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Monday, aug 4

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

News

Gunrunner Drove Hundreds Of Miles To Traffick 200+ Guns To Dc-area Felons: Feds A repeat offender who funneled hundreds of illegal firearms up the East Coast to the DC area — selling many to convicted felons — is headed to federal prison, authorities announced. Michael Pittman, 30, of Washington, DC, was sentenced to 84 months in federal prison for his role in a large-scale firearms trafficking operation, according to the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. Prosecutors said Pittman rented cars and drove to Georgia and North Carolina, where he bought firearms from illegal gun suppliers. He then returned to the DC region and resold the weapons — oft…

by Zak Failla

07/31/2025

Weather

Tornado Warnings, Flash Flooding Slam Maryland, Virginia As Severe Storms Move In With a cold front moving into the region, forecasters are cautioning residents and business owners in the DMV area to be prepared for wicked storms and possible flooding. Multiple rounds of thunderstorms are possible on Thursday, July 31, with widespread totals of one to two inches, and bringing the potential for rain rates of one to two inches in 30 minutes in some areas. Tornado Warnings were also issued on Thursday in parts of Maryland and Virginia. According to the National Weather Service, localized rainfall could hit up to six inches in some metro areas, and "multiple instances…

by Zak Failla

07/31/2025

Traffic

Frederick Man’s Body Crushed In Devastating Motorcycle Wreck: 'Feels Like A Bad Dream' A Maryland man faces a long and painful road to recovery after a devastating motorcycle crash left him with catastrophic injuries. Alex Wisniewski was riding his motorcycle to work on the morning of Saturday, July 26, when he was hit by a car, according to his fiancée and friends. He was airlifted to shock trauma for treatment and evaluation of critical traumatic injuries leaving him facing an arduous recovery. Wisniewski sustained an extraordinary list of injuries, including a broken tibia and fibula in his right leg, both wrists were broken, a broken collarbone, broken ribs, a brok…

by Zak Failla

07/31/2025

Police & Fire

Watch: Dad Holds 9-Year-Old Son Hostage at Knifepoint Before Tasered Arrest Disaster was largely avoided during a standoff in Maryland between police and a man holding his young son hostage at knifepoint. The Germantown father is behind bars after police said he held a knife to his 9-year-old son’s throat during a domestic disturbance that ended with him in handcuffs. Video has been released by the Montgomery County Department of Police following a brief barricade involving Dugan Gokhan, 47. Officers were first called at around 10:15 p.m. on Saturday, July 26, to the 19900 block of Stoney Point Way, where there was a reported domestic incident involving a chi…

by Zak Failla

07/31/2025

News

Repeat Rapist Who Filmed Sexual Abuse Of Housemate In Maryland Learns Fate A 65-year-old Maryland man will spend decades in prison after admitting to repeatedly raping a member of his household over a two-year period, prosecutors said. James Thompson, 65, was sentenced to life in prison, with all but 25 years suspended, a judge in Wicomico County Circuit Court, according to the State's Attorney's Office. Thompson pleaded guilty to first-degree rape in March 2025. He was initially indicted on 228 charges following a months-long investigation into the sexual abuse of a minor. Prosecutors said that from 2021 through 2023, he repeatedly raped the victim while they li…

by Zak Failla

07/31/2025

Police & Fire

Woodbridge Mom Who Vanished After Toddler Found Dirty Outside Home Arrested: Police A Virginia mother who was wanted for allegedly refusing to come home when her toddler son was found outside in an unkempt condition has been arrested, police say. Alexandra Anna Granruth, 37, was arrested and charged with felony child neglect following a week-long investigation into a strange scene that played out near her home in the 4000 block of Dawson Beach Road in Woodbridge. Officers were initially called at around 9:15 p.m. on Wednesday, July 23, where investigators say a 2-year-old boy was left unsupervised for an "extended period of time" by his mother. Police said at the ti…

by Zak Failla

07/31/2025

Traffic

Motorcyclist Crushed In Edgewood T-Bone Crash Suffers Life-Changing Injuries Kevin Peters suffered life-changing injuries doing what he loves — riding his motorcycle — and now faces a long road to recovery after being struck by an SUV in Maryland. In late June, Peters was riding his motorcycle northbound on Route 40 through Edgewood when a driver in a Lincoln Navigator made a U-turn and t-boned him, according to his sister, Sammy Peters. His bike was crushed and had to be mechanically removed from his body. The crash left Peters with catastrophic injuries. His family said he sustained a fractured skull and epidural hematoma, an open fracture of his tib…

by Zak Failla

07/31/2025

Police & Fire

Fairfax Vape Shops Ransacked In Burglary Spree; Suspect Busted: Police A Virginia man is accused of breaking into multiple vape shops during a recent rash of burglaries and stealing Kratom products, police said. David Elliot, 23, was arrested at his Fairfax home and charged with five counts of burglary following a joint investigation by Fairfax County Police and the City of Fairfax Police Department, authorities announced Wednesday, July 30. According to investigators, the charges stem from two early-morning burglaries at Star Tobacco at 10665 Braddock Road near Kings Park West. Officers first responded to the shop at 4:28 a.m. on June 26 after a commer…

by Zak Failla

07/31/2025

Police & Fire

Nervous Fredericksburg Driver, Passenger Caught With Drugs, Gun In Traffic Stop: Police Acting guilty can get you caught—and that’s exactly what happened during a routine traffic stop in Virginia that led to major charges, police said. Ashlee Brown-Stone and Robert Robinson Jr. proved to be poor actors after being pulled over on Monday, July 28, by an officer who noticed their vehicle driving on Race Street near Emancipation Highway. What drew the officer's attention? The vehicle had no front license plate and improperly displayed registration decals, according to the Fredericksburg Police Department. Police said the pair avoided eye contact and appeared visibly nervous durin…

by Zak Failla

07/31/2025

Business

$1M Fire Guts Popular Elkton Pizza Restaurant Now Closed Indefinitely A devastating two-alarm fire caused an estimated $1 million in damage at Mario’s Pizza in Elkton, forcing the beloved Cecil County restaurant to close indefinitely while repairs are made, officials confirmed. Firefighters rushed to 42 Beauchamp Road just before 10 p.m. Tuesday, July 29, after flames erupted in the kitchen of the long-running pizzeria, according to the Maryland State Fire Marshal’s Office. The blaze was discovered by a neighboring employee and quickly escalated, requiring a two-alarm response from the Singerly Fire Company and nearby agencies. Approximately 75 firefighters…

by Zak Failla

07/30/2025

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