Saturday, October 10WATCHFUL EYE

Tag: Crime

Guatemalan woman allegedly tried to smuggle heroin in coffee at Dulles
Crime, News

Guatemalan woman allegedly tried to smuggle heroin in coffee at Dulles

A Guatemalan woman was caught at Washington Dulles International Airport allegedly attempting to smuggle nearly 800 grams of heroin into the United States, Customs and Border Protection announced. On Sunday, October 27, 31-year-old Maria Jose Recinos Rodriguez arrived on a morning flight from Guatemala City and was referred for a routine secondary examination for food couriers. CBP said its officers found seven packages of heroin—three large parcels and 4 small sleeves—concealed inside three bags of coffee, and the material was tested to confirm what it was. In total, the heroin weighed 798 grams, or 1 lb. 12 oz. and CBP reported its street value as approximately $55,000. Recinos Rodriguez and the heroin were over to Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Police officers, and ...
Fmr. Portsmouth prosecutor awaiting federal drug sentence is stripped of law license
Crime, News

Fmr. Portsmouth prosecutor awaiting federal drug sentence is stripped of law license

The Virginia State Bar Disciplinary Board announced the law license for Matthew Taylor Morris has been revoked after the former Portsmouth prosecutor pled guilty to federal drug charges on Sept. 24. 13 News Now reported Morris resigned from his position as assistant commonwealth’s attorney for Portsmouth on Sept. 6 amid proceedings in the federal drug conspiracy case. Morris admitted to his role in an operation the feds refer to as the Rogers Drug Trafficking Organization (DTO), federal documents show. In 2021, Morris introduced Donald Thomas Rogers, a 35-year-old Portsmouth man to Nicholas Cameron Capehart, a 30-year-old from Norfolk. Capehart and Rogers were both in the THC business, and Morris admitted he made the connection thinking Capehart would supply Rogers. But ...
Tappahannock man charged in King & Queen cold case released on bond
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Tappahannock man charged in King & Queen cold case released on bond

A Tappahannock man arrested this month for a 33-year-old cold case in King and Queen has been released on bond. Jennie Lee Johnson, a 46-year-old King and Queen woman, was last seen alive on Nov. 22, 1991, according to Virginia State Police. On that date, she left a friend’s home, but never returned to her own. The following day, her body was found in a field near Newtown Road. VSP said its Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) Richmond Field Office has been investigating the homicide ever since. With funding from the Virginia Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI), evidence was retested by DNA Labs International in Deerfield, FL, and the results pointed to 62-year-old Ives Terrell Fortune. A grand jury indicted him, and King and Queen County Commonwealth’s Attorney Meredith Adkins...
19-year-old Suffolk man seeking bond for I-664 road rage shooting
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19-year-old Suffolk man seeking bond for I-664 road rage shooting

A 19-year-old from Suffolk has been arrested for a road rage shooting in Chesapeake. According to Virginia State Police, at approximately 5:19 p.m. on October 12, 2024, two vehicles were traveling northbound on Interstate 664. At the Pughsville Road off ramp, shots were fired from one vehicle injuring an unnamed female in another. Her injuries were not life-threatening, VSP stated. VSP’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation was called in to investigate and announced they were looking for information on a suspect in a white Nissan Maxima. VSP announced that Jordan Kendrell Copeland, of Suffolk, Virginia was arrested on October 18 and charged with aggravated malicious wounding and shooting at an occupied vehicle. Copeland is being held at the Chesapeake City Jail without bond. But...
Chemicals deployed to evacuate suspect allegedly self-harming in a camper
Crime, News

Chemicals deployed to evacuate suspect allegedly self-harming in a camper

Henry County Sheriff’s Office reported using chemicals to evacuate a 31-year-old Bassett man who refused to surrender. This morning, at about 1 a.m., HCSO and Patrick County Sheriff’s Office both responded to a call about a disturbance on Morningside Drive in Bassett. According to HCSO, the deputies discovered that Jonathan Robert Forcier, who lived at the address, assaulted his wife and a male who had run away from the scene before police arrived. When deputies approached the camper, Forcier got a knife, threatened the officers, and made statements about harming himself, HCSO reported. He barricaded himself inside the camper on the property, and although deputies attempted to de-escalate the situation, they were reportedly unsuccessful. According to HCSO, Forcier began to cut his...
Fentanyl treasure map leads to federal convictions for 2 Virginia men
Crime, News, Trending

Fentanyl treasure map leads to federal convictions for 2 Virginia men

Two Hampton Roads men pled guilty and are scheduled for sentencing in a case involving a fentanyl treasure map. Ronald Devon Matthews, a 39-year-old from the Isle of Wight, acknowledged in court documents that he’s known as “MacGyver” and “Mac” and has been in custody since he was arrested in December 2021. He pled guilty to three federal counts of being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition on Sept 29, 2022, court documents show. Matthews draws a map Matthews admitted, on May 2, 2023, while serving his 6-year and 9-month sentence for those charges at the Federal Correctional Complex in Petersburg, he drew a treasure map to fentanyl that he buried in the ground outside his home in Carrsville before he was arrested. In the statement of facts submitted in feder...
Herndon man wanted for Worldgate Shopping Center shooting found & arrested
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Herndon man wanted for Worldgate Shopping Center shooting found & arrested

Mohamed Abdalla, a 25-year-old that Herndon PD described as armed and dangerous, was caught a day after he allegedly shot a person, kidnapped two others, and outran police. On Sunday evening, around 7:40 p.m., while a Herndon police officer was on patrol, he heard what he believed to be gunshots coming from the Worldgate Shopping Center, said HPD. When the officer approached the shopping center, HPD said he reported witnessing a vehicle leaving the shopping center. He followed and a pursuit began that led onto Dulles Toll Road, the department added. But amid the pursuit, the officer lost sight of the suspect vehicle. Meanwhile, HPD said a 911 call came in reporting a person shot multiple times in the Worldgate Shopping Center parking lot. Officers were reportedly able to get to th...
MS-13 inmate accused in 2nd correctional officer stabbing in Virginia
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MS-13 inmate accused in 2nd correctional officer stabbing in Virginia

A prisoner who is a “confirmed affiliate” of MS-13 is accused of another stabbing, this time at Greensville Correctional Center, Virginia Department of Corrections announced. Inmate Axel Wilfredo Ortiz Garcia, a 26-year-old Guatemalan national, is accused of stabbing two correctional officers on Tuesday at around 2:30 p.m., VADOC disclosed. VADOC has not yet revealed details about the events that led up to the incident because an investigation is still underway but confirmed both officers have been discharged from the hospital. VADOC also explained that Ortiz Garcia, who has maximum security status, was being temporarily detained at Greensville due to a court order from Sussex Circuit Court related to his prosecution for an incident at Sussex 1 State Prison. He is accused in the A...
Alexandria PD to boost police in Wythe neighborhood after 2 juveniles shot
News

Alexandria PD to boost police in Wythe neighborhood after 2 juveniles shot

After two shootings in less than two weeks on Wythe Street, Alexandria Police Department announced its boosting police presence in the neighborhood. The latest shooting occurred Saturday, Sept. 29. APD stated a call came in around 2 a.m. reporting shots fired. When officers responded to the 1100 block of Wythe Street, they found two juveniles shot inside of a vehicle, the department reported. One of the boys was deemed in stable condition, but the other was considered critical, APD stated. Both were transported to the hospital. Just over a week earlier, on September 19, APD responded to the 1300 block of Wythe Street in response to a report of gunshots that came in after 8 p.m. Officers found three people had been hit by gunfire, including one juvenile. As previously reported, ...
No bond: Prince William police officer accused of victimizing woman twice
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No bond: Prince William police officer accused of victimizing woman twice

A Prince William Police Officer was arrested by his own department, and the 28-year-old is being held without bond after allegedly committing crimes against the same woman twice. According to Prince William Police Department the accused and victim knew each other but authorities didn’t elaborate on how. PWPD reported that following an investigation, investigators determined, on June 4, while on duty, James Clinton, of Woodbridge, was in a secured area of Potomac Mills talking to the female victim, who worked at the mall. Clinton allegedly “forcibly handcuffed” her. “At no time during the interaction was the victim being detained or otherwise arrested for a criminal violation,” PWPD confirmed. Shortly afterward, Clinton released the woman from the handcuffs and they went separat...