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Monday, jul 21

Zak Failla

Assistant Managing Editor

zfailla@dailyvoice.com

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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

72‑Year‑Old Man Kicks Cops Ending Food Fight In Woodbridge, Police Say What started as a food fight in Northern Virginia turned into a police assault, authorities said. Officers from the Prince William County Police Department were called to a home on the 14400 block of General Washington Drive in Woodbridge shortly before 12:45 a.m. on Sunday, July 20, to investigate a domestic dispute. Investigators say that William Thomas Humphries, 72, threw food at a 69-year-old family member during an altercation in their home, prompting the police response. While he was being detained, Humphries allegedly became unruly and began to actively resist his arrest while kick…

by Zak Failla

07/21/2025

News

Former FBI Agent Used Fake Names, Gaithersburg Studios To Rape Women: State's Attorney A former FBI agent from Maryland will likely spend the rest of his life in prison after being convicted of luring young women into his Montgomery County tattoo studios and raping them under the guise of modeling opportunities. Eduardo Valdivia, 41, of Gaithersburg, was found guilty on Friday, July 18 of a bevy of sex offenses by a jury in Montgomery County Circuit Court. Valdivia, a former Supervisory Special Agent with the FBI for over a decade, owned DC Fine Line Tattoos, located in the 9800 block of Washingtonian Boulevard in Gaithersburg, officials said. The shop became the cente…

by Zak Failla

07/21/2025

Police & Fire

Scary Home Invasion In Dumfries: Man With Stun Device, Scissors Arrested: Police A 21-year-old Virginia man is facing a long list of charges after he allegedly broke into a woman’s apartment in Virginia with a stun device, forced her into a room with scissors, then came back a second time — and a third. Lee Otis Taylor, of Woodbridge, was charged with burglary with intent to assault after a violent series of domestic-related incidents between Thursday, July 17, and Sunday, July 20, Prince William County Police said. Deputies responded shortly before 10 p.m. on July 17 to the Broadstone at River Oaks Apartments on Chesapeake Drive in Dumfries. Taylor allegedly forced his…

by Zak Failla

07/21/2025

Police & Fire

Maryland Woman Shoots, Kills Husband During Argument In Bowie, Police Say A Maryland woman is behind bars after allegedly shooting and killing her husband during an argument inside their home, police said. Nicole Lanett Ward, 50, is accused of fatally shooting 53-year-old Damian Ward in the early hours of Saturday in the unincorporated area of Bowie, according to the Prince George’s County Police Department. Officers responded to the couple’s home on the 13200 block of Old Chapel Road around 1:45 a.m. on July 19, for a reported shooting. Inside, they found Damian Ward suffering from a gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at the scene by first responders. …

by Zak Failla

07/21/2025

Police & Fire

Repeat DUI Driver Slams Into Motorcyclist At Red Light In Stafford, Sheriff Says A repeat DUI offender in Virginia smashed into a motorcyclist while swerving through traffic — just moments after multiple 911 calls warned of her erratic driving, authorities said. The driver, Joanne Strong, 40, of Stafford, was arrested on Saturday, July 19, after deputies say she crashed her white Acura into a motorcycle stopped at a red light on Richmond Highway near Telegraph Road in the middle of the afternoon. According to the Stafford County Sheriff’s Office, witnesses told deputies that Strong had been swerving across lanes while driving southbound. The final 911 call came i…

by Zak Failla

07/21/2025

Police & Fire

Arsonist Torches Trucks, Damages Glenmont Shopping Center In Early Morning Fire: Officials Two vehicles were destroyed and a shopping center partially damaged in an early-morning arson attack in Maryland, authorities said. Firefighters responded to a pair of vehicle fires around 3:30 a.m. on Monday, July 21, outside the Country Boy Market at the Glenmont Center on Randolph Road in Silver Spring, according to Montgomery County Fire and Rescue officials. The fire outside Country Boy Market in the Glenmont Shopping Center. Twitter/@mcfrsPIO Crews found both vehicles ablaze, with flames extending to the exterior awning of the shopping center. The fire outsid…

by Zak Failla

07/21/2025

Police & Fire

Boater Hoisted From Chesapeake Bay By Maryland State Police After Vessel Overturns (Watch) A Maryland State Police helicopter crew sprang into action over the weekend to rescue three people stranded in the Chesapeake Bay when their boat flipped over. The incident was reported around 5 p.m. on Saturday, July 19, just off the coast of St. Mary’s County — about 300 yards offshore — when fire and rescue teams were sent out for a water rescue. The helicopter crew, already monitoring the county dispatch channel, heard the emergency call and jumped in immediately after confirming with local responders, according to state police. With the nearest fireboat still too far away away, the cr…

by Zak Failla

07/21/2025

Sports

Wrestler ‘Buff’ Bagwell Gets Leg Amputated Following 2020 Crash: ‘I’m Taking This By The Horns’ Five years after he was involved in a gruesome car crash, Marcus "Buff" Bagwell is facing his latest battle outside of the ring. The five-time WCW World Tag Team Champion underwent an above-the-knee amputation after multiple attempts to repair damage from the 2020 crash were unsuccessful. Bagwell crashed his car into a shopping mall in 2020, leaving him with grievous injuries that ultimately led to his decision to amputate. His story was documented by former WWE wrestler Maven Huffman on his YouTube channel following the July 9 surgery. In the 1990s, Buff Bagwell was one of the…

by Zak Failla

07/20/2025

Police & Fire

‘I Think I Shot Him’: Stafford Woman Kills Ex, Waits For Deputies, Sheriff Says A Stafford woman called 911 after fatally shooting her ex-boyfriend and waited in a grocery store parking lot for deputies, according to the Stafford County Sheriff’s Office. Ashlynn Blair, 32, made the call just after 12:40 p.m. on Friday, July 19, after a shooting on Rocky Run Road in South Stafford, officials said. Deputies said she told dispatchers, “I think I shot and killed my ex-boyfriend.” When deputies arrived at the Giant parking lot on Celebrate Virginia Parkway, Blair was waiting with the gun believed to have been used. At the Rocky Run Road home, deputies found a 31-yea…

by Zak Failla

07/20/2025

Politics

DHS Slams Biden-Appointed Judge For Releasing Detainee From Men’s ICE Facility Federal immigration officials are slamming a Biden-appointed judge for ordering the release of a Mexican national who was being held in a men’s ICE facility, according to the Department of Homeland Security. Odalis Jhonatan Martinez-Velasquez, who entered the US illegally in 2023, had been placed in a men’s facility in accordance with an executive order aimed at protecting women in ICE custody, DHS said Velasquez, who entered the US illegally in 2023 and was lawfully detained on June 2, 2025, was processed for expedited removal, DHS said. US District Judge Amy Baggio later ordered Velasque…

by Zak Failla

07/20/2025

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