The new year is starting off with a proverbial bang for security at Reagan National Airport.
A Transportation Security Administration officer stopped an Alexandria man who tried to bring a loaded, semi-automatic folding rifle onto to a flight on New Year’s Day, the agency said. Then, three days later, the TSA allegedly confiscated a loaded, semi-automatic handgun from a Prince William County man’s carry-on baggage.
A man tried to steal a gun from an Arlington gun store last week but was chased down by a store manager as he tried to flee.
The incident happened Thursday around 6:30 p.m. at Nova Armory, which is now located at 2607 Wilson Blvd in Clarendon.
(Updated on 11/30/22) The carjacking and pursuit we reported yesterday was far from the only car theft in Arlington over the long Thanksgiving holiday.
It was a busy few days for police, who handled a half dozen other vehicle thefts, as well as a pair of attempted carjackings in the Colonial Village area. One series of thefts claimed five vehicles in parts of residential North Arlington between Thanksgiving afternoon and the morning of Black Friday.
Police are searching for an armed man who told law enforcement he needed help but then drove off.
The incident happened shortly after 9 a.m. in front of the Arlington County courthouse, near police headquarters, in the Courthouse neighborhood.
(Updated at 3:05 p.m.) A pair of incidents involving local businesses and armed suspects were reported in today’s Arlington County Police Department crime report.
One happened on the 2000 block of Clarendon Blvd in Courthouse around 8:40 a.m. Wednesday morning.
A man upset after being confronted about parking illegally in the Courthouse area allegedly drew a weapon, police say.
The incident happened around 6 p.m. yesterday (Wednesday) near the intersection of Clarendon Blvd and N. Troy Street, a couple of blocks downhill from the Courthouse Metro station.
A driver was nearly carjacked in a parking garage about a block from the Crystal City Metro station.
The incident happened around 10:20 p.m. last night (Wednesday) on the 200 block of 18th Street S.
Update at 2:25 p.m. on 8/19/22 — Arlington police have released additional information about this incident in Friday’s daily crime report. A 34-year-old man was arrested and a knife — not a gun — recovered from the scene, ACPD said.
ASSAULT AND BATTERY (Significant), 2022-08180122, 2400 block of Washington Boulevard. At approximately 1:22 p.m. on August 18th, a plain clothes officer was in the area when he observed the male suspect allegedly brandish a weapon during a dispute with another individual. Additional officers responded to the area and located the suspect who refused to comply with the offices’ commands and fled the scene on foot. Officers canvassed the area, located the suspect in the unit block of N. Bedford Street and took him into custody without incident. During the course of the investigation, a knife was recovered. No injuries were reported. Saul Leal, 34, of Arlington, VA was arrested and charged with Assault and Battery. He was held on a $1,000 bond.
A man allegedly got mad and drew a gun when an employee at a local car wash asked him to move his vehicle.
The incident happened around 10:15 a.m. Tuesday at the Mr. Wash car wash on the 100 N. Glebe Road, according to scanner traffic. No one was hurt.
Gun store Nova Armory is now open in Clarendon, after moving from its previous Lyon Park location.
The store at 2607 Wilson Blvd opened on the same day that ARLnow reported on the move, according to a Facebook post.
First Day of School Three Weeks Away –” It seems as if summer just started, but before you know it, the 2022-23 school year in Arlington will be starting. The first day of classes for Arlington Public Schools is Monday, Aug. 29.” [Patch]
Pet Adoptions Down Slightly — “The Animal Welfare League of Arlington reports that 2,444 cats, dogs and small animals were adopted from its shelter during the 12-month period ending June 30. That’s down slightly from the 2,587 in the preceding year, which may be a positive sign that things are calming down in the get-along-with-COVID world that is now being experienced.” [Sun Gazette]
(Updated at 4:50 p.m.) The Arlington police union is pushing back on accusations that officers mishandled the search of a suspect who is now linked to a double murder.
In a rare public rebuke of Arlington’s top prosecutor, the Arlington Coalition of Police this afternoon sent out a press release accusing Commonwealth’s Attorney Parisa Dehghani-Tafti of “ineptitude” and “deflection of blame.”
