fentanyl During DC Stop: Feds A convicted felon with a checkered criminal history will spend more time behind bars after being busted with illegal weapons while driving with a child in the backseat of his SUV during a traffic stop in DC. District resident John Michael Wilcox, 36, has been sentenced to 37 months in prison for illegally possessing a Ruger Archangel rifle and a .32 caliber pistol when his SUV was stopped by police near Nationals Park, federal authorities announced. According to court documents, Wilcox was stopped by US Park Police officers on July 12, 2022, when they noticed his black SUV had an illegally …

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by Zak Failla
Fairfax, VA
Breaking News
One Hospitalized After Crashing Vehicle Into Fairfax County Home One Hospitalized After Crashing Vehicle Into Fairfax County Home One Hospitalized After Crashing Vehicle Into Fairfax County Home
One Hospitalized After Crashing Vehicle Into Fairfax County Home One person had to be extricated from a vehicle after it came crashing through a home in Fairfax County on Tuesday afternoon. First responders were called to the 14900 block of Carlbern Drive in Centreville on Jan. 30 when a driver accidentally smashed through the front of an area residence. According to a Fairfax County Fire/Rescue spokesperson, crews had to extricate one person who wound up trapped in the vehicle, and they were taken to an area hospital for treatment and evaluation of undisclosed injuries. Our officers are on scene with @ffxfirerescue in the 14900 blk of Carlbern Dr i…

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by Zak Failla
Fairfax, VA
Breaking News
Man Who Killed Co-Worker Over Lunch Taken From Fridge At Target Makes Threats At VA Hearing Man Who Killed Co-Worker Over Lunch Taken From Fridge At Target Makes Threats At VA Hearing Man Who Killed Co-Worker Over Lunch Taken From Fridge At Target Makes Threats At VA Hearing
Man Who Killed Co-Worker Over Lunch Taken From Fridge At Target Makes Threats At VA Hearing The man who planned out the violent murder of a co-worker who took his lunch at the Bailey's Crossroads Target got exactly what he was asking for when he was sentenced this week, according to Fairfax County Commonwealth Attorney Steve Descano. Bazen Berhe, 25, may spend the rest of his life behind bars after being sentenced to 100 years in prison - with 30 years suspended - for the 2021 murder of Hernan Leiva, 58, in the parking lot of the business they both worked. Descano made note that at his sentencing hearing, Berhe was demonstrative, "threatening to kill or hurt other people if he was…

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by Zak Failla
Manassas, VA
Breaking News
Wooden Bat-Wielding Woman Among Group Of Teens Involved In Fight In Virginia: Police Wooden Bat-Wielding Woman Among Group Of Teens Involved In Fight In Virginia: Police Wooden Bat-Wielding Woman Among Group Of Teens Involved In Fight In Virginia: Police
Wooden Bat-Wielding Woman Among Group Of Teens Involved In Fight In Virginia: Police There were at least six teens and one grown woman involved in an assault with a baseball bat involving two victims in Prince William County, according to police. Chiquita Lorraine Chapman, 47, is facing multiple charges after she and a group of minors allegedly assaulted a 15-year-old girl and 33-year-old woman at a Woodbridge apartment complex over the weekend.  Officers from the Prince William County Police Department were called to the Woodwind Village Apartments at around 5:15 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 26 in the 1800 block of Clarinet Court to investigate a reported fight that had just …

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by Zak Failla
Arlington, VA
Breaking News
District Man Admits To Firing 14 Rounds At Metropolitan Police Officer District Man Admits To Firing 14 Rounds At Metropolitan Police Officer District Man Admits To Firing 14 Rounds At Metropolitan Police Officer
District Man Admits To Firing 14 Rounds At Metropolitan Police Officer A gun-toting District man who fired more than a dozen shots at an officer from the Metropolitan Police Department in Northeast DC has copped to the crime, authorities announced. Saeve Edward Evans, 37, pleaded guilty in US District Court this week following an incident last August that saw him involved in a potentially deadly standoff with officers. According to court documents, at around 5:25 a.m. on Aug. 1, 2023, Evans was walking a dog in the 1700 block of Benning Road NE when an unknown person walked in front of the building, prompting Evans to take out a gun and fire it into the sky th…

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by Zak Failla
Fairfax, VA
Breaking News
December Hit-Run Crash Victim Dies From Injuries In Virginia: Police December Hit-Run Crash Victim Dies From Injuries In Virginia: Police December Hit-Run Crash Victim Dies From Injuries In Virginia: Police
December Hit-Run Crash Victim Dies From Injuries In Virginia: Police A woman died at an area hospital more than a month after being struck by a hit-and-run driver in Fairfax County, according to police. Fu-Tzu Wong, 63, died on Monday after she was hospitalized by a driver who remains at large while she was crossing the road on Wednesday, Dec. 27.  Officers from the Fairfax County Police Department were called shortly before 8 p.m. on the night of the crash near the intersection of Huntsman Boulevard and Bridle Wood Boulevard when Wong was struck by a driver that fled the scene before investigators arrived. Police say that Wong was crossing Huntsman Bo…

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by Zak Failla
Ashburn, VA
Your Community
Classes Resume After Virginia HS Evacuated For Possible Gas Leak Classes Resume After Virginia HS Evacuated For Possible Gas Leak Classes Resume After Virginia HS Evacuated For Possible Gas Leak
Classes Resume After Virginia HS Evacuated For Possible Gas Leak Students and staff at a Virginia high school were temporarily out in the cold on Tuesday morning after a precautionary evacuation. Loudoun County High School was evacuated shortly after 9 a.m. on Jan. 30 due to the reported presence of the odor of gas throughout parts of the building, according to police. A School Resource Officer assigned to the building from the Leesburg Police Department coordinated with school staff to safely get everyone out while Loudoun County Fire and Rescue crews investigated and gave the all-clear before noon on Tuesday. Classes resumed normally and there isn't e…

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by Zak Failla
Manassas, VA
Breaking News
Pedestrian Killed Walking Outside Crosswalk Near Prince William County Intersection: Police Pedestrian Killed Walking Outside Crosswalk Near Prince William County Intersection: Police Pedestrian Killed Walking Outside Crosswalk Near Prince William County Intersection: Police
Pedestrian Killed Walking Outside Crosswalk Near Prince William County Intersection: Police An early morning crash left a 37-year-old Woodbridge man dead in Prince William County. At around 1:15 a.m. on Tuesday morning, police say that Daniel Kent Ryder was walking on Dale Boulevard near Queensdale Drive in Woodbridge when he was struck by a 2013 Toyota Corolla near the intersection. According to investigators, at the time he was struck, Ryder was outside of the crosswalk and was wearing dark-colored clothes. He was rushed to an area hospital where he later died from his injuries. The 37-year-old driver remained at the scene and was uninjured.  Speed, alcohol, and drugs are…

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by Zak Failla
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