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

Frederick, MD
Breaking News
Deported Woman Slips Back Into Frederick, Pleads Guilty After Brutal Knife Attack: Feds Deported Woman Slips Back Into Frederick, Pleads Guilty After Brutal Knife Attack: Feds Deported Woman Slips Back Into Frederick, Pleads Guilty After Brutal Knife Attack: Feds
Deported Woman Slips Back Into Frederick, Pleads Guilty After Brutal Knife Attack: Feds A woman who was deported from the United States, slipped back into Maryland, and was later accused of a brutal knife attack has now pleaded guilty in federal court. The case came to light in Frederick, where authorities say Vanessa Yalixa Munoz-Baque, 31, was living after illegally re-entering the country, and before she was arrested in a violent attempted murder case. Federal prosecutors say Munoz-Baque had already been removed from the US in August 2023. But that wasn't the end of it. She illegally re-entered the country again on November 3, 2023, then began residing in Frederick, accor…

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by Zak Failla
Towson, MD
Your Community
'Hell On Wheels' Truck Playing Dying Pigs’ Screams Rolling Into Baltimore Outside Camden Yards 'Hell On Wheels' Truck Playing Dying Pigs’ Screams Rolling Into Baltimore Outside Camden Yards 'Hell On Wheels' Truck Playing Dying Pigs’ Screams Rolling Into Baltimore Outside Camden Yards
'Hell On Wheels' Truck Playing Dying Pigs’ Screams Rolling Into Baltimore Outside Camden Yards A truck full of pigs is about to roll into Maryland — but it’s what people will hear, not see, that’s meant to stop them in their tracks. The controversial exhibit is heading to Baltimore, where PETA plans to park its so-called “Hell on Wheels” pig truck outside one of the city’s busiest destinations. The display is scheduled for Sunday, March 29, at 1 p.m., outside Oriole Park at Camden Yards on West Camden Street during the first weekend of the new MLB season. From the outside, it looks like a livestock truck packed with pigs. But the experience goes further. Hidden speakers play recor…

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by Zak Failla
Towson, MD
Breaking News
39-Foot Granite Statue To Crawl Across Maryland Overnight From Baltimore To Ijamsville: MDOT 39-Foot Granite Statue To Crawl Across Maryland Overnight From Baltimore To Ijamsville: MDOT 39-Foot Granite Statue To Crawl Across Maryland Overnight From Baltimore To Ijamsville: MDOT
39-Foot Granite Statue To Crawl Across Maryland Overnight From Baltimore To Ijamsville: Mdot A massive, slow-moving convoy is about to roll through Maryland — carrying something you definitely don’t see every day. The unusual transport begins in Baltimore, where a 39-foot solid granite Hindu statue will be hauled across the region on a 152-foot-long vehicle during an overnight move. The journey kicks off at 8 p.m. Thursday, March 26, with the oversized load creeping out of the city and heading toward a staging area near Finksburg by around 6 a.m. Friday morning. And this thing won’t be flying down the highway. The convoy is expected to move at a top speed of just 35 mph, making f…

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by Zak Failla
Arbutus-Halethorpe, MD
Breaking News
Halethorpe Man In ‘764’ Network Forced Girls To Cut Themselves, Write In Blood, Feds Say Halethorpe Man In ‘764’ Network Forced Girls To Cut Themselves, Write In Blood, Feds Say Halethorpe Man In ‘764’ Network Forced Girls To Cut Themselves, Write In Blood, Feds Say
Halethorpe Man In ‘764’ Network Forced Girls To Cut Themselves, Write In Blood, Feds Say A Maryland man tied to a violent extremist network admitted in federal court that he sexually exploited multiple underage victims in a disturbing online scheme that spanned the globe. Halethorpe native Erik Lee Madison, 20, pleaded guilty this week to sexually exploiting and child and cyberstalking after preying on nearly a dozen young girls over the course of a year, authorities announced. Madison used the internet between November 2024 and November 2025 to manipulate and control vulnerable teens, forcing them into acts of abuse, self-harm, and humiliation as part of his role in the extrem…

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by Zak Failla
Fairfax, VA
Breaking News
Stolen Car, High-Speed Crash Leaves Man Dead In Hybla Valley, Teen Charged Years Later: Police Stolen Car, High-Speed Crash Leaves Man Dead In Hybla Valley, Teen Charged Years Later: Police Stolen Car, High-Speed Crash Leaves Man Dead In Hybla Valley, Teen Charged Years Later: Police
Stolen Car, High-Speed Crash Leaves Man Dead In Hybla Valley, Teen Charged Years Later: Police More than a year after a stolen car tore through a Northern Virginia neighborhood and left a 63-year-old man dead, detectives say they’ve finally tracked down the teen who was behind the wheel. A 16-year-old is now charged with manslaughter, felony hit and run, and receiving stolen property following the crash on Janna Lee Avenue, Fairfax County police announced on Thursday. The case dates back to early Sunday morning, March 10, 2024, when officers were searching for a Hyundai Sonata stolen hours earlier out of the 7900 block of Sausalito Place. Police spotted the car near Buckman Road jus…

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by Zak Failla
Towson, MD
Breaking News
Thousands Of Capsules, Kilos Of Fentanyl: Massive Drug Bust Uncovered In Baltimore, Police Say Thousands Of Capsules, Kilos Of Fentanyl: Massive Drug Bust Uncovered In Baltimore, Police Say Thousands Of Capsules, Kilos Of Fentanyl: Massive Drug Bust Uncovered In Baltimore, Police Say
Thousands Of Capsules, Kilos Of Fentanyl: Massive Drug Bust Uncovered In Baltimore, Police Say A massive drug stash — thousands of capsules, kilos of fentanyl, and piles of packaged narcotics — was pulled off the streets in Maryland after a month-long investigation, authorities announced. The takedown happened in Baltimore, where police say a coordinated operation uncovered a large-scale drug distribution setup inside a city home. Detectives executed a search warrant on Thursday, March 19, at a residence in the 1800 block of McHenry Street, according to the Baltimore Police Department. What they found filled tables. Photos released by police show rows of capsules, tightly packed ba…

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by Zak Failla
Upper Marlboro, MD
On Your Side
High Fives And Handshakes After Upper Marlboro Man Wins $1M On Second-Choice Ticket High Fives And Handshakes After Upper Marlboro Man Wins $1M On Second-Choice Ticket High Fives And Handshakes After Upper Marlboro Man Wins $1M On Second-Choice Ticket
High Fives And Handshakes After Upper Marlboro Man Wins $1M On Second-Choice Ticket A Maryland man went to buy one lottery ticket — didn’t get it — and walked out a millionaire anyway. The lucky twist happened in Prince George’s County, where an Upper Marlboro resident stopped for tickets a day earlier than usual and wound up making a life-changing decision. The visit came on Sunday, March 22, when the man broke from his usual Monday routine and decided to grab his tickets early after an appointment, according to Maryland Lottery officials. But things didn’t go as planned. “It wasn’t even the ticket I wanted,” the winner said. He had his sights set on a $30 scratch-off …

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by Zak Failla
Gaithersburg, MD
Breaking News
Gaithersburg Fire Destroys Home Of Mom With Special Needs Child As Community Steps Up Gaithersburg Fire Destroys Home Of Mom With Special Needs Child As Community Steps Up Gaithersburg Fire Destroys Home Of Mom With Special Needs Child As Community Steps Up
Gaithersburg Fire Destroys Home Of Mom With Special Needs Child As Community Steps Up Flames tore through a Maryland townhouse block, sending smoke into the sky and dozens of firefighters rushing in — but for one family, the real devastation came after the fire was out. The blaze broke out in Gaithersburg when a two-alarm fire ripped through homes along the 19500 block of Taverney Drive on Monday evening, March 23, according to Montgomery County Fire and Rescue officials. Crews were dispatched around 6:15 p.m. to reports of heavy fire on a rear deck that quickly spread inside and into neighboring homes. 19500blk Taverney Drive(Gaithersburg)- townhouse fire caused da…

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by Zak Failla
Alexandria, VA
Breaking News
Chase Ends In Alexandria Crash After Officer Struck, Leaves Three Injured: State Police Chase Ends In Alexandria Crash After Officer Struck, Leaves Three Injured: State Police Chase Ends In Alexandria Crash After Officer Struck, Leaves Three Injured: State Police
Chase Ends In Alexandria Crash After Officer Struck, Leaves Three Injured: State Police A white Range Rover tore through DC, Maryland, and Virginia overnight, leaving a trail of wreckage, injured officers, and a hospitalized driver in its wake. On Wednesday, March 25, an officer from the Metropolitan Police Department attempted to stop Titus Z. Mayo, 22, in his Range Rover, though he refused to stop, according to Virginia State Police. Mayo proceeded to strike an officer with the vehicle who was on foot at the time, then sped away into Maryland. Shortly after 3:30 a.m. on Thursday, March 26, officers in Prince George's County located and attempted to stop the Winterville, Nor…

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by Zak Failla
Manassas, VA
Breaking News
‘Mayday’ For One Of Their Own: Virginia Firefighter, Dad Of 3 Diagnosed With ALS ‘Mayday’ For One Of Their Own: Virginia Firefighter, Dad Of 3 Diagnosed With ALS ‘Mayday’ For One Of Their Own: Virginia Firefighter, Dad Of 3 Diagnosed With ALS
‘Mayday’ For One Of Their Own: Virginia Firefighter, Dad Of 3 Diagnosed With ALS A firefighter who spent nearly two decades running toward danger is now the one in need — and his community is answering the call. Justin Laidler, a Northern Virginia firefighter, fire marshal, husband, and father of three, has been diagnosed with ALS after months of unexplained pain that quickly turned into something far more serious. The diagnosis came after a career built on strength. Laidler joined the Strasburg Fire Department at just 16 years old in 2005, then went on to serve the City of Manassas Fire and Rescue Department beginning in 2010, where he rose through the ranks to Master…

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by Zak Failla
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