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Zak Failla

Assistant Managing Editor

zfailla@dailyvoice.com

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Equal parts Lois Lane, J. Jonah Jameson and Vicki Vale, Zak! has traveled from coast-to-coast covering small and big town community news in both in print and online for nearly a decade since his graduation from the award-winning Roy H. Park School of Communications at Ithaca College in 2010.

Before settling into the Hudson Valley, Zak! previously spent time in the New York Daily News newsroom and worked for hyperlocal digital news outlets on Long Island. He wrote sports for The Ithacan and The Ithaca Journal before taking his talents to the Pacific Northwest, where he served as the sports editor at the Shoshone News-Press until heading back east to work with Daily Voice.

Zak Failla's Contributions

Police & Fire
Flames Tear Through Maryland Home On Brink Of Completion, Officials Say Flames Tear Through Maryland Home On Brink Of Completion, Officials Say
Flames Tear Through Maryland Home On Brink Of Completion, Officials Say A Maryland home that was just weeks away from completion has been severely damaged in a fire, leaving behind extensive smoke, soot, and water damage, officials announced. Firefighters rushed to a single-family home in the 1700 block of Glenville Road in Havre De Grace at around 3:15 p.m. on Tuesday, March 18, after a neighbor spotted flames outside the property, according to the Maryland State Fire Marshal. The house, which was in its final stages of renovation, had just undergone floor staining earlier that morning. By the time firefighters arrived, flames had engulfed the exterior. Crews…

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Bank Robber On The Run After Hitting Virginia Branch In Broad Daylight, Police Say Bank Robber On The Run After Hitting Virginia Branch In Broad Daylight, Police Say
Bank Robber On The Run After Hitting Virginia Branch In Broad Daylight, Police Say Detectives are searching for a bank robber who slipped a note to a teller, demanded cash, and disappeared before officers arrived at a Virginia bank, officials announced. Fairfax County police say the suspect walked into a bank on Richmond Highway in Lorton around 3:15 p.m. on Monday, March 17, where he implied he had a weapon, though none was seen. The man, described as white, about 5-foot-5, with dark hair, was masked, wearing a black coat, blue jeans, and black Crocs during the heist. Once he got the cash, he fled before officers arrived, investigators said. No one was injured. Fairfax…

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Half Kilo Of Coke, Illegal Guns Taken Off Streets During Maryland Hotel Bust: Police Half Kilo Of Coke, Illegal Guns Taken Off Streets During Maryland Hotel Bust: Police
Half Kilo Of Coke, Illegal Guns Taken Off Streets During Maryland Hotel Bust: Police A major drug bust in Howard County has taken half a kilogram of cocaine off the streets and landed an alleged dealer behind bars, authorities announced. Barry Faucette, 47, was arrested after an investigation led detectives to a Columbia hotel, where they say he was operating a drug distribution operation, according to the Howard County Police Department. Detectives had been monitoring Faucette since October after receiving a tip about potential drug activity in the area.  When they moved in, they recovered approximately half a kilo of cocaine, distribution amounts of suspected heroin…

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by Zak Failla
News
Vengeful Gunman Kills Accomplice, Torches Evidence In Maryland, Learns Prison Fate: AG Vengeful Gunman Kills Accomplice, Torches Evidence In Maryland, Learns Prison Fate: AG
Vengeful Gunman Kills Accomplice, Torches Evidence In Maryland, Learns Prison Fate: AG A Baltimore man’s plan for retaliation ended in flames—literally—when he shot the wrong person, torched the getaway truck, and now has 48 years behind bars to think about it, officials announced. Jimmy Murphy, 30, was sentenced to life in prison with all but 48 years suspended after prosecutors say he accidentally shot his co-conspirator in a revenge plot that rapidly spiraled out of control. Investigators say Murphy and Cornelius Bruce, 30, set out to kill Christopher Brown on Jan. 20, 2020, in retaliation for the murder of Bruce’s brother, Cordelle Bruce, just days earlier. Armed and rea…

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by Zak Failla
Schools
Peeping Tom Hid Camera In University Of Maryland Dorm Bathroom: Police Peeping Tom Hid Camera In University Of Maryland Dorm Bathroom: Police
Peeping Tom Hid Camera In University Of Maryland Dorm Bathroom: Police A 19-year-old Maryland man turned himself in after police say he placed a hidden recording device inside a bathroom at a University of Maryland residence hall, officials announced. Noah Michael White, of Belcamp, turned himself in to the Department of Corrections in Upper Marlboro on Tuesday, March 18, after detectives identified him as the suspect in a voyeurism case on campus, according to University of Maryland Police (UMPD). The incident unfolded a week earlier on March 11 when a resident at Johnson-Whittle Hall in College Park discovered a portable recording device inside a single-use …

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by Zak Failla
News
Violent Crime Spree Ends In Murder Conviction For St. Mary's County Gunman Violent Crime Spree Ends In Murder Conviction For St. Mary's County Gunman
Violent Crime Spree Ends In Murder Conviction For St. Mary's County Gunman A Maryland man accused of terrorizing his community with gun violence has been convicted of murder—just weeks after being found guilty in a separate shooting case, authorities announced. Jontae Lamont Proctor, 21, of Leonardtown, was convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree assault for fatally shooting a 23-year-old man in Lexington Park last year, according to the St. Mary’s County State’s Attorney’s Office. Proctor’s latest conviction comes as part of an escalating string of violent crimes. On Feb. 26, 2024, deputies from the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Offi…

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Blaze Destroys Abandoned Maryland Liquor Store Possibly Used By Squatters: Officials Blaze Destroys Abandoned Maryland Liquor Store Possibly Used By Squatters: Officials
Blaze Destroys Abandoned Maryland Liquor Store Possibly Used By Squatters: Officials A raging fire tore through an abandoned liquor store in Montgomery County overnight, leaving behind $125,000 in damage as investigators work to determine the cause, officials said. Firefighters responded just after midnight on Tuesday, March 18, to the 11700 block of Cherry Hill Road near Plum Orchard Drive in Calverton, where they found the vacant building fully engulfed in flames, according to Montgomery County Fire & Rescue spokesperson Pete Piringer. Crews battled the fire for several hours before bringing it under control. Twitter/@mcfrsPIO While no injuries were reported, the s…

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by Zak Failla
News
Parents Of Missing Virginia Student Request Death Declaration From Dominican Authorities Parents Of Missing Virginia Student Request Death Declaration From Dominican Authorities
Parents Of Missing Virginia Student Request Death Declaration From Dominican Authorities The parents of missing Virginia college student Sudiksha Konanki are asking Dominican authorities to formally declare their daughter dead after an extensive international search yielded no signs of her, officials announced. Konanki, a 20-year-old University of Pittsburgh student from Loudoun County, vanished while on vacation in Punta Cana earlier this month. Despite an aggressive search effort involving the Dominican Republic National Police, FBI, and other agencies, she has not been found. The search for Sudiksha Konanki is ongoing in the Dominican Republic. Policía Nacional Repúb…

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Man Torched Semi-Trailer, Dumpster Intentionally In Loudoun County: Fire Marshal Man Torched Semi-Trailer, Dumpster Intentionally In Loudoun County: Fire Marshal
Man Torched Semi-Trailer, Dumpster Intentionally In Loudoun County: Fire Marshal A Virginia man is behind bars after authorities say he intentionally set a dumpster and semi-trailer on fire in Loudoun County earlier this year. Erazo Ricardo Guerrero, 21, of Sterling, was arrested on Saturday, March 15, in connection with the Jan. 13 blaze that broke out in the 20900 block of Davenport Drive, according to the Loudoun County Fire and Rescue Fire Marshal’s Office. First responders were called to the scene around 1:15 p.m. that afternoon, following reports of a vehicle fire. When fire crews arrived, they found a dumpster engulfed in flames and a smoldering fire at the back …

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
DNA Nails 82-Year-Old For Brutal 1979 Rape, Murder Of Virginia Woman In Maryland DNA Nails 82-Year-Old For Brutal 1979 Rape, Murder Of Virginia Woman In Maryland
DNA Nails 82-Year-Old For Brutal 1979 Rape, Murder Of Virginia Woman In Maryland After more than 45 years, the family of a Virginia woman who was raped and murdered in 1979 is finally getting answers after DNA evidence led to the arrest of an 82-year-old suspect, officials announced. Rodger Zodas Brown, of Pinehurst, North Carolina, has been charged with first-degree murder, rape, and other related offenses in connection with the brutal killing of 31-year-old Kathryn Donohue, of Arlington, according to the Prince George’s County Police Department. For decades, the case remained cold—until now. On March 3, 1979, a passerby found Donohue’s body in a parking lot in the 84…

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by Zak Failla
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