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

La Plata, MD
Breaking News
La Plata Commercial Building Fire Traced To Lithium-Ion Batteries (PHOTOS) La Plata Commercial Building Fire Traced To Lithium-Ion Batteries (PHOTOS) La Plata Commercial Building Fire Traced To Lithium-Ion Batteries (PHOTOS)
La Plata Commercial Building Fire Traced To Lithium-Ion Batteries (Photos) A fire sparked by lithium-ion batteries tore through part of a commercial building in Maryland on Monday night before firefighters knocked it down in minutes, preventing what could have been a much larger disaster. Volunteer firefighters were dispatched shortly after 9 p.m. on July 13, to the 4000 block of Ray Drive in La Plata after flames were reported shooting from the roof of a commercial building, according to the Charles County Volunteer Fire & EMS Department. Crews arrived to find fire burning in the rear of the building and immediately launched an aggressive interior attack as a…

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by Zak Failla
Montgomery Village, MD
Breaking News
Maryland Man Killed In Gaithersburg Police Shooting Identified As AG Probe Continues (UPDATED) Maryland Man Killed In Gaithersburg Police Shooting Identified As AG Probe Continues (UPDATED) Maryland Man Killed In Gaithersburg Police Shooting Identified As AG Probe Continues (UPDATED)
Maryland Man Killed In Gaithersburg Police Shooting Identified As AG Probe Continues (Updated) What started as a report of an armed man at a Maryland bus stop ended with a Rockville man's death after a lengthy encounter with police. The man killed in Sunday's police shooting in Montgomery County has been identified as 46-year-old Elliott Powers, as the Maryland Attorney General's Office released new details about the fatal confrontation in Gaithersburg. The shooting happened around 6:45 p.m. on Sunday, July 12, at a bus stop in the 9600 block of Lost Knife Road, where Montgomery County and Gaithersburg police officers responded to reports of a man with what appeared to be a handgun. …

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by Zak Failla
Lexington Park, MD
Breaking News
See What's Left Of A 60-Foot Boat After Massive Maryland Marina Fire (PHOTOS) See What's Left Of A 60-Foot Boat After Massive Maryland Marina Fire (PHOTOS) See What's Left Of A 60-Foot Boat After Massive Maryland Marina Fire (PHOTOS)
See What's Left Of A 60-Foot Boat After Massive Maryland Marina Fire (Photos) If you were anywhere near Kent Island Monday afternoon, you probably saw the smoke before you knew where it was coming from. A towering column of thick black smoke rose over Maryland's Eastern Shore after a 60-foot boat caught fire at a marina, filling the sky above Grasonville and drawing firefighters from across the area. The fire broke out shortly after 4 p.m. on July 13, at Safe Harbor Narrows Point Marina, where crews arrived to find the vessel already engulfed. The boat fire in Maryland. Kent Island Volunteer Fire Department Photos from the scene show flames tearing through t…

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by Zak Failla
Manassas, VA
Breaking News
Man Groped Woman, Then Showed Her Obscene Material Inside Manassas Walmart: Police Man Groped Woman, Then Showed Her Obscene Material Inside Manassas Walmart: Police Man Groped Woman, Then Showed Her Obscene Material Inside Manassas Walmart: Police
Man Groped Woman, Then Showed Her Obscene Material Inside Manassas Walmart: Police A routine shopping trip took a disturbing turn inside a Virginia Walmart. Prince William County police are searching for a man accused of sexually assaulting a woman inside the Manassas store before pulling out his phone and showing her obscene material during the encounter. The investigation stems from an incident reported to have happened around 6:30 p.m. Friday, July 11, at the Walmart on Liberia Avenue. Police said the victim, a 51-year-old woman, was shopping when she was approached by an unknown man. During the encounter, investigators allege the man inappropriately touched the woma…

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by Zak Failla
Fredericksburg, VA
Breaking News
Pilot Killed After Plane Crashes Near Shannon Airport In Virginia Identified (UPDATED) Pilot Killed After Plane Crashes Near Shannon Airport In Virginia Identified (UPDATED) Pilot Killed After Plane Crashes Near Shannon Airport In Virginia Identified (UPDATED)
Pilot Killed After Plane Crashes Near Shannon Airport In Virginia Identified (Updated) A routine morning flight ended in tragedy in Virginia. State police have identified the pilot killed when a single-engine plane crashed near Shannon Airport in Spotsylvania County late Tuesday morning. The crash happened around 11:05 a.m. Tuesday, July 14, near the airport off Tidewater Trail, where emergency crews flooded the area and authorities urged motorists to avoid the scene as first responders worked. The scene of the crash in Fredericksburg. Virginia State Police Virginia State Police said Rowland A. Babcock Jr., 78, of Ruther Glen, was the only person aboard the aircraft.…

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by Zak Failla
Alexandria, VA
Breaking News
Virginia Boy Airlifted After Tree Branch Shatters Skull, Breaks Spine During Backyard Play Virginia Boy Airlifted After Tree Branch Shatters Skull, Breaks Spine During Backyard Play Virginia Boy Airlifted After Tree Branch Shatters Skull, Breaks Spine During Backyard Play
Virginia Boy Airlifted After Tree Branch Shatters Skull, Breaks Spine During Backyard Play He wasn't climbing the tree. He was just playing beneath it. That's when a massive tree branch came crashing down, striking 5-year-old Declan Amburgey in the head and turning an ordinary afternoon in his Virginia backyard into a fight for recovery. The accident happened on Wednesday, July 8, when the force of the falling branch left Declan unconscious and unresponsive, according to a fundraiser launched on behalf of his family. His mother, Michelle, called 911. Within minutes, Declan was airlifted to a trauma center. Doctors discovered two skull fractures, a severe hematoma, compression …

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by Zak Failla
Reisterstown, MD
Breaking News
Driver Left Deadly Baltimore Crash, Then Returned Minutes Later: Police Driver Left Deadly Baltimore Crash, Then Returned Minutes Later: Police Driver Left Deadly Baltimore Crash, Then Returned Minutes Later: Police
Driver Left Deadly Baltimore Crash, Then Returned Minutes Later: Police A Maryland pedestrian was struck and killed while attempting to cross Liberty Road in Baltimore County early Tuesday morning, and police say the driver initially left the scene before returning a short time later. The crash happened around 4:45 a.m. on July 14 near the intersection of Liberty and Old Court roads. When officers arrived, they found 60-year-old John Bates Sr. suffering from life-threatening injuries. Bates was flown to an area hospital, where he later died, according to Baltimore County Police. A preliminary investigation determined Bates was attempting to cross Liberty Road…

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by Zak Failla
Haymarket, VA
Breaking News
Man's Crime Spree Took A Detour To Steal A Fire Department T-Shirt In Haymarket: Police Man's Crime Spree Took A Detour To Steal A Fire Department T-Shirt In Haymarket: Police Man's Crime Spree Took A Detour To Steal A Fire Department T-Shirt In Haymarket: Police
Man's Crime Spree Took A Detour To Steal A Fire Department T-Shirt In Haymarket: Police A Virginia man is accused of bouncing between homes and a fire station during a bizarre series of alleged crimes in Prince William County that ended only after deputies in another jurisdiction caught up with him. The investigation began around 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, July 11, when Prince William County police were called to the 2600 block of Logmill Road in Haymarket for a report of a suspicious person. Investigators say Matthew Dean Ledbetter, 22, of Springfield, arrived in a stolen vehicle and first tried to break into a home before rummaging through an unoccupied vehicle parked outside. …

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by Zak Failla
Elkton, MD
Breaking News
5 Kilos Of Cocaine Hidden Across Homes, Storage Unit Before Cecil County Drug Bust: Police 5 Kilos Of Cocaine Hidden Across Homes, Storage Unit Before Cecil County Drug Bust: Police 5 Kilos Of Cocaine Hidden Across Homes, Storage Unit Before Cecil County Drug Bust: Police
5 Kilos Of Cocaine Hidden Across Homes, Storage Unit Before Cecil County Drug Bust: Police A months-long investigation in Maryland ended with two Cecil County men behind bars after authorities say they uncovered a cocaine trafficking operation stretching across state lines and seized five kilograms of cocaine, methamphetamine, and a handgun. Kevin Purnell Johnson, 42, and Tony Alexander Griffin, 41, were arrested on Friday, July 10, following a coordinated operation led by the Maryland State Police Criminal Enforcement Division. The investigation began in March when members of the Maryland State Police Strategic Operations Group-North and the Elkton Police Department's Street Lev…

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by Zak Failla
Fairfax, VA
Breaking News
Fairfax Parents Paid Thousands For Italy Soccer Dream That Never Existed, Police Say Fairfax Parents Paid Thousands For Italy Soccer Dream That Never Existed, Police Say Fairfax Parents Paid Thousands For Italy Soccer Dream That Never Existed, Police Say
Fairfax Parents Paid Thousands For Italy Soccer Dream That Never Existed, Police Say The dream trip never left the ground. Fairfax County detectives say a local soccer coach scammed families out of nearly $60,000 by promising international summer camps in Italy that never existed. Ahmed Mohamed, 31, of Fairfax, is accused of targeting parents through his work with the Alexandria Soccer Association before collecting thousands of dollars for bogus travel packages, according to the Fairfax County Police Department. The investigation began on June 25 after detectives received a complaint through the department's Financial Crimes Online Reporting (FiCOR) system. As investigato…

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by Zak Failla
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