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

Annapolis, MD
Breaking News
US Naval Academy Lockdown In Annapolis Traced To Online Threat From Indiana Man: DOJ US Naval Academy Lockdown In Annapolis Traced To Online Threat From Indiana Man: DOJ US Naval Academy Lockdown In Annapolis Traced To Online Threat From Indiana Man: DOJ
US Naval Academy Lockdown In Annapolis Traced To Online Threat From Indiana Man: DOJ An Indiana man has been arrested after allegedly sending an online threat toward the US Naval Academy in Maryland, which led to a lockdown last week, federal authorities announced. Jackson Fleming, 23, of Chesterton, was arrested on Sept. 12 on suspicion of sending an online threat through a social media application concerning the Naval Academy in Annapolis the day prior, according to the Department of Justice. A criminal complaint charging Fleming with one count of transmitting a threat in interstate communication was approved by a magistrate judge in Indiana on Sunday, Sept. 14. The…

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by Zak Failla
Waldorf, MD
Breaking News
Manhunt Ends As Waldorf Fugitive Nabbed In Maryland After Choking Woman, Gun Threat: Sheriff Manhunt Ends As Waldorf Fugitive Nabbed In Maryland After Choking Woman, Gun Threat: Sheriff Manhunt Ends As Waldorf Fugitive Nabbed In Maryland After Choking Woman, Gun Threat: Sheriff
Manhunt Ends As Waldorf Fugitive Nabbed In Maryland After Choking Woman, Gun Threat: Sheriff A fugitive accused of choking a woman and pulling a gun on her has been caught after a months-long manhunt in Maryland, authorities announced. Rome Delmar Watkins, 27, of Waldorf, was taken into custody on Tuesday, Sept. 16, after members of the Charles County Sheriff’s Office, the US Marshals Service, and the US Park Police tracked him down. Watkins had been wanted since April 20, when deputies said he assaulted a woman inside a Waldorf home after being asked to leave. During the assault, Watkins reportedly choked the woman, and after exiting the home, he pulled a handgun from his waistba…

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by Zak Failla
Fredericksburg, VA
Breaking News
Virginia Teen Shot, Classmate Arrested After Deputies Recover Gun In Spotsylvania: Sheriff Virginia Teen Shot, Classmate Arrested After Deputies Recover Gun In Spotsylvania: Sheriff Virginia Teen Shot, Classmate Arrested After Deputies Recover Gun In Spotsylvania: Sheriff
Virginia Teen Shot, Classmate Arrested After Deputies Recover Gun In Spotsylvania: Sheriff A group of teen students caused chaos in Virginia, leaving one shot and one facing charges. Deputies from the Spotsylvania Sheriff's Office say a 16-year-old boy was shot in the stomach around 6:30 p.m. Monday, Sept. 15, in the 10900 block of Taney Drive.  He was rushed to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Witnesses told deputies two people may have been involved, and officers quickly spotted them on a nearby street, but when they tried to question the teens, things escalated fast. According to the sheriff’s office, one of the teens — a 15-year-old — made “furtive moveme…

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by Zak Failla
Lexington Park, MD
Breaking News
Man Fires Shots At Woman, Barricades In Lexington Park Home For Hours, Sheriff Says Man Fires Shots At Woman, Barricades In Lexington Park Home For Hours, Sheriff Says Man Fires Shots At Woman, Barricades In Lexington Park Home For Hours, Sheriff Says
Man Fires Shots At Woman, Barricades In Lexington Park Home For Hours, Sheriff Says A tense four-hour standoff in St. Mary’s County ended peacefully after a man allegedly fired multiple shots inside his Lexington Park home. The harrowing incident began shortly before 10:30 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 15, when the sheriff's office received a call from a home in the 45000 block of Kingfisher Court. The woman told dispatchers she had fled the home after 39-year-old Anibal Carrasquillo III fired a gun at her. According to the St. Mary's County Sheriff's Office, while deputies were on the scene negotiating, they heard a series of shots fired from within the house and Carrasquil…

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by Zak Failla
Leesburg, VA
On Your Side
From Food Lion To Fortune: Leesburg Man Hits $3M Lottery Prize, Eyes Business Dreams From Food Lion To Fortune: Leesburg Man Hits $3M Lottery Prize, Eyes Business Dreams From Food Lion To Fortune: Leesburg Man Hits $3M Lottery Prize, Eyes Business Dreams
From Food Lion To Fortune: Leesburg Man Hits $3M Lottery Prize, Eyes Business Dreams A Leesburg man just turned pocket change into a jackpot — and he’s already thinking about how to turn that win into something bigger. The lucky player scratched a 50X the Money ticket from the Virginia Lottery and hit the game’s $3 million top prize, officials announced. The winning ticket came from the Food Lion on South King Street in Leesburg. Virginia law lets winners of $1 million or more remain anonymous, so the jackpot holder’s identity will stay a mystery.  But Lottery officials said he admitted he was overcome with “tears of happiness” when he realized he’d won. He had two …

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by Zak Failla
Herndon, VA
Breaking News
Virginia Ambush: Man Rammed, Shot Multiple Times Before Suspect Arrested In Dranesville: Police Virginia Ambush: Man Rammed, Shot Multiple Times Before Suspect Arrested In Dranesville: Police Virginia Ambush: Man Rammed, Shot Multiple Times Before Suspect Arrested In Dranesville: Police
Virginia Ambush: Man Rammed, Shot Multiple Times Before Suspect Arrested In Dranesville: Police A Herndon man is dead after police say he was rammed off the road and gunned down in Virginia. The deadly shooting happened around 5:03 a.m. Monday, Sept. 15, on Fantasia Drive near Dranesville, according to Fairfax County Police. When officers arrived, they found Irfan Syed, 45, of Herndon, shot in the upper body. He was rushed to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Detectives said the suspect, Muhammad Muzammil, 25, of no fixed address, rammed Syed’s vehicle before shooting him multiple times.  Muzammil’s own car later broke down as he tried to flee. Shortly after, police sa…

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by Zak Failla
Stafford, VA
Breaking News
Game Over: Wanted Woman Caught Hiding Under Motel 6 Bed During Stafford Drug Bust Game Over: Wanted Woman Caught Hiding Under Motel 6 Bed During Stafford Drug Bust Game Over: Wanted Woman Caught Hiding Under Motel 6 Bed During Stafford Drug Bust
Game Over: Wanted Woman Caught Hiding Under Motel 6 Bed During Stafford Drug Bust Peekaboo! A wanted woman soundly lost a game of hide-and-seek with members of the Stafford County Sheriff's Office, who didn't have to look far to find her. On Sunday, Sept. 14, deputies were called to the Motel 6 in the 2800 block of Richmond Highway, when a tipster advised that Woodbridge resident Justina Sharp, 35, was in one of the rooms.  The caller also said that they believed "drug dealing was occurring in the room," according to the sheriff's office. When deputies checked the room in question, they were met by Stafford resident Austin Nicely, 25, who said that the woman they …

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by Zak Failla
Woodbridge, VA
Breaking News
Woodbridge Man Dead After Running Red Light, Hitting Cement Truck In Manassas: Police Woodbridge Man Dead After Running Red Light, Hitting Cement Truck In Manassas: Police Woodbridge Man Dead After Running Red Light, Hitting Cement Truck In Manassas: Police
Woodbridge Man Dead After Running Red Light, Hitting Cement Truck In Manassas: Police A Woodbridge man was killed after police say he may have suffered a medical emergency before running a red light and slamming into a cement truck in Manassas. The crash happened around 1:30 p.m. Monday, Sept. 15, at the intersection of Dumfries Road and Spriggs Road, according to the Prince William County Police Department. Investigators said the driver of a 2014 Mazda CX-5 entered the intersection against a red light and collided with a 2025 Mack cement truck that was headed west on Dumfries Road. The Mazda driver, later identified as Eagleheart Patrick Roberds, 66, of Woodbridge, was tak…

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by Zak Failla
Edgewood, MD
Breaking News
'By God's Grace': Smoke Alarms Save Edgewood Woman, Pets As $350K Blaze Destroys Home 'By God's Grace': Smoke Alarms Save Edgewood Woman, Pets As $350K Blaze Destroys Home 'By God's Grace': Smoke Alarms Save Edgewood Woman, Pets As $350K Blaze Destroys Home
'By God's Grace': Smoke Alarms Save Edgewood Woman, Pets As $350K Blaze Destroys Home Smoke detectors may have saved the lives of a woman and her family's pets, but it will be a long time until they can move back into their Maryland home. Scott and Karen Zissimos were displaced by an early-morning fire that could have ended even more tragically after a fast-moving kitchen fire spread to the rest of the Edgewood home. Crews were called around 5:58 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 11, to a one-story home on Kennard Avenue, according to the Maryland State Fire Marshal. Investigators said the fire started in the kitchen after a food dehydrator failed.  The blaze spread quickly, but a…

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by Zak Failla
Towson, MD
Breaking News
Deadly Deer Disease Outbreak In Multiple Counties Confirmed By Maryland Health Officials Deadly Deer Disease Outbreak In Multiple Counties Confirmed By Maryland Health Officials Deadly Deer Disease Outbreak In Multiple Counties Confirmed By Maryland Health Officials
Deadly Deer Disease Outbreak In Multiple Counties Confirmed By Maryland Health Officials A deadly disease is sweeping through Maryland’s white-tailed deer population, with multiple counties seeing reports of dead or sick animals, state officials confirmed. The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) announced on Sept. 10 that Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease (EHD) has been confirmed and is the likely cause of deer deaths in central and southern counties. The largest outbreak so far has been documented in Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Howard, Montgomery, and Prince George’s counties, though cases have also been reported in neighboring states including Pennsylvania, Virginia, and …

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by Zak Failla
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