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

Arlington, VA
Breaking News
Murderer Who Fled To El Salvador Convicted In 1997 Cold Case DC Restaurant Double Killing: Feds Murderer Who Fled To El Salvador Convicted In 1997 Cold Case DC Restaurant Double Killing: Feds Murderer Who Fled To El Salvador Convicted In 1997 Cold Case DC Restaurant Double Killing: Feds
Murderer Who Fled To El Salvador Convicted In 1997 Cold Case DC Restaurant Double Killing: Feds Justice may have finally been served in a decades-old killing that shattered two families in DC.  Oscar Diaz Romero, 47, of El Salvador, was found guilty in DC Superior Court this week for the 1997 shooting deaths of two young men inside a Northwest DC restaurant. The verdict closes a case that went cold for years after the accused killer fled the country. Diaz Romero, also known as Oscar Alonzo Salguero, was convicted of two counts of second-degree murder for the deaths of 21-year-old Jose Roberto Molina and Jose Noel Coreas, officials said. The shootings happened in the early morni…

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by Zak Failla
Boonsboro, MD
Obituaries
Former Miss Sharpsburg, Teen Who Dreamed Of Becoming Vet Dies Suddenly At 14 Former Miss Sharpsburg, Teen Who Dreamed Of Becoming Vet Dies Suddenly At 14 Former Miss Sharpsburg, Teen Who Dreamed Of Becoming Vet Dies Suddenly At 14
Former Miss Sharpsburg, Teen Who Dreamed Of Becoming Vet Dies Suddenly At 14 Dorothy Marie Lowe loved animals, sports, and was a "bright light always showing love and kindness to those around her" in Maryland. Then, in an instant, the 14-year-old was gone. Lowe, a Sharpsburg native, passed away on Tuesday, March 24, after a medical emergency, leaving behind grieving family members, classmates, and neighbors who say her loss has created a void that won’t soon be filled. In Washington County, where Dorothy was an eighth-grade student at Boonsboro Middle School, the impact has been immediate and overwhelming, with tributes pouring in from every corner of her life. Do…

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by Zak Failla
Kensington, MD
Breaking News
USPS Driver Listening To Music Charged In Fatal Kensington Crash That Killed Woman: Police USPS Driver Listening To Music Charged In Fatal Kensington Crash That Killed Woman: Police USPS Driver Listening To Music Charged In Fatal Kensington Crash That Killed Woman: Police
USPS Driver Listening To Music Charged In Fatal Kensington Crash That Killed Woman: Police The driver of a United States Postal Service truck who struck and killed a woman last summer has been charged, authorities announced on Friday. Silver Spring resident Oscar Pedrozo, 26, has been charged with criminally negligent homicide following a months-long investigation into the death of 64-year-old Mairi Nicola Morrison in July 2025. The fatal collision happened around 10:40 a.m. on Wednesday, July 16, 2025, at the intersection of Connecticut Avenue and Plyers Mill Road in Kensington, according to the Montgomery County Department of Police. Investigators say the Garrett Park resident…

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by Zak Failla
Williamsport, MD
Your Community
DHS Eyes ICE Facility In Williamsport Warehouse, County Says It Has No Legal Power To Stop It DHS Eyes ICE Facility In Williamsport Warehouse, County Says It Has No Legal Power To Stop It DHS Eyes ICE Facility In Williamsport Warehouse, County Says It Has No Legal Power To Stop It
DHS Eyes ICE Facility In Williamsport Warehouse, County Says It Has No Legal Power To Stop It A proposed ICE facility is moving forward in Maryland, despite local officials saying they have no legal authority to stop it. Washington County officials confirmed Friday, March 27, that the US Department of Homeland Security has proposed converting a warehouse in Williamsport into an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility. The site targeted is a warehouse at 10900 Hopewell Road, also known as 16220 Wright Road, in Williamsport. The federal government wants to buy and convert the warehouse into a facility supporting Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations. Plans call for upg…

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by Zak Failla
Leonardtown-California, MD
Breaking News
Fentanyl, Loaded Shotgun Seized In St. Mary's Drug Bust As 2 Arrested In Home Raid: Sheriff Fentanyl, Loaded Shotgun Seized In St. Mary's Drug Bust As 2 Arrested In Home Raid: Sheriff Fentanyl, Loaded Shotgun Seized In St. Mary's Drug Bust As 2 Arrested In Home Raid: Sheriff
Fentanyl, Loaded Shotgun Seized In St. Mary's Drug Bust As 2 Arrested In Home Raid: Sheriff A Maryland drug investigation ended with two arrests after detectives uncovered fentanyl, cocaine, and a loaded firearm inside a Lexington Park home. The case unfolded in St. Mary’s County, where investigators executed search warrants at a residence in the 20000 block of Spring Hill Road on Thursday, March 26. Detectives moved in following an investigation into suspected drug trafficking. Inside the home, they found what they were looking for — and more. Authorities seized suspected narcotics, drug paraphernalia, and a loaded, unserialized .12-gauge firearm. The drugs included 40.3 grams…

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by Zak Failla
Rockville, MD
Breaking News
13-Year-Old Charged After Rockville Stabbing, Second Teen Still Loose: Police (DEVELOPING) 13-Year-Old Charged After Rockville Stabbing, Second Teen Still Loose: Police (DEVELOPING) 13-Year-Old Charged After Rockville Stabbing, Second Teen Still Loose: Police (DEVELOPING)
13-Year-Old Charged After Rockville Stabbing, Second Teen Still Loose: Police (Developing) A violent stabbing involving young teens is under investigation after a juvenile was attacked near a busy Maryland shopping area. The incident happened in Rockville, where police say a juvenile victim was found with a stab wound near the 400 block of Redland Boulevard — an area just steps from a Safeway. Officers were called to the scene shortly after 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 25. When they arrived, they found the victim suffering from a non-life-threatening stab wound. The teen was treated at the scene and then taken to a local hospital for further care. Police quickly made an arrest.…

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by Zak Failla
Fredericksburg, VA
On Your Side
$74.5M Refinance Secured For Major Virginia Shopping Center Near UVA Campus $74.5M Refinance Secured For Major Virginia Shopping Center Near UVA Campus $74.5M Refinance Secured For Major Virginia Shopping Center Near UVA Campus
$74.5M Refinance Secured For Major Virginia Shopping Center Near UVA Campus A major shopping hub in Virginia just landed a massive financial boost — with nearly $75 million secured to keep one of Charlottesville’s busiest retail centers humming. The deal centers on Charlottesville, where Shops at Stonefield — a high-traffic retail destination near the University of Virginia — has been refinanced to the tune of $74.48 million. The refinancing was announced on Thursday, March 26, as JLL Capital Markets arranged the three-year loan on behalf of O’Connor Capital Partners. The property sits at 2100 Hydraulic Road, right at the intersection of Route 29 and Hydraulic Roa…

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by Zak Failla
Waldorf, MD
Breaking News
Murder Convict Caught With Drugs, Guns, Learns Latest Prison Fate In Charles County Murder Convict Caught With Drugs, Guns, Learns Latest Prison Fate In Charles County Murder Convict Caught With Drugs, Guns, Learns Latest Prison Fate In Charles County
Murder Convict Caught With Drugs, Guns, Learns Latest Prison Fate In Charles County A Maryland man with a prior murder conviction is heading back to prison after police say they found drugs, guns, and cash tied to a distribution operation. The sentencing was reported in Charles County, where Corey Daniel Claggett, 46, of Waldorf, was ordered to serve 12 years behind bars in Circuit Court in La Plata. The decision came after a judge handed down the sentence tied to cocaine distribution, illegal firearm possession, and a probation violation, officials said. The case stems from a coordinated raid months earlier. On Sept. 4, 2025, multiple Charles County Sheriff’s Office uni…

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by Zak Failla
Frederick, MD
Breaking News
Deported Woman Slips Back Into Frederick, Pleads Guilty After Brutal Knife Attack: Feds Deported Woman Slips Back Into Frederick, Pleads Guilty After Brutal Knife Attack: Feds Deported Woman Slips Back Into Frederick, Pleads Guilty After Brutal Knife Attack: Feds
Deported Woman Slips Back Into Frederick, Pleads Guilty After Brutal Knife Attack: Feds A woman who was deported from the United States, slipped back into Maryland, and was later accused of a brutal knife attack has now pleaded guilty in federal court. The case came to light in Frederick, where authorities say Vanessa Yalixa Munoz-Baque, 31, was living after illegally re-entering the country, and before she was arrested in a violent attempted murder case. Federal prosecutors say Munoz-Baque had already been removed from the US in August 2023. But that wasn't the end of it. She illegally re-entered the country again on November 3, 2023, then began residing in Frederick, accor…

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by Zak Failla
Towson, MD
Your Community
'Hell On Wheels' Truck Playing Dying Pigs’ Screams Rolling Into Baltimore Outside Camden Yards 'Hell On Wheels' Truck Playing Dying Pigs’ Screams Rolling Into Baltimore Outside Camden Yards 'Hell On Wheels' Truck Playing Dying Pigs’ Screams Rolling Into Baltimore Outside Camden Yards
'Hell On Wheels' Truck Playing Dying Pigs’ Screams Rolling Into Baltimore Outside Camden Yards A truck full of pigs is about to roll into Maryland — but it’s what people will hear, not see, that’s meant to stop them in their tracks. The controversial exhibit is heading to Baltimore, where PETA plans to park its so-called “Hell on Wheels” pig truck outside one of the city’s busiest destinations. The display is scheduled for Sunday, March 29, at 1 p.m., outside Oriole Park at Camden Yards on West Camden Street during the first weekend of the new MLB season. From the outside, it looks like a livestock truck packed with pigs. But the experience goes further. Hidden speakers play recor…

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by Zak Failla
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