Family and friends gathered on Sunday evening at the spot where 16-year-old Marvin Daniel Cruz Serrano was killed Saturday.
They placed a white wooden cross with “Daniel” near the intersection where the South Lakes High School sophomore was struck by a vehicle while returning home from work at Reston’s Cafesano, WJLA reported.
The memorial continues to grow with several bouquets of flowers and a stuffed animal for the teen who friends called “kind and selfless.” Serrano leaves behind his mother and a 2-year-old brother.
In a message sent to the school community Monday evening, Principal Kim Retzer said funeral arrangements are still being planned.
Fairfax County Police are still looking for the driver, who fled the scene. Detectives believe the sedan involved “may possibly be gray or silver, and it likely has significant front end damage.”
“At about 5:40, officers responded to the report of a pedestrian hit-and-run crash on South Lakes Drive and Castle Rock Square in Reston,” police said in a press release. “The teen was attempting to cross South Lakes Drive… when he was hit by a vehicle. He was pronounced dead at the scene.”
The fatal hit-and-run was the 44th road death in Fairfax County in 2018 — the most for any county in Virginia last year, according to DCist.
Police are asking anyone with information about the fatal hit-and-run to contact the Crash Reconstruction Unit witness phone line at 703-280-0543 or to submit a tip anonymously through Crime Solvers.
16-year-old Daniel Serrano’s grief-stricken mother nearly collapsed during the vigil for her son who was killed by a hit and run driver. This was an incredibly emotional story to cover. I broke down in tears.
Fairfax County Police are searching for the driver. pic.twitter.com/1098jCvFAD— Victoria Sanchez (@VictoriaSanchez) December 31, 2018
The memorial for 16-year-old Daniel Serrano continues to grow. pic.twitter.com/AMVBupkGw7
— Victoria Sanchez (@VictoriaSanchez) December 31, 2018
Family & friends tell us 16yo Daniel Serrano was a cashier at a restaurant in Reston. He worked hard to help his family. They say he was coming home from work and crossing South Lakes Dr. when police say a driver hit him/didn’t stop. Serrano didn’t survive. @fox5dc pic.twitter.com/SfEelex8xP
— Evan Lambert (@EvanLambertTV) December 31, 2018
Photo via Madison Grace Shannon/Facebook
Police are looking for three women and one man in connection with two separate robberies that occurred on Saturday night (Dec. 22).
Around 7:30 p.m., a store manager at the Victoria’s Secret store in Reston Town Center (11929 Market Street) confronted three women who were seen shoplifting, according to the Fairfax County Police Department.
One suspect pepper-sprayed the manager and a security guard as they attempted to intervene, before all three suspects drove off in a dark-colored Nissan Altima, according to the report.
The report gave the following description for the women:
They were described as black women in their 20s. The first suspect had a thin build, long black hair, a pink jacket with strips, and white sneakers. The second suspect had red hair, a blue jacket, a black shirt, and white and black sneakers. The third suspect had a black jacket, black pants, a white hat, and white and black sneakers.
A second robbery took place at 8:05 p.m. at the intersection of Monroe Street and Sunrise Valley Drive in Hunter Mill.
Police say a man with a gun approached a victim walking down the street and demanded money. The man then fled in a black sedan after taking money from the victim. The amount of money taken was not included in the police report.
“The man was described as black, with a deep voice, around 6 feet 2 inches tall, wearing a white coat,” according to the report.
Police say the victim was not injured.
Maps via Google Maps
Loudoun County police arrested and charged a Reston man with driving under the influence last Wednesday night near Paeonian Springs.
A sheriff’s deputy spotted the driver, Karl F. Wolf, a 75-year-old Reston resident, going over the posted speed limit at the intersection of Route 7 and Route 9 at 10:23 p.m. on Dec. 19, according to the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office.
Wolf has been released from the Loudoun County Adult Detention Center on an unsecured bond.
The Fairfax County Police Department’s Reston District Station reported the following incidents in recent days:
LARCENIES:
11900 block of Market Street, merchandise from business
11900 block of Market Street, cell phone from location
13200 block of Parcher Avenue, cell phone from schoolÂ
11100 block of South Lakes Drive, merchandise from business
11800 block of Sunrise Valley Drive, cash from business
21800 block of Town Center Plaza, merchandise from business
STOLEN VEHICLES:
None reported
Fairfax County police discovered that the AT&T store at 1810 Library Street was broken into after they responded to an alarm going off at the store at 1:45 a.m. last Wednesday (Dec. 19). Police determined that someone stole electronics, according to the report.
Last Thursday (Dec. 20) Herndon police arrested 34-year-old Carlos S. Portillo of Herndon on four counts of sexual assault against a victim who knew him, according to the Herndon Police Department.
The assaults happened at the 1000Â block of Alabama Drive, according to the report.
Portillo is currently being held at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center without bond, according to the report.
File photo
Loudoun County police arrested a Herndon resident after he drove into a concrete barrier on Sunday morning in Sterling.
A sheriff’s deputy spotted a vehicle that had crashed into a concrete barrier at the 21000 block of N. Sterling Road at 3:23 a.m. on Dec. 16, according to the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office.
The 26-year-old driver, Jose M. Herrera was arrested and charged with driving under the influence and driving without a license. A 22-year-old passenger, Alejandro Brizo-Calix of Falls Church, was arrested and charged with public intoxication, the report said.
Both men have been released from the Loudoun County Adult Detention Center on unsecured bonds.
In a separate incident, Loudoun County police arrested and charged a 45-year-old Reston woman for being drunk in public last Thursday (Dec. 13) in Sterling.
Deputies responded to a call for a female screaming and attempting to open car doors at 2 a.m. Deputies found Katharine M. Lilly lying on the sidewalk in the 100 block of Drury Circle and arrested her, according to the report.
She was released on a personal recognizance bond, according to police.
The Fairfax County Police Department’s Reston District Station reported the following incidents in recent days:
LARCENIES:
2300 block of Generation Drive, property from residence
1800 block of Michael Faraday Court, wallet and purse from vehicle
1400 block of North Point Village Center, merchandise from business
11100 block of Saffold Way, jewelry from residence
12000 block of Sunrise Valley Drive, bicycle from location
12100 block of Sunset Hills Road, merchandise from business
1800 block of Wiehle Avenue, merchandise from business
STOLEN VEHICLES:
None reported
Fairfax County police are searching for a man who robbed the Sunoco in Herndon last Wednesday (Dec. 12), previously reported by Reston Now.
File photo
An architect behind Reston’s design died on Nov. 22 — William J. Conklin, who died at the age of 95, helped design the core of Lake Anne Village Center. He also worked on projects in New York, D.C. and Baltimore. [The New York Times]
Nose to toes yoga —Â Young kids can try out yoga poses movement while enjoying book and songs with a children’s yoga instructor from 10:30 a.m. to 11:15 a.m. at the Reston Regional Library. The event is co-sponsored by the Friends of the Reston Regional Library. [Reston Regional Library]
Town of Herndon employees honored last week — The town’s annual employee luncheon on Thursday (Dec. 13) honored John Johnson and Dave Higgins from the Department of Public Works, Jessica Bynaker from Information Technology and Erika Rodriguez from the Herndon Police Department, along with the Department of Finance. [Town of Herndon]
Reston resident sentenced to 30 years for rape — Joseph Coffinberger, a 33-year-old from Reston, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 30 years in prison for raping a 13-year-old boy, according to the Howard County State’s Attorney’s Office. [WBFF Fox45]
(Updated at 8:58 a.m.)Â Police are searching for a man who robbed the Sunoco in Herndon yesterday night.
A man wearing a mask entered the gas station at 11:30 p.m. on Wednesday (Dec. 12) and displayed a handgun to the cashier, according to the Fairfax County Police Department.
The man then took an unspecified amount of cash and fled the gas station at 13470 Coppermine Road.
Police said there were no injuries.
“The suspect was described as a black man, about 6 feet tall, and 200 pounds,” according to the report.
Image via Google Maps
This story has been updated
Loudoun County police arrested and charged a Herndon man with public intoxication yesterday (Dec.10).
Deputies arrived at SpringHill Suites at the 22000 block of Shaw Road in Sterling at 10:07 p.m. in response to reports that a man had struck a woman and was refusing to leave the premises, according to the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies arrested 23-year-old Muhammad Aatif of Herndon. Aatif was released from the Loudoun County Adult Detention Center on an unsecured bond.
The Fairfax County Police Department’s Reston District Station reported the following incidents in recent days:
LARECENIES:
2100 block of Astoria Circle, property from vehicle
1800 block of Cameron Glen Drive, cell phone from location
2400 block of Centreville Road, liquor from business
13300 block of Cleeve Hill Court, license plate from vehicle
2500 block of Cornelia Road, tires from vehicle
2500 block of James Madison Circle, license plate from vehicle
1400 block of Kingsvale Circle, property from vehicle
11500 block of Leesburg Pike, merchandise from business
13100 block of Parcher Avenue, merchandise from business
11700 block of Sunset Hills Road, merchandise from business
12800 block of Tournament Drive, property from residence
STOLEN VEHICLES:
2200 block of Cocquina Drive, 2016 Honda CRV
File photo
President Donald Trump praised two local police officers for helping to dismantle the gang MS-13 during his speech at a conference last Friday.
Trump lauded Fairfax County Police Department Detective Ray Betts, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia G. Zachary Terwilliger and Sgt. Claudio Saa from the Herndon Police Department as “three trailblazing leaders.”
The praise came during remarks Trump made at the 2018 Project Safe Neighborhoods National Conference in Kansas City, Mo. last Friday (Dec. 7).
The conference brings together U.S. Attorneys; federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement; community partners; and others to share ideas on violent crime reduction.
Trump’s remarks included the following:
Every American citizen is entitled to a safe community and a secure border. Here in the audience today are three trailblazing leaders — they truly are — who are working to dismantle MS-13 over the past two years. They’ve helped so much. They’ve done such an incredible job. Twenty-nine MS-13 members have been charged and convicted just recently, despite being targeted for retaliation.
These three patriots are U.S. Attorney Zach Terwilliger — where is Zach? Hello, Zach. Heard great things about you. Herndon Police Sergeant Claudio Saa. Thank you, Claudio. Thank you very much. And Fairfax County Police Detective Ray Betts. Thank you. Thank you. All three, thank you very much.
At the conference, Terwilliger, Betts and Saa joined Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stephen Miller and Rebeca Bellows, Newport News Police Chief Steve Drew and Major Roger Russell of the Richmond Police Department in a team presentation on best practices for investigating and dismantling MS-13.
MS-13 started in Los Angeles before heading to Virginia and then making its way to El Salvador.
Betts accounted for more than 100 felony arrests and 30 misdemeanors in a one-year time period two years after he joined the gang investigations unit. He has been to El Salvador to investigate cases and train his Salvadoran counterparts, WTOP reported.
Saa has also traveled to El Salvador, where he explored MS-13’s ties to Virginia, NBC4 reported.
https://twitter.com/FairfaxCountyPD/status/1072219483044016128
Photo via FCPD/Twitter
The Fairfax County Police Department (FCPD) and the county’s Office for Women & Domestic and Sexual Violence Services are slated to receive nearly $180,000 as part of grants to boost criminal justice services across Virginia.
Gov. Ralph Northam announced yesterday (Dec. 6) that law enforcement and services for crime victims across the Commonwealth will receive $5.9 million in grants administered by the Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS).
“This funding is key to our ability to respond to the diverse needs of our communities and build a safer, healthier Virginia,” Northam said in a Dec. 6 statement. “From survivors of violent crimes to the law enforcement officers who put their lives on the line each day to protect our Commonwealth, these resources will help ensure that all Virginians have the opportunity to thrive.”
The DCJS approved the grants at its meeting in Richmond on Thursday (Dec. 6.) The federal Violence Against Women Act and the Byrne Justice Assistance Grant Program allocated the funds to Virginia.
The awards include more than $4.5 million to bolster the response to crimes of violence against women and services for survivors and $1.4 million to provide equipment, technology and training.
Fairfax County received about 3.1 percent of the funding. Here is a breakdown:
- $87,205 for the Fairfax County’s Office for Women & Domestic and Sexual Violence Services
- $52,993 for FCPD’s Violence Against Women’s Act project
- $39,500 for FCPD’s law enforcement training
“Each year, DCJS administers nearly 1,000 grants totaling over $250 million in state and federal funds.” Shannon Dion, the director of DCJS, said in a statement. “These grants support programs and initiatives across the criminal justice system and enable DCJS to provide extensive training and technical assistance to agencies throughout Virginia.”
File photo
A man sleeping on his couch was assaulted last week by a person he knows, according to the Herndon Police Department.
The suspect entered the house on the 700 block of Cordell Way last Monday (Nov. 26), woke up the sleeping man and began assaulting him, the report said.
The victim was transported to Reston Hospital.
The Herndon Police Department is currently investigating the case.
Map via Google Maps
The trial began earlier this week for Jude Lovchik, charged with abduction and sodomy.
In 1995, four roommates in Reston were held at gunpoint and sexually assaulted. The case had gone cold until Lovchik’s ex-wife told Arlington County police that Lovchik had confessed the actions to her and had her recreate the scenes.
According to the Washington Post, the victims of the assault testified during the opening day of the trial. The women said their attacker had forced the women to perform sexual acts on each other and on him, then worked meticulously to cover his tracks.
One woman testified that she was made to drink Gatorade to remove the evidence from her mouth and that he vacuumed the bedroom where the assault occurred. After going through their address book, the women said the attacker also threatened to kill their friends and family if they reported the assault.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Jessica Greis-Edwardson, who said DNA swabs from Lovchik matched biological material found in the mouth of one of the victims.
But Fairfax County Public Defender Dawn Butorac said the evidence tying Lovchik to the crime was flimsy, saying there were inconsistencies in the DNA evidence and noting that Lovchick’s ex-wife, who was in the middle of the divorce when she reported Lovchick’s confession, had motive to lie.
Lovchik faces up to life in prison if convicted of the most serious charges, including abduction and sodomy. He has pleaded not guilty to all of the charges.
Photo via Marion County Jail
Vienna and Fairfax County Police arrested a 13-year-old Reston resident and a 14-year-old Vienna resident last Wednesday.
The pair was charged Nov. 28 with a series of crimes, including setting fire to a Vienna restaurant in October.
The boys were charged with both felony and misdemeanor crimes, including arson.
The Oct. 14 fire destroyed most of the building for the Marco Polo Restaurant, which had been vacant. There were no injuries. The site is set for redeveloped as a retail and townhouse complex.
The teens were also charged with the vandalism of several buses in the rear parking lot of the restaurant on Sept. 9.
Police said other charges are also being filed in relation to a Nov. 4 vandalism of two historic government-owned buildings near Lahey Lost Valley Park in Vienna, which caused several thousand dollars in damage.
The pair is being held in the Fairfax County Juvenile Detention Center.
The Fairfax County Police Department’s Reston District Station reported the following incidents in recent days:
LARECENIES:
1700 block of Business Center Drive, watch from location
1100 block of Dranesville Road, ornaments from residence
12800 block of Graypine Place, wallet from location
1700 block of Whitewood Lane, wallet from vehicle
STOLEN VEHICLES:
None reported
Photo via FCPD
A man accused of a series of sexual assaults across Fairfax in the 90’s, including four women in Reston, is scheduled to go to trial this Monday (Dec. 3).
Jude Lovchik is charged with a series of felonies including multiple counts of abduction, sodomy, robbery and firearms offenses.
While Lovchik is being investigated for other assaults in Fairfax and Prince William counties, his charges stem from a 1995 assault where Lovchik is alleged to have climbed onto the balcony of an apartment building and subseqently tied up, blindfolded and sexually assaulted four roommates.
According to the Washington Post, the break in the cold case came when Lovchik’s wife went to the Arlington Police after she said Lovchik assaulted her during their divorce. She also told the police that Lovchik had told her about his string of assaults throughout Fairfax in the early 1990’s and had her recreate the sexual assault scenes for him. Police said Lovchik’s wife provided information about the case that had not been disclosed to the public.
After Lovchik’s wife spoke with the police in early 2017, his home was placed under surveilence until DNA was collected from trash that police say was connected to DNA collected from the Reston assault.
Lovchik moved to Florida in 2017, but was arrested in October and returned to Vriginia, where he is currently being housed in the Fairfax County jail.
Photo via Marion County Jail
Darwin Martinez Torres, 25, pleaded guilty today (Nov. 28) to raping and murdering Nabra Hassanen of Reston, according to news reports.
His trial was set for January, according to the Fairfax Circuit Court Clerk’s Office.
The prosecution agreed not to pursue the death penalty after consulting with the Hassanen’s family, NBC 4 reported.
Torres’ defense team said Torres has a learning disability and a low IQ, but that he is competent enough to take responsibility for the crime and to plead guilty to eight counts in Hassanen’s murder trial, ABC 7’s Tim Barber tweeted.
The plea deal imposes a life sentence, and he will not be eligible for probation, the Associated Press reported.
Prosecutors in the case planned to introduce evidence that Torres was a member of MS-13, though police are not saying that the crime was gang-related, according to the Washington Post.
The Washington Post also reported that Torres’ defense team planned to allege that Torres is intellectually disabled as a result of toxins in a gold mine near where he grew up in El Salvador.
Torres faces the possibility the deportation after ICE placed a detainer on Torres following his arrest.
Hassanen was attacked when she was walking with a group of Muslim teens after a Ramadan service at the All Dulles Area Muslim Society Center in Sterling in June 2017. Fairfax County police say Hassanen was attacked with a baseball bat before she was abducted, sexually assaulted and killed.
Her body was found in a pond near Torres’ apartment.
Police said they believed the crime was not motivated by Hassanen’s religion, but by a road rage incident.
Hassanen’s death drew widespread attention, with #JusticeForNabra vigils held in Reston and across the country.
NOW: Nabra’s family says the hearing was painful. But they thank prosecutors for their work. pic.twitter.com/qIcuJO8Vkn
— Tim Barber (@ABC7TimBarber) November 28, 2018
Photos via FCPD and LaunchGood.com
(Updated at 10:28 a.m.) Police arrested Osman Osman, a 37-year-old resident of Herndon, in Manhattan Beach, New York yesterday (Nov. 27) in connection with the assault and abduction of his wife and child, according to the Fairfax County Police Department.
“Osman was arrested in [New York] for charges related to the assault and abduction,” FCPD 2nd Lieutenant John Lieb told Reston Now. “NYPD will need to be contacted for clarification on any local charges he may face there.”
Detectives from the FCPD’s Major Crimes Bureau worked with the New York City Police Department and the United States Marshal’s Task Force to locate Osman and take him into custody, the report said.
Osman is currently awaiting extradition to Fairfax County.
FCPD sought the public’s help in March to help find Osman, who was wanted at the time for two counts of abduction, the use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, two counts of assault on a family member, a protective order violation and transporting a firearm while subject to a protective order.
Detectives had said they believed Osman headed to New York after the assault and temporary abduction, which happened on March 24 in Chantilly.
Photo via FCPD
