A 35-year-old D.C. man was found guilty yesterday for a 2015 drive-by shooting that killed an Alexandria man and wounded another, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
Oscar Ramos was found guilty yesterday in federal court of first degree murder while armed for the May 28, 2015 shooting death of 50-year old Pedro Melendez Alvarado. He was also found guilty of assault with intent to kill by wounding 56-year old Miguel A. Rodriguez Carabantes.
The Washington Post first reported the verdict.
The incident occurred on northbound Interstate 295 near exit 1 in southwest D.C., and the victims were driving to work. The U.S. Department of Justice said that Ramos is an MS-13 gang member, and was a passenger in a car that pulled up alongside the victims.
“The defendant and another passenger in the car with him opened fire on Mr. Alvarado’s car, struck the victims, then pulled away,” DOJ said in a release. “The defendant and Mr. Alvarado are both from El Salvador. The defendant believed Mr. Alvarado was somehow involved in the death of the defendant’s father, years earlier, in El Salvador.”
U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Chief Pamela A. Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department made the announcement of the verdict.
Ramos will be sentenced on July 12.
A 15-year-old Northeast D.C. boy was arrested Friday and charged with felony murder while armed in last year’s shooting death of Nasrat Ahmad Yar, a former interpreter with U.S. Special Forces in Afghanistan, who fled the Taliban in 2021 with his wife and four children and moved to Alexandria.
Yar was working as a Lyft Driver in D.C. on July 3, 2023, when he was shot and killed just at around midnight in the 400 block of 11th Street NE. Video footage near the scene showed four young people running through an alley after the shooting. One of them said, “You killed him,” and another responded, “He was reaching bro.”
D.C. Police Chief Pamela Smith announced the arrest on Friday, and said that video of four teens running from the scene was instrumental in making an arrest.
“Thank you for providing information to bring us to this point in respect to the closure in this case,” Smith said.
Assistant Police Chief Leslie Parsons said that police are still looking for several other suspects allegedly involved in the incident.
“There are still several outstanding suspects who were involved in this tragedy, and we encourage anyone with information on those suspects to come forward,” Parsons said. “The reckless actions of these teens cost a man’s life and shattered a family just starting out on their journey in this country.”
A GoFundMe supporting the Yar’s family has so far raised $525,630. Hundreds attended his funeral in Fredericksburg, including Army officers Yar served with, the Washington Post reported.
Alexandria experienced a nearly 30% increase in Part 1 crime in 2023, and Mayor Justin Wilson says new initiatives will help stem the flow.
Part 1 crimes, or crimes against people, include homicide, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny and auto theft. There were 4,410 total Part I incidents in 2023, an increase of 31% over the 3,361 incidents reported in 2022, according to the Alexandria Police Department Crime Dashboard.
Aggravated assaults are up 50%, with 258 incidents reported in 2023. Aggravated assaults jumped nearly 30%, robberies are up 31%, larcenies are up 30% and auto thefts rose 53%.
In his monthly newsletter, Wilson said that the increase in violent crime, in particular, is unacceptable.
“While the year ended with positive trendlines in several areas, the overall increase for 2023, and particularly the increase in violent crime, is unacceptable,” Wilson wrote. “Protecting the safety of our community is the most important obligation of local government. If our residents are not safe, nothing else matters.”
Last year, APD put mobile camera units in high crime areas after a number of shooting incidents in the city’s Braddock neighborhood. APD also told city council that it would combat the crime surge by increasing foot patrols.
Wilson’s comments follow the recent announcement that Police Chief Don Hayes is retiring this month and that the city will be conducting a search for his replacement.
Not all the Part 1 numbers increased, as there were four homicides in 2023, versus six homicides in 2022, and four rape incidents in 2023, down from eight rape incidents in 2022.
According to Wilson:
The underlying causes of the increases in violence (not just in Alexandria, but around the region and our nation) are so varied, that there is no single answer to this issue. However, the City is approaching this uptick in violence using multiple approaches:
- Restoring Police Staffing/Reducing Attrition
- Expanding “upstream” investments (family supports, mental/behavioral health, housing, re-entry programs, etc) proven to reduce violence
- Expanding community policing
- Continue advocacy for new laws in Washington and Richmond to slow the flow of dangerous firearms into our community
In recent budget decisions, we have included new funding for investigatory capacity focused on those responsible for homicides, felony sex offenses and crimes driven by weapons. We have continued to see mental health and behavioral health incidents driving emergency response. The City’s ACORP program, a co-response program pairing a sworn police officer with a mental health practitioner, has seen considerable success. The City Council chose to build on the success of this effort by expanding ACORP by adding two new ACORP pairs, for a total of 3.
The City has hired two of the largest classes of new police officers entering the Academy. As those officers conclude their training, we will make large progress on some of the staffing challenges the Police Department has experienced for the past few years.
The Alexandria Police Department (APD) has charged Alexandria resident Bisrat Shaga, 35, with first-degree murder after stabbing a man in a fatal Del Ray church stabbing last month.
Shaga reportedly killed Centreville resident Emmanuel Negatu, 38, in the One God In Christ Apostolic Church (2707 Dewitt Avenue) on Nov. 12
“On Sunday, November 12, 2023, at approximately 4:27 PM, the Alexandria Police Department responded to a call for service regarding a stabbing,” APD said in a release. “Upon arrival, APD officers found a 38-year-old male who died inside the location.”
Scanner traffic indicated that APD found the suspect at a nearby Exxon station just before 5 p.m.
Negatu’s murder was the seventh homicide in Alexandria.
APD said the investigation is still active and anyone with information is asked to contact Detective M. Kramarik via phone at 703 746 6650, email at [email protected], or call the non-emergency line at 703 746 4444.
(Updated at 12 p.m., Nov. 14) A man is being held without bond in connection to the stabbing death of a 38-year-old man inside a Del Ray church.
The Alexandria Police Department confirmed that a suspect is in custody, but released few details on the suspected stabbing death of a 38-year-old man in Del Ray on Sunday afternoon.
APD was notified at around 4:25 p.m. that a person was stabbed inside the One God In Christ Apostolic Church (2707 Dewitt Avenue), and the victim died at the scene, according to the police scanner.
At 4:56 p.m., APD said over the scanner that they had the suspect at gunpoint nearly a mile from where the incident occurred, at the Exxon station at the corner of E. Monroe and Mount Vernon Avenues. Police then identified the suspect as Bisrat Shaga.
Shaga, who has no fixed address, was charged with malicious wounding and is being held without bond, according to court records. Shaga has a public defender as an attorney and has his first court appearance on Dec. 19.
This is the seventh homicide of the year in Alexandria.
APD said that anyone with information regarding this incident please contact Detective Matthew Kramarik via phone at 703-746-6650, email at [email protected], at 703-746-4444. Callers can remain anonymous.
A man was stabbed to death Sunday afternoon in Del Ray, and a suspect is in custody, according to the Alexandria Police Department.
APD was notified at around 4:25 p.m. that a person was stabbed in the 2700 block of Dewitt Avenue near E. Raymond Avenue, according to the police scanner. The suspect was described by police as a Black male with a medium complexion in his mid-30s and wearing a gray pullover sweatshirt and dark pants.
At 4:56 p.m., APD had the suspect at gunpoint nearly a mile from where the incident occurred, at the Exxon station at the corner of E. Monroe and Mount Vernon Avenues. Police said via dispatch, while searching for the suspect, that he is known to frequent Old Town, the Mount Vernon corridor and Potomac Yard.
ALXnow is awaiting more details from APD on the suspect’s identity, as well as the victim’s. More information is expected when the department puts out a press release, an APD spokesman told ALXnow.
This is the seventh homicide of the year in Alexandria.
Notification:: In response to a death investigation, there is a moderate police presence in the vicinity of the 2700
block of Dewitt Avenue. APD is on scene and investigating. pic.twitter.com/147aLnjkvq— Alexandria Police (@AlexandriaVAPD) November 12, 2023
(Updated at 8:30 p.m.) A 17-year-old former Alexandria City High School student was sentenced Thursday to five years with the Virginia Department of Juvenile Justice for the 2022 murder of 18-year-old Luis Mejia Hernandez in the parking lot of the Bradlee Shopping Center, with one of those years already served.
Ryan Vega was 16 when he fatally stabbed Hernandez during a melee with dozens of ACHS students in the parking lot. In a two-day June bench trial, Judge James C. Clark found Vega guilty of second-degree murder and murder by mob, and said that Vega took advantage of his time behind bars at the Northern Virginia Juvenile Detention Center by exhibiting good behavior and doing well with school.
“It appears to your credit, Mr. Vega, that you have taken advantage of your time,” Clark said before announcing the sentence. “In making this decision, I cannot ignore the harm of your actions. If I thought a life sentence would bring Luis back, I’d do it.”
Clark sentenced Vega to remain in the juvenile detention center until he is 21, in addition to 10 years suspended with the Virginia Department of Corrections and five years of supervised probation. He’s already been in jail for 17 months, putting the total sentence for the homicide at approximately five years behind bars by the time he is released.
He must also continue behavioral therapy and have no contact with the victim’s family.
Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney David Lord asked Clark for a 30-year sentence in an adult prison, with 10 years suspended. Lord said Vega was addicted to fentanyl at the time of the incident and was part of a disturbing trend of young people living on the edge.
“Part of justice involves answering that pain by the imposing of justice by this court,” Lord said in his closing argument.
Vega, who wore black sneakers, dark slacks and a gray sweater on top of a blue button-up shirt, kept his head down as he read a statement to the court. He said that the events of May 24, 2022 never stop running through his head and that he wishes he could turn back the clock.
“I am deeply and terribly sorry for the pain and loss I have caused your family,” Vega said, after being admitted to address the victim’s family. “Please know I will always pray for your family and Luis until my final breath.”
Vega said in another statement to the court that he spent sleepless nights staring at the ceiling of the juvenile detention center and that he was “remorseful beyond comprehension.” His attorneys Sebastian Norton and Sean Sherlock said that he wrote letters to Alexandria Mayor Justin Wilson asking for more books in the detention center, and that he has distinguished himself as a leader behind bars.
Osmin Mejia Romero, the victim’s father, was upset by the sentence.
“This sentence is nothing,” Mejia Romero said. “It’s not a good situation. I wanted him in jail for 30 years, and I waited more than a year for this. His apology means nothing. He’s a liar.”
Mayor Wilson said he never saw a letter from Vega and that the Commonwealth’s requested sentence seemed appropriate.
“I did not review the evidence or sit through the trial, but based on my knowledge of the case, the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s requested sentence certainly seemed a lot more appropriate to me.”
The stabbing occurred during a brawl between two rival gangs of Alexandria City High School teenagers on Tuesday, May 24, 2022 — a week before graduation on a half-day while students took their Virginia Standards of Learning tests. The fight was over within one minute, and Mejia Hernandez was fatally stabbed in the heart. An autopsy showed that he also had abrasions to his neck, chin, the back of his hands, abdomen and knees, according to court records. The cause of death was a 7/8-inch stab wound to the chest.
Hernandez was given a posthumous diploma at graduation a week later.
Clark said that Vega was likely experiencing opioid withdrawal at the time of the incident.
“I just can’t help observe the defendant’s decision to start using drugs,” he said. “It likely was a significant factor in forming his judgment to be at Bradlee.”
The murder was one of several incidents that resulted in a number of new policies and security enhancements in and around Alexandria City High School, including a metal detector program, increased police patrols in the area, as well as a rule prohibiting kids from frequenting the shopping center during school hours.
Sherlock said that he is thankful for Clark’s “wise” decision.
“We are incredibly remorseful to the family of Luis Hernandez,” Sherlock said. “We’re very thankful for the wisdom of the court and Judge Clark in imposing this sentence, fully taking into account the seriousness of what happened on May 24, while balancing that appropriately with the goals of sentencing and the capabilities of rehabilitation for juveniles.”
A felonious assault charge from an incident on Monday night has turned to a second-degree murder charge after the victim died today.
Ricky Dehate, 48, is charged with second-degree murder.
On Monday, police said the victim sustained minor injuries from a robbery on the 2500 block of North Van Dorn Street, but the victim died at the hospital today (Wednesday).
According to police:
On Monday, September 11, at approximately 11:22 p.m., officers responded to a call reporting a fight in the 2500 block of North Van Dorn Street. Upon arriving to the scene, officers found one victim who was transported to a local hospital with injuries. The victim died on September 13, 2023. The suspect, Ricky Dehate, 48, was charged with felonious assault the night of the incident and has been charged with second-degree murder today, September 13.
This is the sixth homicide of the year in the City of Alexandria.
Anyone with information related to the case can reach Detective Christine Escobar at 703 746 6819 or via email at [email protected].
The Alexandria Police Department (APD) announced tonight that they’ve made an arrest for the fatal shooting in Arlandria in July.
APD said 26-year old Rae’Qwan McClinnahan, a non-city resident, has been charged with second degree murder and use of a firearm in the commission of a murder.
On July 24, 29-year-old father of two Eric Holmes Jr. was fatally shot on the 800 block of W. Glebe Road.
McClinnahan is currently being held without bond, according to APD.
It’s been a scorching week in Alexandria, punctuated by two major crime events.
Someone was shot multiple times in an alley several blocks east of the Braddock Metro station last Saturday, followed on Monday afternoon by the city’s fifth homicide this year — the fatal shooting of a 29-year-old man on W. Glebe Road in Arlandria.
It is not believed that the incidents are connected.
The Alexandria Police Department is now looking for a silver Nissan Rogue allegedly linked to Monday’s shooting.
No arrests have been announced from either incident, and this week Mayor Justin Wilson, City Manager Jim Parajon and Police Chief Don Hayes asked for the community’s help in identifying the suspects.
Top stories this week:
- Alexandria ditching ‘pay and display’ parking meters citywide (32618 views)
- Notes: Many federal employees who report to work Alexandria are still mostly remote (7448 views)
- Del Ray Gateway project construction to start before end of year, city says (6510 views)
- Construction suspended for Holiday Inn Express at former Towne Motel site in Old Town North (5346 views)
- ACPS ignores Gov. Youngkin’s recommended policies on treatment of transgender students (4829 views)
- DEVELOPING: Man transported to hospital in critical condition after shooting in Arlandria (4747 views)
- Pupatella Neapolitan Pizza opening before end of year in Old Town North, owner says (3857 views)
- Duke Street affordable apartment complex ‘Witter Place’ could be ready by late 2025, developer says (3598 views)
- Arlington man busted for allegedly selling stolen car to Alexandria man on Facebook Marketplace (2509 views)
Have a safe weekend!
