Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Mark Warner (D-Va.) have joined the call for answers in the shooting of a Tysons man by U.S. Park Police in 2017.
Bijan Ghaisar, a 25-year-old, was shot on Nov. 17, 2017 by two U.S. Park Police who fired into his Jeep Grand Cherokee. Three days after the shooting, the FBI took over the investigation, but there’s been virtually no update on the case.
“We write today to once again request an update on the status of the Bijan Ghaisar investigation,” Grassley and Warner said in a joint letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray. “The FBI has failed to provide information on this investigation, which has been ongoing since November 2017, to us, our colleagues, or the public. The FBI’s slow pace and lack of transparency are weakening the trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve.”
The letter notes that family members and the press have had to rely on Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests for simple details like whether or not Ghaisar had a weapon when he was killed — which he did not, according to FOIA documents obtained by Ghaisar’s family.
The senators are not the first to call for answers. Last November, on the anniversary of the shooting, the McLean Citizens Association also issued a resolution demanding answers.
Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) also pushed for answers in 2018. The Grassley and Warner letter notes the FBI has previously responded that it would not discuss an active investigation.
Grassley and Warner also sent a joint letter to Dan Smith, the acting director of the National Park Service, with questions about the agency’s policies on the use of force.
The letters to the FBI and NPS demand an update from both organizations no later than July 2.
Image via Fairfax County Police Department
A boy reported to Vienna Police that another kid smeared berries on his bicycle.
The incident occurred around 3:30 p.m. Friday, June 7, in the 500 block of S. Center Street, according to the police report.
Other local crimes include stolen and recovered beer from the Giant Food (359 E. Maple Avenue) that same Friday.
Shortly after 11 a.m., an employee reported to the police that five kids took a case of beer and ran out of the store, according to the police report.
“The employee was able to recover the beer,” the police report said. “However, the juveniles fled the area.”
Later that day, between 7-8 p.m., police said two kids attempted to steal a 30-pack of beer, but a loss prevention officer confronted the kids.
“The juveniles ran away from the officer leaving behind the beer,” the report said.
Photo via Facebook
Fairfax County police are investigating a man’s drowning in a pool in McLean on Saturday (June 15).
Police responded to a report of a drowning and found 31-year-old Justin Hollman, of Chesapeake, in a residential pool around 3 p.m. in the 1100 block of Pine Hill Road, according to the Fairfax County Police Department.
“It is unknown how long he had been in the pool and the circumstances surrounding his drowning are still under investigation,” according to the press release.
Police pulled Hollman from the pool, and rescue staff pronounced Hollman dead at the scene. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner is working to determine the cause of Hollman’s death.
Detectives from our Major Crimes Bureau are responding to assume the investigation of an apparent drowning in the 1100 block of Pine Hill Rd in McLean. #FCPD pic.twitter.com/VnKcSQPsSY
— Fairfax County Police (@FairfaxCountyPD) June 15, 2019
Map via Google Maps
(Updated at 11:45 a.m.) The previously closed lanes of Old Dominion Drive and Beverly Road just reopened after a car crash in downtown McLean this morning.
The Arlington County Fire Department dispatched firefighters to the crash at 6832 Old Dominion Drive shortly before 10 a.m. to help Fairfax County rescue personnel.
Police had closed the westbound lanes of Old Dominion Drive and soundbound lanes of Beverly Road, and around 11 a.m., traffic was backed up on both of those roads.
Two cars — a McHale Landscape Design Inc. truck with a trailer and a Honda Odyssey — were involved in the crash, police told Tysons Reporter. As of 11:30 a.m., the truck, trailer and car have been moved.
One woman was taken to the hospital with minor injuries, police said.
Catherine Moran and Vernon Miles worked on this story.
Map via Google Maps
Police Investigating “Apparent Drowning” in McLean — “Detectives from our Major Crimes Bureau are responding to assume the investigation of an apparent drowning in the 1100 block of Pine Hill Rd in McLean.” [Fairfax County Police/Twitter]
Fire in Vienna Restaurant Saturday — Firefighters responded to a kitchen fire in a restaurant in the 200 block of E. Maple Avenue Saturday night with “smoke showing upon arrival in [the] middle unit of [the] strip shopping center.” [Fairfax County Fire and Rescue/Twitter]
Tegna Acquires Broadcast Companies — “For $535 million in cash, the Tysons-based media company will gain control of NBC Indianapolis affiliate WTHR-TV and CBS Columbus affiliate WBNS-TV… Tegna will also acquire WBNS-FM, a popular sports station in Central Ohio.” [Washington Business Journal]
New Trails Coming to Tysons — “As a major road is widened in Northern Virginia, cyclists say their efforts to get transportation improvements are also being heard. Fourteen miles of new trails are coming along with new lanes along busy Route 7 in the Tysons area.” [Adam Tuss/Twitter]
Police Investigating Falls Church Man’s Drowning — “Detectives from our Major Crimes Bureau are investigating after the body of 55-year-old Lee Bowersett, of Falls Church, was recovered from Lake Barcroft [Wednesday] morning… Preliminarily, there are no signs of foul play.” [Fairfax County Police Department]
Man Pleads Guilty to Fitting Rooms Filmings — “Of the charges to which 39-year-old Mumtaz Rauf pleaded guilty, one was a felony and three were misdemeanors… Rauf was arrested last December after a teenage girl at Fair Oaks Mall in Fairfax told store employees that she saw a camera in a Forever 21 changing room.” [WTOP]
School’s Out, But Free Meals Are Still Around — From June 17 to Aug, 23, the Free Summer Meals for Kids Program provides meals to kids ages 5 to 18 during the summer. [Fairfax County]
(Updated at 2:45 p.m.) The Fairfax County Police Department plans to crack down on violations at Scott’s Run Nature Preserve this summer.
The police department posted today (Friday) on Facebook:
In the span of a just a few hours this past Saturday, our officers responded to multiple calls at Scott’s Run Nature Preserve – arresting six people and serving summons to another nine. This is a beautiful park with a lot to offer for our community. We’re reminding you that there’s NO excuse to break posted park rules at Scott’s Run. That includes engaging in prohibited activities such as swimming, littering, illegal and underage drinking, trespassing after dark, etc.
FCPD will work with the Fairfax County Park Authority during the summer to enforce the park’s rules.
This is not the first time the police department has had to step in to help with enforcement at the park.
Lt. Jason Allegra said in a Fairfax County video from 2017 that Fairfax County police helped enforce violations by patrolling the park daily.
Map via Google Maps
Vienna police have recently been called for reports of people banging on a resident’s door in the 400 block of Onondio Circle SW.
A resident reported Friday, May 31, that a stranger banged on his front door and window around 12:30 a.m. before fleeing.
“This incident has occurred multiple times in the past few weeks,” the police report said.
The resident also reported to the police Friday, May 24, that he thought that one of the people in a car that drove past his house before 9 p.m. resembled the person from the night before (May 23) who banged loudly on the front door of the home, possibly trying to gain entry around midnight.
Police said the resident opened the door, and the person ran off.
“The resident believed there may have also been two other individuals in the yard,” according to the police report. “All three fled from the area in an unknown vehicle.”
The resident told police that two other similar incidents happened during the late night and early morning hours in the past two weeks.
Photo via Facebook
Fairfax County police said that generators were stolen from a Merrifield business.
The incident occurred in the 2800 block of Merrilee Drive.
Map via Google Maps
It’s the season for bear sightings in Virginia and the Vienna Police Department wants people in the Tysons area to stay safe.
“Virginia is black bear country — including the Vienna area,” the police department said in a press release today (June 6). “However, while bears are not a common encounter in our community, multiple sightings are reported each spring and summer as bears wander into residential areas searching for food.”
The police department shared a factsheet by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, which says that Fairfax County has had black bear occupation occasionally, along with confirmed sightings.
The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries has different tips for how to keep bears away from residential areas, what to do if you encounter a bear at home and how to keep them away while camping and hiking. The factsheet also addresses some common bear myths.
“Unprovoked bear attacks are very rare and have never been documented in Virginia,” according to the factsheet.
For anyone who comes into close contact with a bear, the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries recommends that they should back away slowly.
“Unless the animal is sick or injured or poses a threat to public safety, the Vienna Police Department does not take action to remove bears from a neighborhood,” according to the police department.
Instead, people should report bear to through the Virginia Wildlife Conflict Helpline at (855) 571-9003, TTY 711.
Media Release – Be Bear Aware!!! Black bears and their cubs emerge from hibernation from March through May in Virginia and typically avoid humans, of whom they have a natural fear. In most cases would rather flee than encounter people. @TownofViennaVA @bearsmart @fairfaxcounty pic.twitter.com/JuniYMgpR7
— Town of Vienna Police (@VPDVA) June 6, 2019
Photo by Sergey Pesterev on Unsplash
Vienna is looking for a police station befitting a town with calls like a man missing his lawnmower keys.
The town is currently in the process of reviewing designs for a new police station at 215 S. Center Street. At a May 20 work session, the Town Council reviewed designs and costs for the project.
Much of the discussion about the station involved trying to give the station a “warm” and approachable feeling — particularly with part of the project focusing on making a community space at the station.
Some of this meant a review of the types of materials used in construction, with developers favoring brick to more intimidating concrete for some of the fences and the plaza.
“It doesn’t have to be a fortress to feel safe,” a designer for the project said.
Other parts of the design process focused on the scaling of the building, which has been a contentious topic in Vienna with locals fearing new commercial projects overshadowing the town’s neighborhood feeling. Designers at the meeting said they were favoring a design that didn’t feel as “large or looming” as other options.
Lynne Coan, communications and marketing manager for the Town of Vienna, said in an email that final renderings are likely incoming over the next few months.
A cost estimate included in the work session also priced the proposed police station at roughly $14.2 million.
Image via Dewberry
