Suspect Convicted in Stratford Motor Lodge Rape Case

Months of intense, complex investigative work by the City of Falls Church Police has resulted in a conviction earlier this month for the sexual assault of two female victims at a local hotel in January 2009. 

Arlington County Circuit Court sentenced 24-year-old Dennis Alba Terrazas, who lives in the Falls Church area of Fairfax County, to a 10-year consecutive sentence.  Falls Church Police have also charged 18-year-old Norka Linares and 23-year-old Ander Jiminez Foronda with concealing a crime.  One victim, a 23-year-old female, was raped and sodomized. 

With the assistance of the U.S. Marshals’ Capitol Area Regional Fugitive Task Force, Terrazas was located and taken into custody by U.S. Marshals, without incident on February 17, in Richmond.   On December 3, he was sentenced to five years for rape and five years for sodomy (10-year total sentence). 

The incident began the night of January 18, 2009, when Falls Church Police received a 911 call for a possible abduction and sexual assault.  An 18-year-old girl, her boyfriend, and the girl’s cousin, were celebrating the girl’s birthday at the Stratford Motor Lodge, 300 West Broad Street.  Over the course of the evening, two women were sexually assaulted, according to police.  One of the victims was taken to another hotel outside of the City limits after being assaulted, in order not to have the crime exposed.  The victim’s cousin then lied to police about her identity in order to minimize the events. 

None of the 12 people present in the motel room that night are City residents.  All live in the Falls Church area of Fairfax County.  Many of those involved are in their 20s, one female is 18 years old and two of the males are 17 years old.

City Teens Available to Shovel Snow — or Dog Walking, Babysitting, Etc.

While there was no shortage of snow during the Blizzard of ‘09, there may have been a shortage of snow shovelers.

The Falls Church Recreation Department may have a solution. The Recreation Department maintains a Teen Work List of high school-aged youth who are interested in occasional jobs including snow shoveling, dog walking, yard work and babysitting.

Residents who are looking for teen workers may call 703-248-5077 to request assistance.

Teens who would like to register to be on the list (parental approval required) may call 703-248-5077 for a registration form.

Recreation staff coordinate the teens and the jobs to keep the youths’ contact information private. The rate of pay for the jobs is between the youth and the person looking for assistance.

Farmers Market Winter Hours: 9 to 12

The Falls Church Farmers Market, open every Saturday year ’round, begins winter hours of operation Saturday, Jan. 2.

The Market is open from 9 a.m. until noon, January through March. It opens at 8 a.m. the rest of the year.

The Farmers Market is held in the City Hall parking lot, 300 Park Ave., and is coordinated by the Falls Church Recreation and Parks Department.

For more information, call 703-248-5077.

CITY FOCUS: Christmas Tree, Trash Pickup; Leaf Collection; New Year’s Eve for Middle-Schoolers

Click to read CITY FOCUS for Dec. 31-Jan. 6 prepared by the City of Falls Church.

SCHOOLS FOCUS: Poetry Competition; Band Fundraiser; Lights Off to Save Energy; BIE Partners

Click to read the Dec. 31-Jan. 6 SCHOOLS FOCUS prepared by Falls Church City Public Schools.

New Year’s Eve Watch Night Is ‘My Kind of Party’

By BARBARA CRAM
Special to the Falls Church Times

December 30, 2009

Shown above in the double blue dots are the venue shuttle stops all around the City Center area.

The shuttle bus will be running from 7 p.m. until after 1 a.m. with the venue route beginning and ending at the East Falls Church Metro.

The venues are packed with entertainment and amusements, so in inclement weather visitors can enjoy Watch Night as much inside as they would have outside.

For the complete Watch Night schedule — hour by hour, event by event – click Read more

Library Going Paperless in January

The Falls Church City library will begin the New Year with changes to improve efficiency, save money, and assist library visitors.  The City’s Mary Riley Styles Public Library is located at 120 N. Virginia Ave.

The library is going paperless beginning January 1, and will no longer send overdue or reserve notices via U.S. mail.  Overdue notices and reserve alerts will be sent via e-mail addresses that patrons have provided to the library.  For reserve notices, if patrons have not provided the library with an e-mail address, they will be called when an item is ready to pick up.  Patrons are encouraged to provide an up-to-date e-mail address to the library so that they can continue to receive timely notices. Please note that all e-mail addresses are confidential and not given out to third parties.

The library will be implementing a new integrated library computer system beginning Wednesday, January 20.  This new system will have far more capability that the current one.  During the migration time, some disruption of service may occur while data is loaded from the old system to the new one.  This will affect remote access to the online catalog and patron accounts during a brief span of time on January 18 and 19.

In preparation for the new computer system, the library will offer a Fine Amnesty Week Monday, January 11 through Sunday, January 17.  All items that are overdue and returned during that time will have their fines forgiven.  Fines for previously overdue items and fees for lost or damaged items will not be removed from patron records.

The library will open at 1 p.m. on Friday, January 8, instead of in the morning. The library will be closed in the morning for staff training on the new library system.

The library will be closed on Monday, January 18, in observance of the Martin Luther King holiday and closed on Tuesday, January 19, while final data migration occurs for the new library system. Regular operating hours will be observed (9 a.m. to 9 p.m.) on Wednesday, January 20.

Crime Report for December 15 – 28

Urinating in Public, 900 blk. W Broad St., December 15, 1:16 a.m.  Police arrested a 24 year old Falls Church man for Urinating in Public.

Fraud, 800 blk. W Broad St., between December 10 and December 15.  Unknown person(s) stole victim’s credit card number and made two unauthorized online transactions.

Obstruction of Justice, 300 blk. W Broad St., December 15, 12:04 p.m.  Police arrested an 18 year old Annandale woman for Concealing a Felony Crime that occurred January 18, 2009.

Suspicious Event, 700 blk. Poplar Dr., December 15, 2:12 p.m.  Unknown person(s) posing as a City of Falls Church Police Officer contacted victim via telephone in an attempt to solicit monetary contributions.

Assault, Simple, 6700 blk. Wilson Blvd., December 15, 4:59 p.m.  Police arrested a 43 year old Fairfax man for Assault & Battery.

Larceny, Shoplifting, CVS, 1150 W Broad St., December 16, 8:46 p.m.  Police arrested a male juvenile for stealing Trojan condoms.

Destruction of Property, 200 blk. James Thurber Ct., December 17, 10:56 p.m.  Unknown person(s) smashed the driver’s side window of a vehicle.

Destruction of Property, 200 blk. Noland St., December 18, 4:32 p.m.  Unknown person(s) slashed the driver’s side front and rear tire on a vehicle.

Destruction of Property, 1100 blk. W Broad St., between December 17, 7:00 p.m. and December 18, 9:30 a.m.  Unknown person(s) damaged (9) vehicles by placing scratches in the metal and paint.

Burglary, Residential, 100 blk. W Westmoreland Rd., between December 20, 8:23 p.m. and December 21, 10:23 a.m.  Unknown person(s) entered inside the unoccupied dwelling and stole a snowboard and ski glass.

Larceny, Shoplifting, CVS, 134 W Broad St., December 22, 1:50 p.m.  Police arrested a female juvenile for stealing OTC medication.

Larceny, Shoplifting, Rite Aid, 1003 W Broad St., December 23, 9:11 a.m.  Unknown person(s) entered the establishment and stole a case of Coors Light Beer and Bud Light Beer.

Driving under the Influence, 100 blk. Hillwood Ave., December 25, 12:56 a.m.  Police arrested a 27 year old Vienna man for DUI.

Drunkenness, 100 blk. Hillwood Ave., December 25, 8:17 p.m.  Police arrested a 52 year old Annandale man for DIP.

Assault, Simple, 6700 Wilson Blvd., December 25, 11:04 p.m.  Police arrested a 22 year old  Centreville man for Assault.

Drunkenness, 500 blk. Roosevelt Blvd., December 26, 2:03 a.m.  Police arrested a 29 year old Falls Church man for DIP.

Drunkenness, 200 blk. N Washington St., December 26, 10:58 p.m.  Police arrested a 23 year old Hagerstown, MD man DIP.

Drunkenness, 100 blk. S Washington St., December 26, 11:20 p.m.  Police arrested a 25 year old Woodbridge man for DIP.

Drunkenness, 400 blk. S Maple Ave., December 27, 1:58 a.m.  Police arrested a 28 year old  Richmond man for DIP.

Driving under the Influence, 600 blk. S Washington St., December 27, 4:52 a.m.  Police arrested a 34 year old Reston woman for DUI.

Destruction of Property, 1100 blk. Offutt Dr., December 28, 6:30 p.m.  Unknown person(s) slashed the front and rear tires on two vehicles.

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