57°

Thursday, aug 28

Zak Failla

Assistant Managing Editor

zfailla@dailyvoice.com

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

News

Gunman Who Killed Golden Gloves Boxing Champion In Odenton Gets Life In Prison: Prosecutors The gunman who shot and killed rising Maryland boxer Oludayo Olugbemi will spend the rest of his life in prison. Nicholas Francis Giroux, 37, of Odenton, was sentenced to life in prison plus 20 years for the murder of the 27-year-old Olugbemi, who was killed last year in cold blood, according to the Anne Arundel County State's Attorney's Office. Specifically, Giroux pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and use of a firearm in a crime of violence in February for the apparently targeted shooting. Multiple residents in the neighborhood reported shots fired at approximately 9:4…

by Zak Failla

08/27/2025

News

Repeat Catonsville Sex Offender Back In Prison After Child Porn Bust Days After Release: Feds A convicted sex offender is heading back to prison after being busted — again — with child pornography in Maryland, federal authorities announced. Steven Christopher Kelban, 50, of Catonsville, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison after being caught with a torrent of child sexual abuse material just one week after registering his new address. According to his plea agreement, Kelban had just returned to Maryland from Alabama on Nov. 20, 2023, following previous convictions for child porn offenses. He registered the very next day as a sex offender, using a Baltimore County add…

by Zak Failla

08/27/2025

Police & Fire

Stolen Car Full Of Teens Slams Into DC Mom’s Vehicle, Killing Her In PG County Crash: Police A DC woman was killed and her child injured after a stolen car carrying juveniles slammed into her vehicle in a fatal Maryland crash, police said. On Tuesday, Aug. 26, at approximately 3:50 p.m., Seat Pleasant patrol officers spotted a vehicle reported stolen days earlier traveling in the area of Seat Pleasant Drive and Joplin Street, according to the Prince George’s County Police Department. Police said officers followed the car from a safe distance and did not engage in a pursuit. Moments later, the stolen vehicle sped off northbound on Sheriff Road, ran a red light at the intersec…

by Zak Failla

08/27/2025

Traffic

Harford County Deputy Crushed By Penske Truck In Chase; Suspect Nabbed In NY: Sheriff A 21-year-old man was arrested in New York a day after seriously injuring a veteran sheriff's deputy in Maryland during a wild chase, authorities announced. Yonkers resident Juan Yahir Quiroz Manzueta has been identified and arrested as the driver of a Penske box truck that struck and critically injured Lt. Rob Burgess, a 29-year member of the Harford County Sheriff's Office assigned to the Community Policing Division on Tuesday afternoon. On Wednesday, Aug. 27, the agency announced that Quiroz Manzueta has been charged with second-degree attempted murder, as well as other offense…

by Zak Failla

08/27/2025

Police & Fire

160+ MPH Driver Who Cost Montgomery County Sergeant His Legs In I-270 Crash Gets Max Sentence A Maryland man who drove more than 160 mph before intentionally striking a Montgomery County police sergeant — leaving him catastrophically injured — received the maximum possible sentence, authorities announced on Wednesday. Judge Harry Storm sentenced Raphael Mayorga, 21, of Frederick, to 22 years and 60 days in prison for the 2023 I-270 crash that left Sgt. Patrick Kepp without the use of his legs, according to the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office. Prosecutors said Mayorga was driving a Dodge Challenger in the early morning hours of Oct. 18, 2023, when officers attempted to st…

by Zak Failla

08/27/2025

Police & Fire

Firebug Drops Incendiary Device Near Fire Station, Strolls Off In Capitol Heights: PD (Video) Recognize him? A reward is being offered in Prince George's County as they attempt to identify and locate a man — in a very specific jacket — who placed an improvised incendiary device near a fire station in Capitol Heights. In video released by the police on Wednesday, Aug. 27, the man can be seen walking near Fire Station 805 placing two bottles of liquid under a flag pole, before then moving them closer to a mailbox on the property. Prince George's County Police The video can be viewed here. The PGPD, in conjunction with the Office of the Fire Marshal for @PrinceGeorges…

by Zak Failla

08/27/2025

Police & Fire

Emaciated Dog Dumped At Manassas Clinic ‘Humanely Euthanized,’ Police Say An animal cruelty investigation is underway in Virginia after a dog was found abandoned and near death outside a Manassas animal clinic, authorities said. On Monday, Aug. 25, at 10:49 a.m., Animal Control responded to the Battlefield Animal Clinic on Sudley Road after staff discovered a severely emaciated dog left in a cage at the side of the building, according to Prince William County Police. The dog, described as an adult tan-and-white pit bull/husky mix, was in poor health, officials said. Clinic staff provided immediate care until Animal Control arrived. From there, the dog was taken …

by Zak Failla

08/27/2025

Police & Fire

Virginia Inmate Dies Days After Hospitalization From Jail In Prince William County, Police Say Authorities are investigating the death of a 59-year-old woman who had been held at the Prince William–Manassas Regional Adult Detention Center in Manassas. On Wednesday, Aug. 27, at 1:20 a.m., officers responded to an area hospital after the inmate died while in care, according to Prince William County Police. The woman had been in custody since Aug. 18 and was transported to the hospital a week later on Aug. 25 after reporting pain from a possible medical condition. Police said, “the woman’s condition worsened while in the care at the hospital and she later died on Aug. 27. The death is …

by Zak Failla

08/27/2025

Obituaries

Maryland Teacher Brandie McCoy Dies Suddenly, Friends Plan Beachside Service: ‘Ray Of Sunshine’ Brandie McCoy is being remembered as a "shining light" who shone a bright light on her family, friends, and students before her unexpected passing in Maryland. The first-grade teacher at University Park Elementary School died without warning on Tuesday, Aug. 12, her family says. Now her loved ones are rallying to give her a proper beachside sendoff. "She was a devoted wife, loving mother, cherished friend, and a phenomenal (first)-grade teacher at University Park Elementary School," Brittany Brown-Brooks said about her former friend. "Brandie’s captivating personality, radiant smile, and j…

by Zak Failla

08/27/2025

News

Getaway Driver In Charles County Teen Murder Plot Learns His Fate In Court A La Plata man will spend a decade in prison for acting as the getaway driver in a murder plot that left a Maryland teenager dead, prosecutors announced. Charles County Circuit Court Judge Monise Stephenson sentenced Dalvin Devonte Risi, 27, to 10 years in prison for conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and wear, carry, and transport of a handgun in a vehicle, according to state's attorney's office. The charges stem from the Oct. 23, 2022, shooting of 17-year-old Aden Christopher Garcia in Waldorf. Police said Garcia was shot in the head during a botched drug transaction and died the ne…

by Zak Failla

08/27/2025

Prev Page 1 of 3467 1 2 3 4 5 Next

1 - 10 of 34,670 articles