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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

News
Teen Who Pulled Gun, Fired Shot During Park Brawl In DMV Gets Prison Time: Prosecutors Teen Who Pulled Gun, Fired Shot During Park Brawl In DMV Gets Prison Time: Prosecutors
Teen Who Pulled Gun, Fired Shot During Park Brawl In DMV Gets Prison Time: Prosecutors Nicholas Blanco waved a loaded handgun, pointed it at a crowd of teens, and fired a round during a chaotic street fight just steps from a Montgomery County high school.  Now, a Bethesda teen is going to jail. The 18-year-old was sentenced on Monday, June 9, to four years in prison with all but 11 months suspended, followed by three years of supervised probation, according to the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office. The case stems from a wild scene that unfolded in broad daylight in February, at Chase Avenue Urban Park, across from Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School. According t…

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
ID Of Speeding Teen In Loudoun County Crash: Sheriff ID Of Speeding Teen In Loudoun County Crash: Sheriff
ID Of Speeding Teen In Loudoun County Crash: Sheriff An 18-year-old from Chantilly was killed in a crash in South Riding, and investigators say speed may have been a factor, the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office announced. Khalid Al Rakan, 18, of Chantilly, was identified Monday, June 9, as the driver of a Volkswagen Jetta who died following a two-vehicle crash that happened around 2:15 p.m. on Friday, at the intersection of Tall Cedars Parkway and South Riding Boulevard, according to officials. Al Rakan and a front-seat passenger in the Jetta were both taken to a nearby hospital after the crash. The teen was later pronounced dead. The driver …

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by Zak Failla
News
Fake Bounty Hunter Kidnaps Virginia Woman, Takes Her On Terrifying Multi-State Ride: DOJ Fake Bounty Hunter Kidnaps Virginia Woman, Takes Her On Terrifying Multi-State Ride: DOJ
Fake Bounty Hunter Kidnaps Virginia Woman, Takes Her On Terrifying Multi-State Ride: DOJ He wore a badge, carried a pistol, and called himself “Agent Leitner.” But prosecutors say he was no lawman — just a 61-year-old impostor from Pennsylvania who kidnapped a woman from her Virginia home and drove her across the East Coast while pretending he was on a federal mission. Now, Troy Edwin Leitner of Scranton will spend 15 years in prison after being sentenced for the abduction of a woman hooked on heroin, according to federal officials in Virginia. According to court documents, Leitner posed as a “fugitive recovery agent” on March 17, 2022, when he showed up to a Norfolk home with…

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Suspect In Stolen DC Car Caught After Maryland Highway Pursuit, Sheriff Says Suspect In Stolen DC Car Caught After Maryland Highway Pursuit, Sheriff Says
Suspect In Stolen DC Car Caught After Maryland Highway Pursuit, Sheriff Says A suspected car thief led deputies on a wild chase across county lines before finally being stopped with spike strips on a Maryland highway, the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office announced. Kazon King Cassion, 25, who has no fixed address, was arrested on Sunday, June 8, after a stolen car investigation turned into a pursuit that ended in neighboring Charles County, investigators said Monday. Deputies were investigating a commercial burglary in Lexington Park when they spotted a suspicious vehicle near Old Horse Landing Road and Mount Zion Church Road in Mechanicsville, according to the sh…

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Students Assaulted Teens With Sex Toys, Recorded It In Maryland HS Locker Room: Sheriff Students Assaulted Teens With Sex Toys, Recorded It In Maryland HS Locker Room: Sheriff
Students Assaulted Teens With Sex Toys, Recorded It In Maryland HS Locker Room: Sheriff A "disturbing" series of events that played out in a Maryland high school locker room landed four students in hot water, authorities announced. Five teenagers are facing charges following an investigation into incidents at Brunswick High School involving multiple students, and a sex toy, according to the Frederick County Sheriff's Office. On April 11, deputies from the sheriff's office were called to the building to investigate reports of an assault involving multiple students. According to the initial investigation, a student was in the locker room when another teen approached and as…

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by Zak Failla
News
DC Man Caught Peeing Behind Car Convicted Of Beating Stranger To Death Outside Market: DOJ DC Man Caught Peeing Behind Car Convicted Of Beating Stranger To Death Outside Market: DOJ
DC Man Caught Peeing Behind Car Convicted Of Beating Stranger To Death Outside Market: DOJ A DC man who was caught urinating behind someone’s car outside a neighborhood market has been convicted of murder after beating the driver to death on the sidewalk. Alvin Alexis Cruz Garcia, 27, was found guilty of second-degree murder while armed for the 2021 killing of Ramon Gomez Yanez, prosecutors announced on Monday, June 9. The verdict was returned by a Superior Court jury on Friday, June 6, following a four-day trial, officials said. According to the government’s evidence, the deadly confrontation happened just before 8:30 p.m. on March 23, 2021, outside Ogden Market on Ogden Street…

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by Zak Failla
News
Family Of Missing Sailor In Virginia Demands Answers As Navy Stays Silent Family Of Missing Sailor In Virginia Demands Answers As Navy Stays Silent
Family Of Missing Sailor In Virginia Demands Answers As Navy Stays Silent A young sailor mysteriously vanished from a Virginia naval base, and her desperate family says the military has gone quiet. Angelina “Angie” Petra Resendiz, 21, was last seen Wednesday, May 29, at her barracks in Miller Hall at Naval Station Norfolk, according to the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS).  She was actively working aboard the USS James E. Williams when she went missing. Officials said Resendiz is 5-foot-5 and 160 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes.  No details about what she was last wearing or a possible vehicle she could be traveling in was released b…

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Cyclist, 85, Dies Days After Being Hit By Mercedes SUV Backing Out Of Driveway In DMV: Police Cyclist, 85, Dies Days After Being Hit By Mercedes SUV Backing Out Of Driveway In DMV: Police
Cyclist, 85, Dies Days After Being Hit By Mercedes SUV Backing Out Of Driveway In DMV: Police An 85-year-old Maryland man who was hit by a driver backing out of a driveway has died from his injuries, police said. Joel Allen Katz, of Silver Spring, was struck while riding his bike along the 15000 block of Bramblewood Drive around 4 p.m. on Sunday, June 1, Montgomery County Police said. Investigators said the driver of a blue 2015 Mercedes-Benz SUV was backing out of a driveway when it hit Katz. First responders rushed him to a local hospital with serious injuries. Katz died six days later — on Saturday, June 7 — from his injuries, officials said. Police say the crash remains under …

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Maryland Man ID’d As Victim In Deadly Hit-Run On Virginia Highway, Police Say Maryland Man ID’d As Victim In Deadly Hit-Run On Virginia Highway, Police Say
Maryland Man ID’d As Victim In Deadly Hit-Run On Virginia Highway, Police Say A Maryland man was fatally struck while crossing a highway in Northern Virginia, and police are still working to identify the driver who fled the scene. Timothy Scott Rinehart, 44, of Laurel, was killed early Thursday, June 5, while attempting to cross Lee Highway near Virginia Oaks Drive in Gainesville, according to the Prince William County Police Department on Monday, June 9. Officers were called to the intersection around 1:57 a.m., where they found Rinehart dead at the scene. Police said the driver who hit him sped away. "The investigation revealed the driver of an unknown vehicle was…

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by Zak Failla
News
Maryland Man Shot, Airlifted After Watching Cousin Gunned Down At House Party Maryland Man Shot, Airlifted After Watching Cousin Gunned Down At House Party
Maryland Man Shot, Airlifted After Watching Cousin Gunned Down At House Party A Maryland man is recovering from a gunshot wound after watching his cousin get gunned down in front of him at a house party in Queen Anne’s County, according to family members. Christopher Parsley, 19, was killed during a shooting at a large party on Fairview Drive in Centreville just after midnight on Sunday, June 9, the Queen Anne’s County Sheriff’s Office said. 🚨 REWARD 🚨 Metro Crime Stoppers Of Maryland is offering a cash reward for information leading to the arrest of the... Posted by Queen Anne's County Office of the Sheriff on Wednesday, June 4, 2025 Now, his cousin — iden…

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by Zak Failla
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