No arrests were made or injuries reported after a hail of gunfire was reported in the Braddock neighborhood of Alexandria on Wednesday night, according to the Alexandria Police Department.
Multiple 911 calls were made at around 8:40 p.m. with witnesses describing a man firing a gun approximately 25 times in the area of N. Fayette and Wythe Streets. The suspect was then seen getting into a gray four-door sedan with another suspect, the driver, which then sped south down N. Fayette Street and the east on Pendleton Street, according to dispatch reports.
Police found a blood trail, indicating that a person was injured in the incident, but no victims came forward or checked themselves into area hospitals, according to APD.
The Braddock area has experienced a rash of shootings over the years, prompting the Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority and APD to erect surveillance cameras.
APD said that the incident remains under investigation.
Anyone with information on this incident can contact the APD non-emergency number at 703-746-4444.
There is a significant police presence at N. Fayette and Wythe Streets as officers investigate a shooting. There are no identified victims nor suspects at this time. Road closures around Andrew Adkins community.
— Alexandria Police (@AlexandriaVAPD) April 11, 2024
Units will be on the scene of the earlier shooting in the 700 block of N. Fayette for the next several hours. pic.twitter.com/ZMMDQeCATb
— Alexandria Police (@AlexandriaVAPD) April 11, 2024
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.
No arrests have been made as Alexandria police continue to investigate the shooting of two men in the Carlyle neighborhood last month.
The incident occurred in the parking lot of a gated apartment complex in the 2600 block of Foundry Way at around 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 16. A witness told police that they heard seven gunshots, looked out a window and saw a newer model white Mercedes Benz four-door sedan with tinted windows speed out the front gate, according to a recently released search warrant affidavit.
Upon arrival, police found the victim lying on the ground with a gunshot wound to the upper right thigh, according to the search warrant affidavit. They also found six shell casings in the parking lot.
The victim told police that he got into an argument while asking with a man with a face tattoo for directions, according to the search warrant affidavit.
“(The victim) and the subject exchanged words in an aggressive tone, at which point the subject pulled out a gun,” police said in the search warrant affidavit. “When (the victim) observed the gun, he started to run. He then heard a gunshot and felt (a) bullet strike his upper leg from behind.”
A possible suspect vehicle with three people was pulled over by police less than a half-mile away in the 2900 block of Eisenhower Avenue. Soon after pulling over the vehicle, a man walked over from the parking lot and told police that he’d been shot in the arm, but offered no details on how it happened. The officer helped the man make a tourniquet.
“While (an investigating officer) was speaking to the driver outside of the vehicle, a male emerged from further east in the parking lot,” police said in the search warrant affidavit. “The male was quickly walking towards the traffic stop, approached the officers and stated that he was shot.”
Police investigated the area from which the second victim walked and found a white Mercedes Benz parked nearby. Inside they saw blood stains on the front seats and saw a tan and green handgun “under the rear of the front passenger seat in plain view,” and the vehicle was seized, according to the search warrant affidavit.
The incident remains under investigation, according to the Alexandria Police Department.
APD officers are investigating an aggravated assault shooting in the 2600 block of Foundry Way. Two adult males sustained gunshot wounds, both were transported. No suspects at this time. Anyone with information should call 703-746-4444. pic.twitter.com/8e54JK8wrw
— Alexandria Police (@AlexandriaVAPD) February 17, 2024
Alexandria Police Department is investigating two incidents of gunfire Sunday night, though no one was reported injured.
Eight-to-10 gunshots were reported just before 9 p.m. in the parking lot of the shopping center in the 4000 block of Mount Vernon Avenue. The victim told police that he got into an argument with a Hispanic male in the parking lot and that the suspect fired his handgun at him, striking his car, according to the police scanner.
Two hours after the shooting, APD tweeted that the investigation is ongoing and that the entire block was shut down.
At around 11 p.m., a bullet was fired into the window of a home in the 400 block of N. Armistead Street in the West End.
Anyone with information on these incidents can contact the APD non-emergency number at 703-746-4444. Callers can remain anonymous.
The scene of a shooting in the 4000 block of Mt. Vernon Ave. is now clear.
No injuries were reported. The investigation is ongoing.— Alexandria Police (@AlexandriaVAPD) January 22, 2024
There is a significant police presence in the 4000 block of Mt. Vernon Avenue in response to a shooting. The block is closed to traffic due to the investigation.
No injuries have been reported.
— Alexandria Police (@AlexandriaVAPD) January 22, 2024
Officers are on the scene of an illegal discharge into a residence in the 400 block of N. Armistead. No injuries reported.
— Alexandria Police (@AlexandriaVAPD) January 22, 2024
A 20-year-old Alexandria man was sentenced to 10 years in prison, all of them suspended, and five years probation today after the unintentional shooting and killing of his best friend in Lynhaven earlier this year.
Junior Josue Espinal Calix pleaded guilty last month to involuntary manslaughter for the shooting death of his best friend, 21-year-old Nabel Christopher Chavez. Alexandria Circuit Court Judge James C. Clark announced the sentence after a brief bench trial.
“I don’t think anybody questions the sincerity of your remorse or the sincerity of your intention to do better with your life,” Clark told Calix. “I think that it is impossible for the court to impose a sentence commensurate with the loss that Chris’ family has experienced and to a certain extent what you and your family have experienced.”
Calix admitted to killing Chavez in an interrogation video presented as evidence by his defense attorney, Sebastian Norton. In the video, Calix breaks down into sobs as he recounts the event in his home on E. Reed Avenue– drinking Jack Daniel’s whiskey, smoking marijuana and playing video games with Chavez. Then, as he did with regularity, Calix said, he took out his Polymer80 9mm pistol, which he thought was empty, pointed it at Chavez’s head and pulled the trigger.
Chavez died instantly and it was Calix who called 911.
Calix spent two weeks in jail after the shooting and was released on bond. He’s since been living substance-free, Norton said, and has gotten a job at a local pizzeria, where he works with the victim’s younger brother.
Calix apologized to the victim’s family and his family.
“I will never get another friend, another brother like him,” Calix told the court. “He was such a great person.”
Calix’s mother, Sonia, testified that her son and Chavez were like brothers.
“He’s changed a lot,” Sonia Caliz said. “He’s been working very hard and I haven’t had any problems since he got out (of jail).”
Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Harsh Vorganti said that the shooting was unintentional, not accidental. Vorganti is part of the Commonwealth Attorney’s property crimes unit, and generally tries cases involving white collar offenses and reviewing financial records.
“The defendant may not have intended to kill Nabel, but he did do so,” Vorganti said. “It was not an accident that he pointed a gun at Nabel’s head. It was not an accident that he pulled the trigger.”
Commonwealth’s Attorney Bryan Porter, however, noted the “accidental” nature of the incident in a release last month.
“Nabel suffered one gunshot wound to the right side of his face and was pronounced dead on the scene,” Porter said. “Evidence confirmed the accidental nature of the shooting.”
A 16-year-old Alexandria kid charged with allegedly shooting a man in September has been denied bond.
The suspect was charged in October with aggravated malicious wounding and two counts of robbery for the Sept. 22 incident in the 5500 block of Holmes Run Parkway. The shooting left a 21-year-old man paralyzed from a severed spinal cord after being shot in the neck, according to court records.
The Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office said in court that police allegedly found a .22 caliber pistol and ammunition hidden in the suspect’s closet. They also said that the victim had been buying drugs when he was shot and that bullet fired at the victim is lodged in his neck and can’t be extricated.
Judge James C. Clark denied bond for the suspect and said that he is a danger to the community. Clark also accepted social media photos into evidence of the suspect holding multiple handguns.
“There seems to be a certain amount of pride that the suspect has by possessing guns, drugs and money,” Clark said. “He is absolutely a danger to the community.”
The shooting occurred at around 9:30 a.m. and the nearby Samuel W. Tucker Elementary School and William Ramsay Elementary School were both put in “secure the building” in response to the nearby police activity.
The incident is the first charge against the suspect in Alexandria. His next court appearance is on Jan. 4.
Alexandria resident Junior Josue Espinal Calix, 20, pleaded guilty last week to involuntary manslaughter after accidentally shooting 21-year-old Nabel Christopher Chavez earlier this year.
Calix said he frequently played with the firearm and aimed it at Chavez, thinking it was unloaded, according to a release from Commonealth’s Attorney Bryan Porter.
According to Porter:
The investigation showed that in the early afternoon of February 17, 2023, the Defendant shot Nabel in the head with a Polymer80 9mm pistol. The shooting happened in a private residence on E. Reed Avenue in the City of Alexandria.
The Defendant and Nabel, who were acquainted with one another, were inside of the residence. The investigation revealed the shooting occurred after the Defendant intentionally pointed a gun he believed was unloaded at Nabel and pulled the trigger. The Defendant told the police he frequently engaged in “play” with the firearm, that the shooting occurred while he was “playing” with it, and that he believed he had emptied the chamber of the firearm and removed the magazine prior to the shooting and did not know how a round remained in the chamber.
Nabel suffered one gunshot wound to the right side of his face and was pronounced dead on the scene. Evidence confirmed the accidental nature of the shooting.
Calix was released on bond pending sentencing, which is scheduled for a hearing on Dec. 21. The maximum penalty for involuntary manslaughter is 10 years.
(Updated 9:35 a.m.) After being unable to find a handgun or shell casing, the Alexandria Police Department (APD) is investigating the shooting death of a 15-year-old boy in a West End apartment building as “suspicious.”
The shooting occurred in an apartment in the 300 block of S. Whiting Street at around 10:45 p.m. on Saturday (Oct. 29), according to APD. The call to police was made by a person who said that the victim shot himself, but APD could not find a firearm or shell casing at the scene, according to scanner traffic.
“This may or may not be self-inflicted,” an investigating APD officer said via dispatch.
According to APD:
The Alexandria Police Department is seeking assistance from the public regarding an active investigation of a suspicious death that occurred in the 300 block of South Whiting Street. On October 28, 2023, at approximately 11:47 PM, the Alexandria Police Department responded to a call regarding a possible shooting. Officers discovered a 15-year-old male inside the residence who sustained a gunshot wound. The victim was transported to an area hospital where he unfortunately succumbed to his injury. APD is now investigating this shooting incident as a suspicious death.
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner will conduct an autopsy and determine the cause and manner of death.
There have been six confirmed homicides so far this year in Alexandria.
Anyone with information on the incident can contact APD Detective J. Marable at 703-746-6883, or call the APD non-emergency number. Callers can remain anonymous.
Image via Google Maps
(Updated 6:50 p.m.) One male victim, age 21, was seriously injured in an armed robbery just before 9:30 this morning, and as of 10 a.m. the suspects are still at large.
The Alexandria Police Department is investigating a shooting incident that occurred in the 5500 block of Holmes Run Parkway. There is a heavy police presence in the area and no suspects have been arrested yet.
Alexandria Police spokesman Marcel Bassett said one man was seriously injured but in stable condition after being shot in an armed robbery. Scanner traffic indicated the man was shot in the shoulder and the back of the neck and his phone was stolen. Two suspects were seen in the area on foot running toward Van Dorn Street, according to scanner traffic.
Further details are awaited as APD continues its investigation.
The nearby Samuel W. Tucker Elementary School and William Ramsay Elementary School were both put in “secure the building” mode around 10 a.m. in response to the nearby police activity.
Notification:: In response to a shooting, there is a heavy police presence in and around the 5500 block of Holmes Run Parkway. One serious injury reported. APD is on scene and investigating. pic.twitter.com/vfywQKzFDj
— Alexandria Police (@AlexandriaVAPD) September 22, 2023
James Cullum and Vernon Miles contributed to this story
Alexandria police are investigating the shooting of a man in a suspected carjacking in the parking lot of a Landmark-area apartment complex.
Multiple callers reported hearing two-to-three shots at around 10:15 p.m. in the 300 block of S. Reynolds Street, according to the police scanner.
Police found the victim in his car in a parking lot outside an apartment building, and he told them he’d been shot in the shoulder in an attempted carjacking, according to the police scanner.
APD tweeted that the man suffered non-life threatening injuries and to expect a heavy police presence in the area.
Police reported to dispatch that the victim said he was approached by four individuals with ski masks and that one the suspects shot him in the shoulder. The suspects then reportedly fled on foot.
One of the suspects wore a reflective green vest, according to the police scanner.
The block around the 300 block of S. Reynolds Street has been blocked off by police, and K-9 officers have been deployed, as well as a Fairfax County Police helicopter, according to the scanner.
Anyone with information on this incident can call the APD non-emergency number at 703-746-4444. Callers can remain anonymous.
Notification:: In response to a shooting, there is a heavy police presence in the 300 block of South Reynolds Street. One person suffered non-life-threatening injuries. APD is on the scene and investigating. pic.twitter.com/S4RZDet8EV
— Alexandria Police (@AlexandriaVAPD) September 17, 2023
