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

Woodbridge, VA
Breaking News
Teen Hauled In After Hateful Graffiti Found Sprayed Across Andrew Leitch Park, Police Say Teen Hauled In After Hateful Graffiti Found Sprayed Across Andrew Leitch Park, Police Say Teen Hauled In After Hateful Graffiti Found Sprayed Across Andrew Leitch Park, Police Say
Teen Hauled In After Hateful Graffiti Found Sprayed Across Andrew Leitch Park, Police Say A vandalism investigation that shocked a quiet Virginia neighborhood earlier this month has now led to an arrest, police said. A 17-year-old from Woodbridge was arrested on Tuesday, Dec.16, in connection with hateful graffiti sprayed across Andrew Leitch Park on Dale Boulevard, according to Prince William County Police. Officers said the juvenile is charged with felony destruction of property and felony entering a property to damage, with a hate bias enhancement sought based on the nature of the markings, Prince William County Police said Wednesday, Dec. 17. Police said the vandalism cause…

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by Zak Failla
Stafford, VA
Breaking News
Armed Man Inside Virginia Home Invites Student In After School, Sheriff Says Armed Man Inside Virginia Home Invites Student In After School, Sheriff Says Armed Man Inside Virginia Home Invites Student In After School, Sheriff Says
Armed Man Inside Virginia Home Invites Student In After School, Sheriff Says A Virginia student walked into a nightmare after school when an armed man inside his home invited him to come in, deputies said. Deputies were called shortly before 4 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 15, to a home on Cliff Circle for a reported breaking and entering involving a gun, according to the Stafford County Sheriff’s Office. Investigators said a juvenile arrived home from school and noticed the door was unlocked. When the child opened the door, a man was inside the home holding a firearm, deputies said. The man pointed the gun at the juvenile and told the child that he could come inside, accor…

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by Zak Failla
Sterling, VA
Breaking News
Holiday Travelers Lose Nearly $190K At Dulles Airport Over Unreported Cash: Officials Holiday Travelers Lose Nearly $190K At Dulles Airport Over Unreported Cash: Officials Holiday Travelers Lose Nearly $190K At Dulles Airport Over Unreported Cash: Officials
Holiday Travelers Lose Nearly $190K At Dulles Airport Over Unreported Cash: Officials Federal officers at Washington Dulles International Airport seized nearly $190,000 in unreported cash from multiple groups of travelers headed overseas, reminding holiday flyers that failing to declare large amounts of currency can come with serious consequences. US Customs and Border Protection officers seized a combined nearly $190,000 in unreported currency from eight groups of travelers in Sterling, dating back through the end of October. The travelers were departing Washington Dulles International Airport for international destinations when the seizures occurred, federal officials said…

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by Zak Failla
Annapolis, MD
Breaking News
Inmate Serving Life Pleads Guilty To Killing Cellmate Inside Maryland Prison Inmate Serving Life Pleads Guilty To Killing Cellmate Inside Maryland Prison Inmate Serving Life Pleads Guilty To Killing Cellmate Inside Maryland Prison
Inmate Serving Life Pleads Guilty To Killing Cellmate Inside Maryland Prison A Maryland prison inmate already serving a life sentence has admitted to killing his cellmate inside Jessup Correctional Institution earlier this year, prosecutors announced. Wallace Dudley Ball, 64, of Randallstown, entered a guilty plea to first-degree murder in Anne Arundel County Circuit Court in Annapolis on Tuesday morning, in connection with the February 2025 killing of his cellmate, according to the Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney’s Office. Ball is already serving a life plus 30-year sentence for a 1994 murder, prosecutors said. Sentencing in the new case will be scheduled at a…

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by Zak Failla
Arlington, VA
Breaking News
Bomber Who Targeted Banks, Stores In Maryland And DC Sentenced To Prison Time Bomber Who Targeted Banks, Stores In Maryland And DC Sentenced To Prison Time Bomber Who Targeted Banks, Stores In Maryland And DC Sentenced To Prison Time
Bomber Who Targeted Banks, Stores In Maryland And DC Sentenced To Prison Time A District man who set off explosive devices outside banks, a retail store, and a supermarket during a predawn bombing spree across Maryland and DC is heading to federal prison, prosecutors announced. Cahlyl Rollins, 25, was sentenced in US District Court, Washington, on Tuesday, Dec. 16, to 60 months in prison for his role in four bombings that caused tens of thousands of dollars in damage, according to the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. Rollins took part in a coordinated early-morning spree in which explosive devices were detonated outside four businesses, including tw…

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by Zak Failla
Hagerstown, MD
Breaking News
WATCH: Hagerstown House Fire Explodes Into Second Floor, Sends One To Hospital WATCH: Hagerstown House Fire Explodes Into Second Floor, Sends One To Hospital WATCH: Hagerstown House Fire Explodes Into Second Floor, Sends One To Hospital
Watch: Hagerstown House Fire Explodes Into Second Floor, Sends One To Hospital A morning house fire tore through the second floor and attic of a Frederick Street home in Hagerstown, sending one resident to the hospital and prompting a fast, multi-agency response, fire officials said. Crews were dispatched at around 9:45 a.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 16, to the 300 block of Frederick Street in Hagerstown, where there were multiple reports of a home on fire. City fire inspectors who were already in the area arrived first and confirmed a working fire, officials said. The scene of the fire in Hagerstown on Tuesday afternoon. Hagerstown Fire Department A battalion chief a…

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by Zak Failla
Fairfax, VA
Breaking News
Fair Haven Chain-Reaction Crash With Metro Bus Leaves Taxi Driver Dead, Several Injured: Police Fair Haven Chain-Reaction Crash With Metro Bus Leaves Taxi Driver Dead, Several Injured: Police Fair Haven Chain-Reaction Crash With Metro Bus Leaves Taxi Driver Dead, Several Injured: Police
Fair Haven Chain-Reaction Crash With Metro Bus Leaves Taxi Driver Dead, Several Injured: Police A three-vehicle crash involving a Metro bus and two cars left one man dead and several others injured in Virginia, police said. Officers responded shortly after 10 a.m. on Monday, Dec. 15, to the 6300 block of Richmond Highway in Fair Haven to investigate a reported crash, according to the Fairfax County Police Department. Preliminary findings show a Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority bus was stopped in the right lane of northbound Richmond Highway with a 2014 Toyota Sienna stopped behind it, police said. A 2013 Toyota Camry taxicab traveling northbound then struck the Toyota S…

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by Zak Failla
Lanham-Seabrook, MD
Breaking News
Lanham Caregiver Convicted After Video Shows Abuse Of Vulnerable Adult: Attorney General Lanham Caregiver Convicted After Video Shows Abuse Of Vulnerable Adult: Attorney General Lanham Caregiver Convicted After Video Shows Abuse Of Vulnerable Adult: Attorney General
Lanham Caregiver Convicted After Video Shows Abuse Of Vulnerable Adult: Attorney General A former direct support professional in Maryland has been sentenced after being convicted of abusing and neglecting a vulnerable adult who depended on her for daily care, the Attorney General’s Office announced. Lanham resident Taibat Fola Suenu will largely avoid time behind bars after being found guilty and sentenced for abuse and neglect of a vulnerable adult, according to authorities.  Suenu worked as a Direct Support Professional, providing hands-on assistance to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, officials said. “This defendant abused a person who relied en…

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by Zak Failla
Prince Frederick, MD
Breaking News
Woman Killed In Prince Frederick Police-Involved Crash Identified By OAG Woman Killed In Prince Frederick Police-Involved Crash Identified By OAG Woman Killed In Prince Frederick Police-Involved Crash Identified By OAG
Woman Killed In Prince Frederick Police-Involved Crash Identified By OAG The woman killed in a police-involved three-vehicle crash following a traffic stop attempt in Prince Frederick has been identified by investigators, officials said. Investigators say that Lusby resident Servon Gatewood, 58, was behind the wheel when she was caught up in a multi-vehicle crash that landed one man behind bars. The fatal police-involved collision happened at around 12:30 a.m. on Friday, Dec. 12, in Prince Frederick, according to the Maryland Office of the Attorney General. According to investigators, a deputy from the Calvert County Sheriff's Office spotted a Nissan sedan pass…

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by Zak Failla
Silver Spring, MD
Breaking News
Silver Spring Navy Lieutenant Commander Convicted In Cyberstalking Targeting Ex-Wife, Kids: DOJ Silver Spring Navy Lieutenant Commander Convicted In Cyberstalking Targeting Ex-Wife, Kids: DOJ Silver Spring Navy Lieutenant Commander Convicted In Cyberstalking Targeting Ex-Wife, Kids: DOJ
Silver Spring Navy Lieutenant Commander Convicted In Cyberstalking Targeting Ex-Wife, Kids: DOJ An active-duty US Navy lieutenant commander was convicted after a two-week federal trial for a yearslong cyberstalking campaign that targeted his ex-wife and their children, prosecutors announced in Maryland. A federal jury convicted Jason Michael Leidel, 45, of Silver Spring, on one count of cyberstalking, according to the US Attorney's Office. According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Leidel repeatedly sent emails containing false allegations in an effort to get his ex-wife fired from her job as a special education teacher at a public school, authorities said. Prosecu…

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by Zak Failla
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