The owner of a Clarendon gym who pleaded guilty to trying to buy large quantities of cocaine from undercover police officers has been sentenced.
A federal judge sentenced Pascal Laporte to four years in prison today, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia announced this afternoon.
Arlington County Circuit Court Judge Louise DiMatteo sentenced 25-year-old Richard Allen Lowe to 28 years in prison on Friday (Feb. 8). Lowe previously pleaded guilty to charges of unlawful wounding, abduction, burglary and sexual penetration back in August.
“The defendant preyed upon his victim’s sense of safety by posing as someone she should trust in her own home,” Police Chief Jay Farr wrote in a statement. “While nothing can completely restore her sense of security, our community is safer today because of the significant sentences imposed by the court on a violent offender.”
Rosslyn Shooter Sentenced — “A man who worked as an investigator for conspiracy theorist Jack Burkman will serve nine years in prison for shooting and wounding his ex-boss” in a Rosslyn hotel parking garage. [Washington Post]
Marijuana Arrest Disparity — “African Americans were more than eight times more likely than whites to be arrested for marijuana crimes in Arlington from 2010-2016.” [Bacon’s Rebellion]
Skydance MacMahon, who worked as a Digital Media Administrator for the State Department in Arlington, conspired with a Canadian woman to “produce over a thousand sexually explicit images and videos of minor children in Canada,” federal prosecutors said. As previously reported, he did so in part using a work-issued cell phone.
The Arlington County Police Department and Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office assisted in the case, as did Canadian authorities and various federal agencies.
Arlington Doctor Sentenced in Poisoning Case — Arlington doctor Sikander Imran was sentenced Friday to three years in prison, with 17 years suspended, for slipping pills into his pregnant girlfriend’s tea, causing her to lose the unborn baby. The now ex-girlfriend pleaded for leniency during the sentencing. [WJLA, New York Daily News]
Miniature Horses Could Be Allowed at Schools — “A new policy defining the rights and responsibility of those – students, staff or visitors – wishing to bring service animals into schools would allow for dogs and miniature horses… schools spokesman Frank Bellavia told the Sun Gazette there are no miniature horses used as service animals in the school system at the moment.” [InsideNova]
Stephon Williams, 24, pleaded “nolo contendre” to a charge of felony eluding in Arlington County Circuit Court today, meaning he accepted a conviction as though a guilty plea had been entered but did not contest the charge.
Williams received a sentence of four years, with all but 105 days suspended for three years after his release, meaning he has served his time but this sentence will be taken into account if he offends again. He will also be on supervised probation for three years.
A co-owner of the former Caffe Aficionado in Rosslyn has pleaded guilty to charges connected to what prosecutors said was a multi-year credit card fraud scheme.
Clark Donat is scheduled to be sentenced next month after pleading guilty in June to a long list of charges: credit card fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, money laundering, racketeering, conspiracy to commit racketeering, identity theft, credit card forgery, credit card theft, conspiracy to commit credit card theft and conspiracy to commit identity theft.
Elmer Umberto Lopez-Velasquez, 39, raped a 23-year-old woman near mile marker 44 in Arlington County on July 3, 2012, according to Arlington County Police.
He was sentenced to 50 years with 18 suspended for the charge of rape and five years for the charge of strangulation. The two sentences will run concurrently.
Maxwell Adams, 18, of Arlington, was sentenced yesterday (Wednesday) for killing his father, Dennis “Andy” Adams, 46.
He was sentenced to 50 years in prison with 23 suspended for a charge of first degree murder and five years for a charge of stabbing in the commission of a felony. The two sentences will run consecutively.
Ludvin Estrada, 41, was convicted of killing 27-year-old Eva Veliz on May 11, 1999. Police found Veliz dead inside the trunk of a car parked on the 1300 block of N. Pierce Street.
The pair were seen leaving together, after a night out, at approximately 2:45 a.m. on the day of the murder. At some point, the pair started arguing and Estrada strangled Veliz to death, prosecutors say.
Martin Walker, 25, was charged with attempted murder, malicious wounding, use of a firearm during the commission of a felony and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
Arlington County police responded to the 3600 block of Columbia Pike on April 20, 2016, after reports of a dispute involving a used car dealer. Upon arriving, officers found a man suffering from a gunshot wound to his leg.
The sentence, which was recommended by the jury, was confirmed by an Arlington Circuit Court judge Wednesday afternoon.
Black lived just blocks away from his wife, Bonnie Delgado Black, in the Arlington Ridge neighborhood. Prosecutors say he broke into her home on April 17, 2015 and stabbed her to death.
