Alexandria Police

Two men sentenced to combined 56 years in prison for rape and robbery at Alexandria hotel

Published July 29, 2026 at 9:15AM

The Franklin P. Backus Courthouse at 520 King Street in Alexandria (staff photo by James Cullum)

An Alexandria man has been sentenced to 40 years in prison, and a Falls Church man has been sentenced to 16 years in prison after their convictions for rape and robbery at a hotel in the city’s West End in 2022.

Alexandria Circuit Court Judge Heidi E. Meinzer, on July 9, sentenced 37-year-old Ja’Real Wilkins, of Alexandria, to 40 years of active incarceration on two felony counts of rape and one felony count of forcible sodomy. Less than a week later, on July 14, Judge Kathleen Uston sentenced Wilkins’ partner in crime, 27-year-old Tysheem Boykins of Falls Church to 16 years of active incarceration on one felony count of forcible sodomy and one felony count of robbery by threat.

News

Alexandria man faces public intoxication charge after alleged knife assault

By James Cullum

Published July 28, 2026 at 11:45AM

Alexandria police cruiser (staff photo by James Jarvis)

A 65-year-old Alexandria man was released on a summons after another man was reportedly stabbed in the West End late Sunday night (July 26), the Alexandria Police Department says.

The incident was reported around 11:45 p.m. in the unit block of S. Reynolds Street. The suspect was arrested nearby and charged with resisting arrest, public intoxication and drinking alcohol in public, according to APD. The victim was found by police to be suffering “from an apparent knife wound” and was transported to a local hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

News

APD honors former police chiefs with new ‘Chief’s Wall’

By James Cullum

Published July 24, 2026 at 2:45PM

Alexandria Police Chief Tarrick McGuire in front of the Chief's Wall at APD headquarters (staff photo by James Cullum)

Alexandria Police Chief Tarrick McGuire honored his 15 predecessors this week with the unveiling of a wall of their portraits.

In the city’s history, there have only ever been 16 police chiefs, and McGuire said the wall recognizes the men who sat in his seat.

News

Alexandria police chief addresses summer uptick in crime

By James Cullum

Published July 23, 2026 at 3:45PM

A man was stabbed in the 1200 block of Braddock Place, July 21, 2026 (staff photo by James Cullum)

Alexandria’s uptick in violent crimes this summer has caught the attention of the police chief.

Alexandria Police Chief Tarrick McGuire said the city has seen a significant spike in felonious assaults, including a stabbing on July 22 in the city’s West End and an unrelated stabbing near the Braddock Road Metro Station on July 21. A man was also arrested after allegedly brandishing a knife and assaulting a man in Old Town on July 20.

News

UPDATED: Arrest made after man stabbed near Braddock Road Metro station Tuesday night

By James Cullum

Published July 22, 2026 at 9:15AM | Updated July 22, 2026 at 12:31PM

A man was stabbed in the 1200 block of Braddock Place, July 21, 2026 (staff photo by James Cullum)

A man was arrested after a stabbing near the Braddock Road Metro station on Tuesday night (July 21).

The victim was stabbed in the neck near benches in the plaza area of the 1200 block of Braddock Place. He was later transported to the hospital, according to Alexandria Police and Fire Department dispatches.

News

Convicted porch pirate jailed again for alleged shoplifting in Alexandria

By James Cullum

Published July 21, 2026 at 1:45PM

Alexandria police cruiser (staff photo by James Jarvis)

A Manassas man who was found guilty last month of mail theft, petit larceny and entering a property to damage is back in the Alexandria jail after being charged with shoplifting and two counts of petit larceny.

On June 12, the Alexandria Police Department received multiple calls from Old Town residents that packages were stolen from their front porches by a man driving a white Jeep with Virginia tags. The thefts included a package with less than $50 worth of items stolen from a front porch in the 700 block of S. Royal Street, two lamps and chairs valued at more than $600 from a porch in the 700 block of S. Fairfax Street, six packages valued at $200 taken from a front porch in the 500 block of S. Washington Street, and two lamps valued at $100 taken from a porch in the 500 block of Duke Street, according to a recently released search warrant affidavit.

News

Alexandria man accused of stabbing at King Street Metro station faces malicious wounding charge

By James Cullum

Published July 16, 2026 at 9:15AM

Police at the King Street Metro station (staff photo by James Cullum)

A 21-year-old Alexandria man goes to court next month after allegedly stabbing a man twice in the bus loop area of the King Street-Old Town Metro station.

On May 5, the victim called 911 to report he’d been assaulted at the King Street Metro station. At the scene, the man told an Alexandria Police Department officer that he was punched in the head, “but upon further examination by medical staff it was determined that he had been stabbed twice,” according to a recently released search warrant affidavit.

News

BREAKING: Man shot to death on Holmes Run Parkway in Alexandria

By James Cullum

Published July 16, 2026 at 12:50AM | Updated July 16, 2026 at 5:11PM

A man was shot in the 5300 block of Holmes Run Parkway in Alexandria's West End, July 15, 2026 (staff photo by James Cullum)

A man was shot and killed in the parking lot of an apartment complex in Alexandria’s West End on Wednesday night (July 15), and two suspects have been apprehended, according to the Alexandria Police Department.

Witnesses nearby reported that a single shot was fired around 11:15 p.m. in the 5300 block of Holmes Run Parkway, and that a man was found lying face down in the parking lot. Two suspects were arrested less than a mile away from the scene in front of an apartment building in the 5300 block of Duke Street. As of 12:50 p.m., APD was still combing the scene with a K-9 officer.

News

Maryland man allegedly tried to pass forged $11K check at Del Ray bank, police say

By James Cullum

Published July 14, 2026 at 3:45PM

Alexandria police cruiser (staff photo by James Jarvis)

A Maryland man faces felony and misdemeanor charges in court this month for allegedly possessing and trying to deposit a forged check at a bank in Alexandria’s Del Ray neighborhood.

The suspect was arrested at the bank in the unit block of Herbert Street on June 16 after the alleged attempt to deposit a check for $11,585 into a friend’s account, according to a recently released search warrant affidavit.

News

25-year APD veteran Courtney Ballantine now leads Georgetown University Police Department

By James Cullum

Published July 7, 2026 at 3:45PM

Georgetown University Police Chief Courtney Ballantine (staff photo by James Cullum)

Former longtime Alexandria police officer Courtney Ballantine is adjusting to a new role after being promoted to chief of police of the Georgetown University Police Department.

All the badges Ballantine wore in Alexandria, from captain on down, sit in a shadow box near his desk. Four days after retiring from the Alexandria Police Department on Aug. 1, 2025, Ballantine put on a new uniform as the deputy chief of police at Georgetown University. A few weeks later, then-chief Jay Gruber got a new job at American University and Ballantine was named interim chief.

News

More details released on $35K jewelry smash-and-grab in Old Town

By James Cullum

Published July 6, 2026 at 3:45PM

An Alexandria police cruiser (staff photo by James Cullum)

A 23-year-old Alexandria man heads to court this month after allegedly stealing a necklace and bracelet valued at $34,750 from an Old Town jewelry store and breaking into nearby Christ Church to hide.

Around 10 a.m. on June 4, an off-duty Alexandria sheriff’s deputy was working security at the shop in the 600 block of King Street when she heard banging sounds outside and saw a man in a black hooded sweatshirt steal the bracelet and necklace and flee on foot. The off-duty deputy then chased the suspect into an alley in the 100 block of N. Washington Street, according to a recently released search warrant affidavit.