Zak Failla

Assistant Managing Editor

[email protected]

FOLLOW ON

Facebook Twitter Linkedin Instagram

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

Arlington, VA
Breaking News
He Hunted Homeless Men On DC Streets, Set One Victim On Fire: Now A Jury Has Spoken He Hunted Homeless Men On DC Streets, Set One Victim On Fire: Now A Jury Has Spoken He Hunted Homeless Men On DC Streets, Set One Victim On Fire: Now A Jury Has Spoken
He Hunted Homeless Men On DC Streets, Set One Victim On Fire: Now A Jury Has Spoken A killer who hunted homeless men on the streets of DC has been convicted of murder and hate crimes. Gerald Brevard III, 35, of Washington, DC, was convicted by a jury on Tuesday, Oct. 27, for a series of brutal attacks that left one man dead and two others injured in March 2022. The attacks unfolded over six days, with Brevard targeting men living on the streets of Northeast DC, including one who was sleeping beneath a bridge and another who was lying in bed at his encampment. The violence began on March 3, 2022, when Brevard shot a homeless man who was asleep beneath a bridge on New York …

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Fredericksburg, VA
Your Community
$172.1M SALE: Massive Fredericksburg Warehouse Changes Hands As Data Center Boom Continues $172.1M SALE: Massive Fredericksburg Warehouse Changes Hands As Data Center Boom Continues $172.1M SALE: Massive Fredericksburg Warehouse Changes Hands As Data Center Boom Continues
$172.1M Sale: Massive Fredericksburg Warehouse Changes Hands As Data Center Boom Continues A massive Virginia warehouse built to support the booming data center industry has changed hands in a staggering $172.1 million deal, according to the real estate firm that arranged the sale. The nearly 1 million-square-foot facility, known as Capitol 95, is located at 211 Centreport Parkway in Fredericksburg and was purchased by an investment fund managed by Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing, according to JLL Capital Markets, which announced the transaction on Tuesday, Oct. 27. The sale puts a hefty price tag on a property that was only completed earlier this year, highlighting the grow…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Alexandria, VA
Breaking News
From Firehouse To Prison: Virginia Firefighter Gets Life For Vile Crimes Against Infant: DOJ From Firehouse To Prison: Virginia Firefighter Gets Life For Vile Crimes Against Infant: DOJ From Firehouse To Prison: Virginia Firefighter Gets Life For Vile Crimes Against Infant: DOJ
From Firehouse To Prison: Virginia Firefighter Gets Life For Vile Crimes Against Infant: DOJ A meth-using former firefighter in Virginia who filmed himself sexually abusing an infant and sharing it online will be trading bunker gear for a prison jumpsuit. For the rest of his life. Suffolk resident Alex Tyler Buenaga, now 33, a former Newport News firefighter, was sentenced to life in prison on Monday, Oct. 26, for producing child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and coercing a minor to engage in illegal sexual activity, according to federal authorities. Buenaga pleaded guilty earlier this year in connection with illicit videos that were distributed through an instant messaging app. A…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Silver Spring, MD
Breaking News
Silver Spring Man Beat Sleeping Brother-In-Law, 19, To Death, Dumped Body Behind Bus Stop Silver Spring Man Beat Sleeping Brother-In-Law, 19, To Death, Dumped Body Behind Bus Stop Silver Spring Man Beat Sleeping Brother-In-Law, 19, To Death, Dumped Body Behind Bus Stop
Silver Spring Man Beat Sleeping Brother-In-Law, 19, To Death, Dumped Body Behind Bus Stop A Maryland man who sent a chilling message about killing his teenage brother-in-law while he slept has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for beating him to death and dumping his body behind a bus stop. Abraham Luna Perez, 29, of Silver Spring, learned his fate on Tuesday, Oct. 27, nearly two years after the killing of 19-year-old Diego Edilberto Borja Cardona, whose body was found in a wooded area just down the hill from the apartment they shared. A Montgomery County jury convicted Luna Perez of voluntary manslaughter in August, a lesser offense than the first-degree murder charge he ini…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Herndon, VA
Obituaries
'He Never Came Back': Herndon Sister Seeks Help Bringing Dead Brother, 18, To El Salvador 'He Never Came Back': Herndon Sister Seeks Help Bringing Dead Brother, 18, To El Salvador 'He Never Came Back': Herndon Sister Seeks Help Bringing Dead Brother, 18, To El Salvador
'He Never Came Back': Herndon Sister Seeks Help Bringing Dead Brother, 18, To El Salvador A Virginia woman is hoping to bring her 18-year-old brother home to El Salvador for one final goodbye after learning he had been found dead. Jayb Javier Retana Castillo is remembered by his sister, Johana Robles Castillo, as a young man who loved his family and friends and had a bright future ahead of him. "He was a good guy ... He had a bright future ahead of himself," she said. "(He was) an independent person who loved his family and friends." The Herndon woman is asking for help covering the unexpected costs of his funeral and transporting his remains to El Salvador, where the family pl…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Waldorf, MD
Breaking News
120-MPH Chase From Virginia Into La Plata Turns Deadly: Teen Driver Learns Prison Fate 120-MPH Chase From Virginia Into La Plata Turns Deadly: Teen Driver Learns Prison Fate 120-MPH Chase From Virginia Into La Plata Turns Deadly: Teen Driver Learns Prison Fate
120-mph Chase From Virginia Into La Plata Turns Deadly: Teen Driver Learns Prison Fate A 19-year-old who killed a teenager in Southern Maryland while speeding during a police pursuit that began in Virginia will spend decades in prison for the murder of Baxter O'Henry Hubbard. Dominick Jermaine Hawkins, 19, was sentenced to 38 years in prison for felony murder and other offenses, with the possibility of spending the rest of his life behind bars if he violates probation following his release, according to the Charles County State's Attorney's Office. The sentence stems from a deadly pursuit on Dec. 3, 2024, that began after an armed robbery at a Sheetz convenience store in King…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Waldorf, MD
Breaking News
ICE In Waldorf? Maryland Sheriff Breaks Silence After Photos Circulate Online ICE In Waldorf? Maryland Sheriff Breaks Silence After Photos Circulate Online ICE In Waldorf? Maryland Sheriff Breaks Silence After Photos Circulate Online
ICE In Waldorf? Maryland Sheriff Breaks Silence After Photos Circulate Online After photographs of suspected ICE agents circulated online, authorities in Maryland confirmed federal immigration officers were operating in the area, but local deputies had no role in the operation. The Charles County Sheriff's Office acknowledged the federal operation in Waldorf following reports of ICE activity, including photographs purportedly showing agents gathered behind a HomeGoods store. "The Charles County Sheriff's Office is aware of information circulating in the community about ICE personnel in Waldorf," the agency said. "In response to these reports, we were able to confirm …

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Leonardtown-California, MD
Breaking News
Red-Light Violation Turns Into 16-Year Prison Term For Leonardtown Man Caught With Fentanyl Red-Light Violation Turns Into 16-Year Prison Term For Leonardtown Man Caught With Fentanyl Red-Light Violation Turns Into 16-Year Prison Term For Leonardtown Man Caught With Fentanyl
Red-Light Violation Turns Into 16-Year Prison Term For Leonardtown Man Caught With Fentanyl Running a red light proved costly for a Maryland man whose attempt to evade a traffic stop uncovered fentanyl and ultimately landed him 16 years behind bars. Lexington Park resident Jamal Kedrick Demetrius Davis, 30, received eight years of active prison time for the fentanyl conviction, but his legal troubles didn't end there, according to St. Mary's County State's Attorney Jaymi Sterling. The conviction also triggered probation violations in two previous cases, adding another eight years to his sentence after he pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl in August. T…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Hagerstown, MD
Breaking News
Maury Jackson, 60, ID'd As Man Fatally Shot By Hagerstown Police After Apartment Fire Maury Jackson, 60, ID'd As Man Fatally Shot By Hagerstown Police After Apartment Fire Maury Jackson, 60, ID'd As Man Fatally Shot By Hagerstown Police After Apartment Fire
Maury Jackson, 60, ID'd As Man Fatally Shot By Hagerstown Police After Apartment Fire A 60-year-old Maryland man who was fatally shot by police after firefighters encountered him inside a burning apartment building has been identified, along with the two officers involved in the deadly confrontation. Hagerstown resident Maury Jackson was killed on Friday, Oct. 23, following a confrontation with officers responding to an apartment fire on Randolph Avenue, according to an update from the Maryland Attorney General's Office on Tuesday. The officers involved were identified as Sgt. Thomas Wolfe, an 11-year veteran of the Hagerstown Police Department, and Officer Mason Kiessling, …

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Towson, MD
Your Community
Recognize Him? Baltimore Police Seek Family Of Boy Who May Be From PG County (DEVELOPING) Recognize Him? Baltimore Police Seek Family Of Boy Who May Be From PG County (DEVELOPING) Recognize Him? Baltimore Police Seek Family Of Boy Who May Be From PG County (DEVELOPING)
Recognize Him? Baltimore Police Seek Family Of Boy Who May Be From PG County (Developing) Police in Maryland are asking for the public's help identifying a teenage boy who was found by good Samaritans, as investigators work to locate his family or legal guardian. Officers in Baltimore were flagged down in the 1200 block of Orleans Street at approximately 9:15 a.m. on Monday, Oct. 26, after good Samaritans located the boy, according to the Baltimore Police Department. Investigators believe the boy's name is Elijah Banks and that he is 14 years old, though they have been unable to confirm his identity. Police said the boy may be neurodivergent, and officers have been unable to ob…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Prev Page 1 of 3963 1 2 3 4 5 Next
1 - 10 of 39,624 articles