A security guard has pleaded guilty to illegally shooting a trespassing teen at the Key Bridge Marriott site in Rosslyn.
Ahmed Namnoom, 54, pleaded guilty to unlawful wounding last Thursday in Arlington circuit court, a charge that carries between one and five years in prison.
Namnoom, then employed as a private security guard, encountered a “group of juvenile teens” that had entered the fenced-off property on the afternoon of Nov. 12, 2023, police said.
After the juveniles accessed the property, Namnoom drove to confront them. He pinned one against the fence with his vehicle, ultimately shooting the teen in the ankle as he attempted to flee, according to a statement of facts.
A nearby witness alleged that Namnoom was “chasing” the teens and corroborated the victim’s story, refuting the guard’s initial claim that he had acted in self-defense after one of the juveniles had pointed a weapon at him, court documents said.
Namnoom was initially charged with malicious wounding, an offense that would have carried at least five years in prison if convicted. Prosecutors also dropped a charge of using a firearm in the commission of a felony.
One factor impacting the reduced prosecution was Namnoom’s lack of a criminal record, Commonwealth’s Attorney Parisa Dehghani-Tafti told ARLnow, though other components were ultimately taken into consideration.
The trespassing incident is one of many to occur at the 5.52-acre property, which has been a target of trespassers and squatters since the hotel’s closure in July 2021.
County officials condemned the building in March 2023, triggering the removal of squatters throughout the building. But the act, along with increased security, did little to curb unwanted visitors.
Three months after the shooting, a fire on the building’s fourth floor — apparently set by trespassers — prompted a large response from the Arlington County Fire Department.
In May, county officials secured the building and declared it a “public nuisance,” ordering property owner Woodridge Capital Partners to begin the process of demolishing the building.
Permits for the building’s demolition were filed in August by the property owner, though the application is “awaiting plans and documents,” according to the county’s permitting website. Most recently, an application for an asbestos removal permit was filed last month.
A planned redevelopment of the property, which would see a partial demolition of the former hotel plus the construction of two residential buildings, has stalled since its approval in 2020.
