Mail-stealing mischief is once again afoot in the Town of Vienna.
Vienna police warned today (Friday) that U.S. Post Office collection boxes on the corner of Church Street and Lawyers Road have been the targets of several break-ins this year.
The most recent incident occurred overnight between 3 a.m. on Nov. 22 and 5 p.m. on Nov. 23, when a resident reported that a check she had deposited in the mailbox at that intersection had been stolen, forged, and cashed.
“If you used these mailboxes during that time, please ensure that any checks, banknotes, or other important mail reached its intended destination,” the Vienna Police Department said in its crime summary for the week of Nov. 25 to Dec. 3.
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service is responsible for investigating all mail theft and tampering incidents, which can be reported to the U.S. Postal Service’s law enforcement arm through their website at uspis.gov/report.
Vienna police forward mail theft reports to the USPIS and support their investigations, but they advise anyone who sees suspicious activity at the collection boxes to contact the town police department to get an immediate response.
With the mailbox thieves apparently still at large, people with mail to deliver should drop it in the collection boxes inside the post office (200 Lawyers Road) instead, the VPD says.
The police report includes three other incidents involving issues with mailed checks that don’t appear to be part of the spree of postal box break-ins.
One resident reported that a check she mailed was stolen, forged, and cashed sometime between Sept. 1 and Nov. 23.
Another said a check she was supposed to get in the mail never arrived. The incident is dated between Nov. 3 and Nov. 10. Police advised the woman to file a report with the U.S. Postal Service.
Finally, there was a grand larceny incident between 9 p.m. on Nov. 30 and 4:30 p.m. on Dec. 1:
A resident placed outgoing mail in her mailbox that included three checks that she was sending to various creditors with her bills. The next day she observed shredded paper in the gutter that she recognized as the remnants of the envelopes she had placed in the mailbox.
Image via Google Maps
Tysons Partnership Celebrates Tysons Corner Metro Station Renaming — “This is an important step forward in the effort to unify the Tysons brand and foster a cohesive sense of place across our rapidly urbanizing neighborhoods…The new station name reflects our new urban, transit-oriented reality.” [Tysons Partnership]
Post Office Collection Box Thefts Reported in Vienna — “The incidents impacted collection boxes at Church Street and Lawyers Road, which is near the Vienna U.S. Postal Service location at 200 Lawyers Road NW. According to the police department, the most recent incident occurred overnight on Nov. 22 to 23.” [Patch]
Falls Church City Councilmember Participates in Vaccine Trial — “Falls Church City Council member David Snyder, who has served on the Council since 1994, announced last week that he participated in a trial of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine.” [Falls Church News-Press]
Tysons-based Alarm.com Concludes Virginia’s First Tech Apprenticeship Program — “Alarm.com recently wrapped up the first state-sponsored apprenticeship program for a tech company in Virginia. It included 10 weeks of technical instruction at Northern Virginia Community College, and nine months of on-the-job training.” [WTOP]
The Fairfax County Police Department is investigating two different armed robberies that took place in Tysons last week.
The first took place in the 8300 block of Greensboro Drive at 3:39 p.m. on Nov. 14. The victim was approached by a man with a knife who demanded money. The man “forcibly took a wallet from the victim before walking away from the area,” the FCPD reported in its weekly recap on Nov. 20.
The victim in that incident suffered injuries, but they were not life-threatening.
The second reported incident occurred at 2:19 a.m. on Nov. 19 in the 8600 block of Westwood Center Drive.
According to Fairfax County police, two men armed with guns forced their way into a hotel room occupied by three victims. The men assaulted one of the victims and took cash and personal property before walking away from the area.
The assaulted victim was taken to the hospital for non-life-threatening injuries, police say.
A man is now facing charges for unlawfully filming people at the Nordstrom in Tysons Corner, Fairfax County police announced this morning (Friday).
The Fairfax County Police Department says it first learned about possible unlawful filming at the store after a janitor reported finding a concealed video camera inside a bathroom on Oct. 24.
A woman then reported on Nov. 7 that she had been illegally filmed while in a dressing room, prompting the FCPD’s Tysons Urban Team to launch an investigation.
Officers arrested a man identified as Gerson A. Rosales Miranda of Woodbridge on Nov. 14 after Nordstrom alerted police that an unidentified woman who investigators had linked to the two reported incidents had returned to the store.
Officers searched the area and found Rosales Miranda “disguised as a woman.” Major crimes bureau detectives confirmed that he was responsible for the Nov. 7 incident, according to the department.
Rosales Miranda has been charged with five counts of unlawful filming with additional charges pending the outcome of the continuing police investigation. He was given a $2,500 bond.
“The investigation is ongoing and we will provide updates regarding charges and victims at a later time,” the FCPD public affairs bureau said when asked for more details about the number of incidents involved in the case.
Check out our video sharing details surrounding a recent arrest involving several unlawful filming incidents at Tysons Corner Mall in the McLean District. #FCPD #FCPDOnScene pic.twitter.com/BextGrZLx1
— Fairfax County Police (@FairfaxCountyPD) November 20, 2020
This is not the first time that unlawful filming has been reported at Tysons Corner Center.
A case involving over 100 videos allegedly taken in store dressing rooms at Tysons Corner Center, Fair Oaks Mall, Springfield Town Center, and Fair Lakes Promenade in December 2018 ended with Fairfax County police charging an Alexandria resident with unlawful videotaping and other crimes in January 2019.
The FCPD also charged a man from Maryland with unlawful filming and trespassing on Dec. 14, 2019 after he was seen recording two women at Tysons Corner Center.
A Tysons Corner Center spokesperson says the mall has no comment on the current case, noting that the FCPD is leading the effort.
The FCPD has officers assigned to Tysons Corner, Fair Oaks Mall, and Springfield Town Center for anyone who needs assistance or sees “anything suspicious while out shopping this holiday season,” the public affairs bureau says.
Photo via FCPD
A man suspected of robbing a Capital One Bank in McLean has been arrested in Maryland as part of a joint investigation between Fairfax County and Montgomery County police, the Montgomery County Department of Police announced today.
Montgomery County police have charged a suspect identified as Rockville resident Noel Omar Lorenzo, 41, with committing three armed bank robberies in Maryland between Sept. 25 and Oct. 15.
The Fairfax County Police Department confirmed that Lorenzo is also a suspect in its investigation of an Oct. 27 robbery of the Capital One Bank at 6890 Elm St. in McLean.
Police said that a man had entered the bank, implied that he had a weapon, and demanded money. He then left with cash, though the department has not specified how much. No injuries were reported.
Suspect from 10/27 McLean Capital One bank robbery arrested in Maryland after joint investigation with @mcpnews. https://t.co/IwJAvrgtnd #FCPD
— Fairfax County Police (@FairfaxCountyPD) November 10, 2020
According to the Montgomery County Police Department, FCPD detectives contacted its major crimes investigators on Oct. 28, saying that they believed the two departments were looking for the same suspect.
MCPD officers arrested Lorenzo on Nov. 4 around 11:10 a.m. at his residence and issued a criminal warrant charging him with three counts of armed robbery and firearm-related offenses. He is currently being held without bond in Montgomery County.
A search of Lorenzo’s vehicle turned up evidence from the Montgomery County and McLean bank robberies, including a BB gun that police believe to be the weapon he used, according to the MCPD.
Police have arrested five people after a robbery and assault in Tysons on Wednesday.
According to a police report, a group came into the Burlington (8355 Leesburg Pike), stole merchandise, and attacked an employee with pepper spray before fleeing in a sedan with a small child.
Police said officers tried to stop the car as it fled, but the driver refused and led police on a pursuit. Eventually, the car lost a tire and became disabled.
According to the report:
Officers took the occupants into custody including a small child who was not injured. Bryttany Richardson, 18, Jordan Jacobs, 20, Joylynn Queen, 22, and Gregory Parker, 25, all of Washington, D.C., were charged with robbery. Linda Pone, 50, of Washington, D.C., was charged with robbery, disregarding a police command to stop, possession with intent to distribute a schedule I/II narcotic, wanton child endangerment, and reckless driving.
Joining the annuls of small, bizarre Vienna police reports, police were called out to a 7-11 in Vienna after a customer reported that he’d been struck — a tragic victim caught in the crossfire in an act of senseless violence between two Febreze-spraying vandals.
The incident reportedly occurred at the 7-11 at 537 Maple Avenue West at 10:16 p.m. on Oct. 22.
According to the police report:
Officers responded to the report of an assault. A customer reported that two juveniles were spraying Fabreeze [sic] in the store and some of the spray landed on him, which led to a verbal dispute. The customer then attempted to block the cash register while the juveniles made their purchase.
However, officers responding to the assault call found that customer may not have, in fact, been hit in a premeditated attack.
“Officers determined that juveniles did not intentionally spray the customer and that no assault occurred,” the report said.
Another item in this week’s police report was damage to political signs in residential yards. At least two instances of yard signs being stolen were reported at different locations across Vienna. A sign was also reported damaged last week, and another sign was spray-painted and left with notes containing profanity earlier this month.
Juan Vazquez, public information officer with the Vienna Police Department, said it’s not uncommon to see these sorts of acts in election years. The incidents are generally grouped under larceny or go unreported.
Photo via Google Maps
A Capital One Bank in McLean was robbed Tuesday afternoon, Fairfax County police reported at 2:20 p.m.
Officers from the Fairfax County Police Department are currently on the scene at 6890 Elm St.
The department says the suspect is believed to be a white man who was last seen on foot. He is reportedly 5’9″ and wearing white ballcap and dark clothing.
Our officers are on scene of a bank robbery at the Capital One Bank, 6890 Elm St. in McLean. Suspect believed to be a white male, 5’9”, white ballcap, wearing dark clothing, last seen on foot. Please avoid the area. #FCPD pic.twitter.com/ltchNnrACn
— Fairfax County Police (@FairfaxCountyPD) October 27, 2020
According to a police report, two acquaintances were robbed at gunpoint earlier this week at Tysons Corner Center (1961 Chain Bridge Road).
The police said the incident happened on Tuesday, Oct. 13, around 8:11 p.m. According to the report:
Two acquaintances reported they were returning to their car when they were approached by three men. The men displayed firearms, demanded their money and merchandise, and ran away. No injuries were reported.
Other crimes around the McLean district this week included a carjacking at gunpoint on Saturday, Oct. 10. The incident reportedly happened at the Residence Inn at 8400 Old Courthouse Road. According to the report:
A man reported that he was in a parking lot when a man approached him, displayed a gun and demanded his car keys. The man drove away in the victim’s 2018 Mercedes sedan after taking cash and personal property. No injuries were reported.
Staff photo by Michelle Goldchain
Please stop leaving bags of vomit outside Emmaus United Church of Christ (900 Maple Avenue E).
This week’s Vienna Police Report notes that, between Aug. 18 and Oct. 3, on three separate occasions an employee at the church has found bags of vomit left in the parking lot:
An employee at the Church reported that on three separate occasions someone had left bags filled with vomit in the parking lot near the playground area.
Another littered puke balloon was reported later in the police report, sometime between 3:30 p.m. on Oct. 6 and 8 a.m. on Oct. 7.
Other tales of crime and mischief in this week’s report included vandalism of political signs and a man suspected of stealing chestnuts from a neighbor’s tree:
A resident reported that he observed an elderly man in his backyard. When the resident confronted
the man, he began walking toward Marshall Road. The resident believes the man may have been
stealing chestnuts from the tree in his yard.
Photo via Google Maps
