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

Suitland, MD
Breaking News
‘Anything You Wanna Say Last?’ Suitland Man Texted Owner Before Husky Was Shot Dead: Feds ‘Anything You Wanna Say Last?’ Suitland Man Texted Owner Before Husky Was Shot Dead: Feds ‘Anything You Wanna Say Last?’ Suitland Man Texted Owner Before Husky Was Shot Dead: Feds
‘Anything You Wanna Say Last?’ Suitland Man Texted Owner Before Husky Was Shot Dead: Feds The dog was supposed to come home. Instead, a stolen Siberian Husky was allegedly used as leverage in a dispute over a vehicle before being driven into a DC alley and shot in the head, federal prosecutors say. The killing was the final act of an alleged plot involving two Suitland residents and a DC man who are now facing federal charges after prosecutors say they threatened the dog's owner and tried to force him to turn over a vehicle. It began on July 8, when a dispute broke out between Tierra Love, 38, and the dog's owner over Love's use of the vehicle, according to the indictment. Pro…

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by Zak Failla
Brandywine, MD
Breaking News
WATCH: Wanted Passenger Shoves Deputy, Takes Wheel Before Fatal 5-Mile Chase Ends In Brandywine WATCH: Wanted Passenger Shoves Deputy, Takes Wheel Before Fatal 5-Mile Chase Ends In Brandywine WATCH: Wanted Passenger Shoves Deputy, Takes Wheel Before Fatal 5-Mile Chase Ends In Brandywine
Watch: Wanted Passenger Shoves Deputy, Takes Wheel Before Fatal 5-Mile Chase Ends In Brandywine A wanted passenger made her move the moment the driver's seat opened up during a traffic stop in Maryland. Newly released video shows the woman climbing across the center console of a stopped Toyota in Charles County, shoving a sheriff's officer away from the open driver's door and taking off with another passenger still in the back seat. Five miles later, that passenger was gravely injured in a wrong-way crash that ultimately claimed her life. The dramatic sequence unfolded shortly after 10:20 a.m. on Aug. 25 near Leonardtown Road and Lakewood Drive in Waldorf, where Charles County Sherif…

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by Zak Failla
Suitland, MD
Breaking News
‘Little Voice’ That Told Maryland Man To Turn Around At Suitland Wawa Lands Him $50K Jackpot ‘Little Voice’ That Told Maryland Man To Turn Around At Suitland Wawa Lands Him $50K Jackpot ‘Little Voice’ That Told Maryland Man To Turn Around At Suitland Wawa Lands Him $50K Jackpot
‘Little Voice’ That Told Maryland Man To Turn Around At Suitland Wawa Lands Him $50K Jackpot Sometimes, it pays to listen to that little voice in your head. For one Maryland man, it paid $50,000. The Charles County electrician had lunch in hand and was already leaving a Wawa in Suitland when something kept nagging at him: Go back. He had no particular reason to. He'd already bought his Pick 5 tickets that morning. He was hungry. Lunch was getting cold. There was a job site to get back to. But there was also one set of numbers he hadn't played. That was enough. “I couldn’t stop thinking about it, because there was one of my favorite combinations that I didn’t play,” the longtim…

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by Zak Failla
Sterling, VA
Breaking News
US Park Police Officer Injured In Crash That Shut Down Route 50 In Loudoun County (UPDATED) US Park Police Officer Injured In Crash That Shut Down Route 50 In Loudoun County (UPDATED) US Park Police Officer Injured In Crash That Shut Down Route 50 In Loudoun County (UPDATED)
US Park Police Officer Injured In Crash That Shut Down Route 50 In Loudoun County (Updated) A US Park Police officer was seriously injured in the crash that shut down a major Virginia highway in both directions for hours on Wednesday afternoon. The on-duty officer was involved in a collision with another vehicle at approximately 1:43 p.m. on Sept. 23 at Route 50 and Loudoun County Parkway in Loudoun County, according to the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office. The officer suffered serious injuries and was taken to a local hospital for treatment. The occupants of the other vehicle were not injured and were released from the scene, investigators said. The crash brought traffic to a st…

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by Zak Failla
Temple Hills-Camp Springs, MD
Breaking News
Temple Hills Father Charged With Murder In Blunt Force Trauma Death Of 13-Month-Old Son: Police Temple Hills Father Charged With Murder In Blunt Force Trauma Death Of 13-Month-Old Son: Police Temple Hills Father Charged With Murder In Blunt Force Trauma Death Of 13-Month-Old Son: Police
Temple Hills Father Charged With Murder In Blunt Force Trauma Death Of 13-Month-Old Son: Police A Maryland father is facing charges after his 13-month-old child died from traumatic injuries, authorities announced. Temple Hills resident Alwin Strachan, 26, has been charged with murder in connection with the death of his toddler son Kylo Strachan last week, according to the Prince George's County Police Department. At around 11:15 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 18, officers were called to the Strachan home in the 3200 block of Curtis Drive, where they found the child unresponsive and not breathing. Kylo Strachan was treated by first responders and rushed to an area hospital, where he …

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by Zak Failla
Annapolis, MD
Breaking News
Man Stabbed Inside Car Runs To Annapolis Home For Help; Suspect Arrested: Police Man Stabbed Inside Car Runs To Annapolis Home For Help; Suspect Arrested: Police Man Stabbed Inside Car Runs To Annapolis Home For Help; Suspect Arrested: Police
Man Stabbed Inside Car Runs To Annapolis Home For Help; Suspect Arrested: Police The 26-year-old man accused of turning on someone he knew inside a vehicle in Maryland has been tracked down. Annapolis resident Carlos Daniel Mancia Pleitez was arrested on Tuesday afternoon, three days after a stabbing that sent another man to the hospital with serious injuries, according to the Anne Arundel County Police Department. The attack was reported shortly after 9 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 19, in the 900 block of Epping Forest Road in Annapolis. The victim was sitting in a vehicle with another man when he was stabbed, police said. The alleged attacker then took off on foot, l…

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by Zak Failla
Arlington, VA
Breaking News
Bicyclist Runs Red Light, Collides With Capitol Bikeshare Rider Who Dies Weeks Later In DC: MPD Bicyclist Runs Red Light, Collides With Capitol Bikeshare Rider Who Dies Weeks Later In DC: MPD Bicyclist Runs Red Light, Collides With Capitol Bikeshare Rider Who Dies Weeks Later In DC: MPD
Bicyclist Runs Red Light, Collides With Capitol Bikeshare Rider Who Dies Weeks Later In DC: MPD A DC bike ride turned deadly after two cyclists entered the same intersection with very different signals. The crash happened at approximately 3:24 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 29, at 15th and M streets NW, where two bicyclists collided in the intersection, according to the Metropolitan Police Department. Investigators say a bicyclist on a fixed-gear bike was heading west in the 1400 block of M Street when the rider went through a solid red light and entered the intersection. At the same time, 59-year-old David Watts, of Northwest DC, was riding a Capitol Bikeshare electric bicycle south through…

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by Zak Failla
Fairfax, VA
Breaking News
Passenger Wounded By Gunfire Striking SUV On I-66 In Fairfax: State Police (DEVELOPING) Passenger Wounded By Gunfire Striking SUV On I-66 In Fairfax: State Police (DEVELOPING) Passenger Wounded By Gunfire Striking SUV On I-66 In Fairfax: State Police (DEVELOPING)
Passenger Wounded By Gunfire Striking SUV On I-66 In Fairfax: State Police (Developing) A passenger was wounded when gunfire struck an SUV traveling along a busy Virginia interstate, state police said. The shooting was reported at approximately 8:15 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 22, along I-66 eastbound near the Nutley Street interchange in Fairfax County. According to Virginia State Police, a Toyota RAV4 was traveling east when the four people inside heard a loud bang and a passenger in the back reported being injured. The passenger was taken to an area hospital with injuries that were not considered life-threatening. Troopers later found a gunshot impact in the left rear window o…

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by Zak Failla
Taneytown-Union Bridge, MD
Breaking News
Twisted Tea Thief Smashes Into Taneytown Sunoco With Crocs ‘In Sports Mode’: Police (VIDEO) Twisted Tea Thief Smashes Into Taneytown Sunoco With Crocs ‘In Sports Mode’: Police (VIDEO) Twisted Tea Thief Smashes Into Taneytown Sunoco With Crocs ‘In Sports Mode’: Police (VIDEO)
Twisted Tea Thief Smashes Into Taneytown Sunoco With Crocs ‘In Sports Mode’: Police (Video) A Maryland man put the "twisted" in Twisted Tea during a bizarre gas station burglary. The Taneytown Police Department released surveillance video of a thirsty suspect who was caught on camera breaking through the glass front door of Sunoco before grabbing two cases of hard iced tea and fleeing. Investigators say that shortly before midnight on Monday, Sept. 21, an unknown man busted into the gas station on East Baltimore Street and darted directly to the back corner of the convenience store to pick up his drink of choice. He then immediately reversed course and took off on foot east to…

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by Zak Failla
Manassas, VA
Breaking News
Who Needs A Runway? Manassas Company Puts Airplane Through Unusual Flight Tests Who Needs A Runway? Manassas Company Puts Airplane Through Unusual Flight Tests Who Needs A Runway? Manassas Company Puts Airplane Through Unusual Flight Tests
Who Needs A Runway? Manassas Company Puts Airplane Through Unusual Flight Tests A Virginia aviation company just taught an airplane a few helicopter tricks. Manassas-based Electra completed a series of unusual test flights across Virginia this month, putting its hybrid-electric EL2 "Ultra Short" aircraft down in places normally reserved for helicopters rather than traditional fixed-wing planes. That meant skipping the runway. During the tests, the aircraft took off and landed from heliports, vertiports, taxiways and other small spaces at sites in Roanoke, Blacksburg, Blackstone, Richmond and Newport News, according to Electra. At Roanoke-Blacksburg Regional Airport, …

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by Zak Failla
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