Zak Failla

Assistant Managing Editor

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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

Leesburg, VA
Your Community
Meet The Man Who Helped Keep Leesburg Moving For The Past 26 Years Meet The Man Who Helped Keep Leesburg Moving For The Past 26 Years Meet The Man Who Helped Keep Leesburg Moving For The Past 26 Years
Meet The Man Who Helped Keep Leesburg Moving For The Past 26 Years If you've driven through Leesburg over the past quarter-century, chances are OJ Jackson had something to do with it. The longtime Virginia public works leader who spent 26 years helping keep the town's streets safe, clean and moving is calling it a career. Orland "OJ" Jackson officially retired Friday, July 31, after more than two decades with the Town of Leesburg's Public Works Department, where he served as Streets Superintendent. Jackson joined the town in February 2000 as Superintendent of Streets, Buildings and Grounds before transitioning to Streets Superintendent in 2006, a role he …

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by Zak Failla
Woodbridge, VA
Breaking News
Fake Cop Pulled Gun, Asked Driver For Ride Before Woodbridge Arrest: Police Fake Cop Pulled Gun, Asked Driver For Ride Before Woodbridge Arrest: Police Fake Cop Pulled Gun, Asked Driver For Ride Before Woodbridge Arrest: Police
Fake Cop Pulled Gun, Asked Driver For Ride Before Woodbridge Arrest: Police A Virginia man allegedly pulled out all the stops while role-playing as a police officer, but ultimately found himself on the wrong side of the law. James John Rastatter II, 35, of Woodbridge, is facing charges after police say he posed as a police officer while brandishing a handgun during two separate encounters in Woodbridge, according to the Prince William County Police Department. Investigators say the first encounter happened around 9 p.m. on Saturday, July 19, near Dale Boulevard and Forestdale Avenue. A 25-year-old man was driving when Rastatter allegedly approached his vehicle, di…

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by Zak Failla
Lexington Park, MD
Breaking News
75-Year-Old Dies After Being Flown To Burn Center Following Maryland House Fire 75-Year-Old Dies After Being Flown To Burn Center Following Maryland House Fire 75-Year-Old Dies After Being Flown To Burn Center Following Maryland House Fire
75-Year-Old Dies After Being Flown To Burn Center Following Maryland House Fire The 75-year-old man rescued from a burning row home in Salisbury on Thursday later died from his injuries after being flown to a Baltimore-area burn center, according to the Maryland Office of the State Fire Marshal. Firefighters were called around 12:35 p.m. to the 500 block of Tangier Street on July 30, where they found flames inside a one-story, five-unit masonry row home. Crews located the man inside the unit where the fire started, pulled him from the home, and rushed him to a local hospital before the Maryland State Police Aviation Command flew him to a specialized burn center. He la…

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by Zak Failla
Gaithersburg, MD
Breaking News
Body Of Missing Potomac River Swimmer Recovered After Multi-Day Maryland Search (UPDATED) Body Of Missing Potomac River Swimmer Recovered After Multi-Day Maryland Search (UPDATED) Body Of Missing Potomac River Swimmer Recovered After Multi-Day Maryland Search (UPDATED)
Body Of Missing Potomac River Swimmer Recovered After Multi-Day Maryland Search (Updated) A heartbreaking search on one of Maryland's most dangerous waterways has come to an end. The body of a missing swimmer was recovered Thursday morning, July 30, after a multi-day search in the Potomac River near Spotzbergen Rock, just south of Sandy Landing in Montgomery County. Montgomery County Fire and Rescue's Swift Water Rescue Team located the approximately 25-year-old man around 11:30 a.m., finding him below the surface not far from where he disappeared Tuesday afternoon. Crews used sonar and underwater camera imagery to pinpoint the man's location before recovering his body from the…

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by Zak Failla
Woodbridge, VA
Breaking News
Woodbridge Man's Indecent Encounter With Two Young Boys Ends In Arrest: Police Woodbridge Man's Indecent Encounter With Two Young Boys Ends In Arrest: Police Woodbridge Man's Indecent Encounter With Two Young Boys Ends In Arrest: Police
Woodbridge Man's Indecent Encounter With Two Young Boys Ends In Arrest: Police A 36-year-old gave two young boys quite a show outside their Virginia apartment during a midday exposure incident, police say. Woodbridge resident Kevin Ernesto Marchante is behind bars following a brief investigation after he allegedly terrorized children outside a Dumfries apartment building. According to the Prince William County Police Department, shortly after 5 p.m. on Tuesday, July 28, officers were called to the Broadstone Apartments in the 3100 block of Chesapeake Drive in Dumfries, where there was a reported indecent exposure. Investigators say that Marchante approached two boys,…

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by Zak Failla
Manassas, VA
Breaking News
Motorcyclist Dies After Slamming Into Back Of Dump Truck On Virginia Parkway (DEVELOPING) Motorcyclist Dies After Slamming Into Back Of Dump Truck On Virginia Parkway (DEVELOPING) Motorcyclist Dies After Slamming Into Back Of Dump Truck On Virginia Parkway (DEVELOPING)
Motorcyclist Dies After Slamming Into Back Of Dump Truck On Virginia Parkway (Developing) A Virginia motorcyclist was killed after crashing into the back of a dump truck on Prince William Parkway in Manassas late Tuesday night, police said. The fatal wreck happened around 9:41 p.m. on July 29 near the intersection of Prince William Parkway and Nokesville Road, according to the Prince William County Police Department. Investigators say 37-year-old Alberto Aviles, of Nokesville, was riding a 2011 Suzuki GSX-R750 eastbound in the center lane when he approached a 2008 Kenworth dump truck traveling in the same direction. Police said Aviles was traveling at a high rate of speed when …

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by Zak Failla
Clear Spring-Hancock, MD
Breaking News
Threat To Burn Down Hancock Home Became Reality: Fire Marshal Threat To Burn Down Hancock Home Became Reality: Fire Marshal Threat To Burn Down Hancock Home Became Reality: Fire Marshal
Threat To Burn Down Hancock Home Became Reality: Fire Marshal Joseph Brian Potter said he was going to burn the house down. Authorities say he actually went through with it. The 40-year-old Hancock man was arrested following an investigation into an intentionally set house fire in Washington County on Wednesday night, according to the Maryland Fire Marshal. Crews from the Hancock Volunteer Fire Company and several surrounding agencies were called around 6 p.m. on July 29 to a reported house fire in the 12500 block of Seavolt Road in Hancock. Investigators say that Potter threatened to set the residence on fire before the blaze was reported. Based on …

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by Zak Failla
Arlington, VA
Breaking News
Teen Golfers Drop Their Clubs, Dive Into Lake To Save Struggling Family In Virginia Teen Golfers Drop Their Clubs, Dive Into Lake To Save Struggling Family In Virginia Teen Golfers Drop Their Clubs, Dive Into Lake To Save Struggling Family In Virginia
Teen Golfers Drop Their Clubs, Dive Into Lake To Save Struggling Family In Virginia A group of teen golfers is being hailed as heroes after jumping into action to rescue several capsized boaters struggling in Lake Culpeper. Neither difficult conditions nor tricky terrain could stop Andrew Tuggle, 15, Jackson Castro, 17, and Gavin Cain, 17, members of the Eastern View High School golf team, who took a detour from their round to make a bold rescue. According to the Culpeper County Police Department, shortly after 3:30 p.m. on Monday, July 27, the three teens were on the adjacent Culpeper Country Club course for team tryouts when they spotted the capsized kayak. While t…

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by Zak Failla
Woodbridge, VA
Breaking News
Suspect Who Fled After Fatal Teen Shooting Tracked To Woodbridge Home, Police Say Suspect Who Fled After Fatal Teen Shooting Tracked To Woodbridge Home, Police Say Suspect Who Fled After Fatal Teen Shooting Tracked To Woodbridge Home, Police Say
Suspect Who Fled After Fatal Teen Shooting Tracked To Woodbridge Home, Police Say He disappeared after leading officers on a pursuit. Twenty-five days later, investigators found him. The man accused of killing a 16-year-old in Woodbridge before ditching his car and disappearing on foot after a police chase is now behind bars. Prince William County detectives, working with the US Marshals Service, arrested 25-year-old Damon Jamon Atwater at his Woodbridge home on Thursday, July 30. His disappearance had been the biggest unanswered question since the July 5 killing. Investigators said the shooting happened around 10:12 p.m. in the 16700 block of Blackjack Oak Lane, …

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by Zak Failla
Fairfax, VA
Breaking News
FBI Won't Give Up On 6-Year-Old Killed Playing Games In Virginia Bedroom FBI Won't Give Up On 6-Year-Old Killed Playing Games In Virginia Bedroom FBI Won't Give Up On 6-Year-Old Killed Playing Games In Virginia Bedroom
FBI Won't Give Up On 6-Year-Old Killed Playing Games In Virginia Bedroom Justice still hasn't caught up to whoever killed Kingston Campbell. In Virginia, more than three years after the 6-year-old was fatally shot while playing video games in his bedroom in Lynchburg, the FBI is making a renewed push to solve the case, offering up to $30,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible. Kingston Campbell was killed while playing video games in his bed. Lynchburg PD/GoFundMe photo Kingston was home on the evening of May 2, 2023, when multiple people believed to be involved in local gang violence opened fire in the area of the …

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by Zak Failla
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