Article

1998

Events that took place in Fairfax County in 1998:

January

• January 4 – 5-month old Trevon Taylor dies of starvation in Falls Church.^[1]
• January 16 – While leaving her job at DesignTech International, 36-year-old Sherry A. Culp is fatally shot in the head by an unknown assailant as she sits in her car in the parking lot at Dynatech and Cameron Brown Courts in the Fullerton Industrial Park in Springfield. Culp, who was 8 1/2 months pregnant, is taken to the Fairfax Hospital, where her baby Kelsey is delivered by emergency Caesarian section, but the little girl dies 2 days later.^[2]
• January 23 – Mir Aimal Kasi is sentenced to death by Judge J. Howe Brown for the January 25, 1993 murders of Frank Darling and Dr. Lansing Bennett outside the Central Intelligence Agency's Langley headquarters.^[3]
• January 30 – 60-year-old Surinder M. Telhan is struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver as he crosses Prosperity Avenue outside the Dunn Loring Metro station in Vienna.^[4]

February

• February 2 – 31-year-old Jose Zetina Romero is convicted of first-degree murder for the fatal stabbing of 42-year-old Jose I. Bonilla in the Culmore area of Falls Church in April, 1989.^[5]
• February 20 – 25-year-old Michael Thomas is convicted of murder for the shooting of 33-year-old Robert Willis in Reston on November 2, 1995.^[6][7]
• February 27 – 17-year-old David C. Albrecht is shot to death in his car by gang member Michael Chuop outside Marshall High School in Falls Church.^[8]
• February 28 – 23-year-old Christine Allen is stabbed to death in her home in the Woodlawn area of Alexandria by her boyfriend, 26-year-old Troy A. Demar. Allen is taken to Inova Fairfax Hospital, where she is pronounced dead.^[9][10]

March

• March 27 – 19-year-old Carl J. Christensen unintentionally kills his best friend, 25-year-old Seung Paik, when he drunkenly turns his Mitsubishi Gallant into the path of a tractor-trailer truck at the intersection of Backlick and Edsall Roads in Springfield.^[11][12]

April

• April 1 – 33-year-old Paul Ritz kills 60-year-old Ann C. Beier when he runs a red light and strikes her car broadside on Arlington Boulevard near South Manchester Street in the Seven Corners area of Falls Church.^[13]
• April 1 – A 13-year-old hospitality entrepreneur, nicknamed "Mr. Pimp", is convicted of trying to set up a prostitution ring at Langston Hughes Middle School in Reston.^[14][15][16]
• April 8 – 30-year-old Mark A. Szymanski is found dead, an apparent suicide, in his home at 1451 Beulah Road in Vienna.^[17]
• April 15 – 79-year-old Albertina F. Dauer is struck and killed by a man driving a 1990 Toyota Camry as she attempts to cross Braddock Road near Ferndale Street in Springfield.^[18]

June

• June 5 – Following a four-hour standoff with the Fairfax County Police, 21-year-old Brian McReight shoots and mortally injures himself at the Kings Park Shopping Center in Burke. He is taken to Inova Fairfax Hospital, where he dies.^[19]
• June 9 – Saeed Sheikh is convicted of felonious assault by mob for his role in the fatal shooting of David C. Albrecht outside of George C. Marshall High School in Falls Church on February 27.^[20]
• June 18 – 14-year-old Eduardo Medrano fatally shoots himself in the head with a .38 caliber handgun while playing Russian roulette in the living room of his family's apartment in the Fairmont Gardens apartment complex in Annandale. Medrano is taken to the Inova Fairfax Hospital, where he dies that evening.^[21][22]
• June 23 – 28-year-old Ralph J. Caudill settles an argument with his 53-year-old mother Judy by shooting her in the back with his .22 caliber handgun and mortally wounding her at their home at 6489 Windham Avenue in Kingstowne.^[23] She is taken to the Inova Fairfax Hospital, where she dies on July 5.^[24]

July

• July 17 – 19-year-old Mario A. Bustillo is sentenced to 30 years in prison by Judge Gerald Bruce Lee for beating and mortally injuring 18-year-old James R. Merry with a baseball bat on December 10, 1997 outside the Popeye's restaurant in the Springfield Plaza.^[25]
• July 30 – At the instruction of a chess piece, 21-year-old Alfred L. Head drives his 1990 Pontiac into the front wall of the family home at 1319 Westhills Lane in Reston, then beats his 56-year-old mother Libby to death with a baseball bat.^[26][27]

August

• August 3 – 40-year-old Natarajan Ramachandran fatally shoots his 36-year-old wife Kalpara and 7-year-old son Raj and mortally wounds his 11-year-old daughter Reha before committing suicide in the bedroom of the family's home at 12376 Clareth Drive in the Crossfields neighborhood of Herndon.^[28] Unable to process the horror of the act, which she believes is "just a bad dream", the mortally wounded Reha stumbles from the bedroom and falls asleep in another room.^[29] The scene is discovered the following day by Nagaraja Thyagarajan, Ramachandran's business partner, when the door is answered by the bloody and dazed Reha.^[28] Reha is taken to the Inova Fairfax Hospital, where she dies of her injuries on August 5.^[29]
• August 7 – Judge Michael P. McWeeny sentences 19-year-old Saeed Sheikh to 17 years in prison for his role in the murder of 17-year-old David C. Albrecht outside George C. Marshall High School in Falls Church on February 27.^[30]
• August 10 – 22-year-old Michael A. Bailey shoots his 29-year-old girlfriend Rosa M. Tenorio in the head in his Reston apartment.^[31][32] Tenorio is taken to the Inova Fairfax Hospital, where she dies.
• August 14 – Judge Arthur B. Vieregg, Jr. sentences 17-year-old Peter Hanvichid to 20 years in prison for his role in the murder of 17-year-old David C. Albrecht outside George C. Marshall High School in Falls Church on February 27.^[33]

September

• September 22 - Off-duty Fairfax County Police officer Larry H. Jones shoots a cocker spaniel in the yard of his house in Sterling. Officer Jones claims he feared that the 30-pound dog would attack him.^[34]

October

• October 12 – In a 9-1 vote, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approves a revitalization plan for five areas in the county: the Route 1 corridor in Alexandria, the Baileys Crossroads and Seven Corners areas of Falls Church, McLean, Annandale, and Springfield.^[35]
• October 14 – Dwayne A. Wright is executed for the murder of Saba Tekle in October 1989 in Annandale.^[36][37]
• October 16 – 44-year-old David W. Rider is asphyxiated in his Franconia apartment by 28-year-old Michael D. Waits to settle an argument.^[38][39][40]

November

• November 5 – Off-duty Fairfax County deputy sheriff Samuel S. Gonsalves fatally shoots 36-year-old Juan Pablo Ramos when Ramos gets in his car and tries to stab him with a screwdriver as he waits at a traffic signal to exit the Springfield Square apartment complex in Springfield.^[41][42]
• November 9 – 19-year-old Charlene C. Taylor pleads guilty to murder for the starvation death of her infant son Trevon in Falls Church on January 4.^[43]
• November 14 – 45-year-old Ali B. Boushehri stabs his 66-year-old mother Batool to death in her bed at her townhouse at 5213 Cannes Court in Franconia.^[44][45]
• November 20 – Fairfax County Sheriff Carl R. Peed fires Deputy Robert Cutts for violating department rules against making public statements.^[46]
• November 25 – The third time's the charm for Fairfax County prosecutors, who finally manage to secure a murder conviction for Troy A. Demar for stabbing his 23-year-old girlfriend Christine Allen in Alexandria on February 28.^[47]

December

• December 3 – 64-year-old Fairfax County Police Department civilian employee Hendrick A. Gideonese is killed in an early morning collision with a trash-hauling tractor trailer truck on Interstate 95 in Newington. Gideonese is taken to Inova Fairfax Hospital, where he is pronounced dead.^[48]
• December 3 – Fairfax County Sheriff Carl R. Peed fires Deputy Jabar Shabazz for violating department rules against making public statements.^[49]
• December 7 – Following the retirement of Chief Glenn A. Gaines, Edward L. Stinnette becomes the acting chief of the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department.^[50]
• December 9 – 35-year-old teacher's aide Marybeth Geddes is struck and killed by a hit and run driver as she attempts to cross Leesburg Pike near Pimmit Drive in Falls Church.^[51]
• December 10 – 40-year-old Fairfax County Police officer Larry H. Jones is convicted of illegally discharging a firearm in public in Loudoun County General District Court. Officer Jones had shot a cocker spaniel in the yard of his house in Sterling, on September 22, claiming he feared that the 30-pound dog was about to attack him.^[52]
• December 19 – 81-year-old Lorraine P. Ayres is killed when she turns her 1996 Cadillac DeVille into the path of a 1994 Ford Econoline Van on Little River Turnpike in Alexandria.^[53]
• December 20 – 32-year-old Elaine S. Rowland unintentionally kills herself in an early morning crash in Centreville when she loses control of her speeding 1996 Ford Escort and is partially ejected when the car rolls.^[54]
• December 22 – 42-year-old Gloria Prudencio stabs and beats her daughter, 18-year-old Yiti C. Arevalo, then sets her on fire in the family condominium at 3100 Manchester Street South in the Woodlake Towers Condominium complex in Falls Church. Arevalo was visiting from Honduras.^[55][56]

References

1. ↑ "Crime & Justice: Mother Pleads Guilty to Killing Infant." Washington Post. The Washington Post, 10 Nov. 1998. Web. 27 July 2016.
2. ↑ "Police Seek Help in Cold Murder Case." Connection Newspapers. Connection Newspapers, 17 Jan. 2007. Web. 27 Oct. 2012.
3. ↑ Weiner, Tim. "Killer of Two At C.I.A. Draws Death Sentence." The New York Times. The New York Times, 24 Jan. 1998. Web. 31 Mar. 2012.
4. ↑ "Police look for car involved in accident." The Washington Times, 1 Feb. 1998, 2, A METROPOLITAN TIMES METRO BRIEFS VIRGINIA FAIRFAX, p. A12. NewsBank, . Accessed 9 Feb. 2018.
5. ↑ Melillo, Wendy, Brooke A. Masters and Ruben Castaneda. "CRIME & JUSTICE: Calif. Man Convicted in 1989 Fairfax Killing." The Washington Post (1974-Current file): 1. Feb 05 1998. ProQuest. Web. 29 July 2016.
6. ↑ "Two Men Charged in 1995 Slaying in Reston." The Washington PostNov 21 1997.ProQuest. Web. 18 Aug. 2016.
7. ↑ "Reston Man Convicted of Murder." The Washington Post (1974-Current file): 1. Feb 21 1998. ProQuest. Web. 18 Aug. 2016.
8. ↑ Wee, Eric L. "Va. Teen Gets Life for Gang-Related Killing Outside High School." The Washington Post: C.05. National Newspapers Core. Sep 19 1998. Web. 27 Feb. 2012.
9. ↑ "Fairfax Woman Stabbed to Death." The Washington Post: B03. Mar 01 1998.ProQuest. Web. 27 July 2016.
10. ↑ "Crime and Justice: Conviction in Stabbing Death." The Washington Post: D16. Nov 26 1998. ProQuest. Web. 27 July 2016.
11. ↑ Melillo, Wendy. "Man Charged in Crash that Killed Bridegroom; Fiancee also Injured in Accident in Va." The Washington Post: B01. Mar 28 1998. ProQuest. Web. 29 July 2016.
12. ↑ Beshears, Erica, and Susan Levine. "CRIME & JUSTICE: Drunk Driver Begs for Rehabilitation." The Washington Post (1974-Current file): 1. Aug 29 1998. ProQuest. Web. 29 July 2016 .
13. ↑ "Fairfax County Woman Killed in Collision." The Washington Post: D04. Apr 02 1998. ProQuest. Web. 22 Jan. 2017.
14. ↑ Melillo, Wendy. "13-Year-Old Convicted in Sex-for-Hire Ring; Reston Boy had Students Pay to Join." The Washington Post: B01. Apr 01 1998. ProQuest. Web. 22 Jan. 2017.
15. ↑ Benning, Victoria. "Uncle Disputes Charge Against Girl." The Washington Post (1974-Current file): 1. Apr 14 1998. ProQuest. Web. 22 Jan. 2017.
16. ↑ Melillo, Wendy. "13-Year-Old Gets 60 Days in Sex Case." The Washington Post (1974-Current file): 1. Apr 21 1998. ProQuest. Web. 22 Jan. 2017.
17. ↑ "Mark Andrew Szymanski." The Washington Post (1974-Current file): 1. Apr 14 1998. ProQuest. Web. 22 Jan. 2017.
18. ↑ "Springfield Woman Hit by Car and Killed." The Washington Post: C06. Apr 17 1998. ProQuest. Web. 22 Jan. 2017.
19. ↑ "Suicide at Shopping Center." The Washington Post: B.04. National Newspapers Core. Jun 06 1998. Web. 2 Mar. 2012.
20. ↑ Melillo, Wendy. "Teen Convicted of Assault in Slaying at High School." The Washington Post: 0. Jun 10 1998. ProQuest. Web. 2 Feb. 2014.
21. ↑ Davis, Patricia, and Erica Beshears. "Russian Roulette Blamed in Death." The Washington Post. WP Company, 19 June 1998. Web. 22 June 2017.
22. ↑ Davis, Patricia, and Erica Beshears. "Nagging Questions in Fatal Shooting." The Washington Post. WP Company, 20 June 1998. Web. 22 June 2017.
23. ↑ "Fairfax Man Shot Mother, Police Say." The Washington Post: 0. Jun 24 1998. ProQuest. Web. 2 Feb. 2014.
24. ↑ "CRIME AND JUSTICE: Son Charged With Murder After Woman Dies." The Washington Post: 0. Jul 07 1998. ProQuest. Web. 2 Feb. 2014.
25. ↑ Melillo, Wendy. "Killing Gets Va. Gang Member 30 Years." The Washington Post: 0. Jul 18 1998. ProQuest. Web. 17 June 2014 .
26. ↑ Melillo, Wendy, and Erica Beshears. "Man Charged in Mother's Death; Friends Say Woman had Struggled with Son's Mental Condition." The Washington Post: 0. Aug 01 1998. National Newspapers Core. Web. 15 Nov. 2012.
27. ↑ Jackman, Tom. "Reston Man Committed in Slaying of Mother; Mental Disorders Cited by Experts." The Washington Post: 0. Dec 18 1999. National Newspapers Core. Web. 15 Nov. 2012.
28. ↑ ^{28.0 28.1} Melillo, Wendy, and Erica Beshears. "Man Kills Wife, Son, Self, Police Say; 11-Year-Old Daughter found Dazed and Bleeding in Herndon House." The Washington Post: 01. Aug 04 1998. National Newspapers Core. Web. 26 Sep. 2012.
29. ↑ ^{29.0 29.1} Melillo, Wendy, and Brooke A. Masters. "Lone Survivor of Father's Shootings Dies; Va. Girl, 11, Succumbs to Complications; Dad was $10 Million in Debt, Officials Say." The Washington Post: 01. Aug 06 1998. National Newspapers Core. Web. 26 Sep. 2012.
30. ↑ Beshears, Erica. "Teen Gets 17 Years in Slaying Outside High School." The Washington Post: 0. Aug 08 1998. ProQuest. Web. 16 Aug. 2014.
31. ↑ "CRIME AND JUSTICE: Woman Shot in Domestic Dispute." The Washington Post: 0. Aug 11 1998. ProQuest. Web. 11 Aug. 2014.
32. ↑ Jackman, Tom. "Reston Man Convicted of 2nd-Degree Murder in Girlfriend's Death." The Washington Post: 0. Dec 11 1998. ProQuest. Web. 11 Aug. 2014.
33. ↑ Melillo, Wendy. "Third Teenager Sentenced in Slaying Outside School." The Washington Post: 0. Aug 15 1998. ProQuest. Web. 16 Aug. 2014.
34. ↑ Glod, Maria. "Officer Fined $500 in Shooting of Dog; Man Acquitted of Animal Cruelty Charge." The Washington Post: V.03. National Newspapers Core. Dec 13 1998. Web. 12 Mar. 2012.
35. ↑ Shear, Michael D. "Revitalization Plan Approved in Fairfax." The Washington Post: 0. Oct 13 1998. ProQuest. Web. 30 Jan. 2014.
36. ↑ "Virginia Executes Man Who Killed in 1989 when He was 17."New York Times (1923-Current file): 1. Oct 15 1998. ProQuest. Web. 8 July 2016 .
37. ↑ Timberg, Craig. "Virginia Executes Inmate Who Killed Woman at 17." The Washington Post (1974-Current file): 2. Oct 15 1998.ProQuest. Web. 8 July 2016 .
38. ↑ "METRO IN BRIEF: Fairfax Asphyxiation Ruled a Homicide." The Washington Post: 0. Oct 18 1998. ProQuest. Web. 2 May 2014.
39. ↑ "METRO IN BRIEF: Franconia Man Arrested in Killing." The Washington Post: 0. Oct 19 1998. ProQuest. Web. 2 May 2014.
40. ↑ "CRIME & JUSTICE: Guilty Plea in Slaying of Organist." The Washington Post: 0. Dec 07 1999. ProQuest. Web. 2 May 2014.
41. ↑ Mooar, Brian, and Allan Lengel. "Off-Duty Deputy Fatally Shoots Man in Fairfax; Police Say Victim Accosted Sheriff's Officer in His Car." The Washington Post: B07. Nov 06 1998. ProQuest. Web. 16 Aug. 2016.
42. ↑ "Man Shot by Off-Duty Deputy Identified." The Washington Post: B04. Nov 07 1998. ProQuest. Web. 16 Aug. 2016.
43. ↑ "Crime & Justice: Mother Pleads Guilty to Killing Infant." The Washington Post: D04. Nov 10 1998. ProQuest. Web. 26 July 2016 .
44. ↑ Pae, Peter. "Franconia Man Charged in Mother's Slaying." The Washington Post. WP Company, 15 Nov. 1998. Web. 29 Jan. 2017.
45. ↑ Jackman, Tom. "Insanity Plea Accepted in Slaying." The Washington Post. WP Company, 21 Apr. 1999. Web. 29 Jan. 2017.
46. ↑ Benning, Victoria. "Fairfax Sheriff Ordered to Reinstate 2 Deputies." The Washington Post: B.07. National Newspapers Core. Jul 09 1999. Web. 12 Mar. 2012.
47. ↑ "Crime and Justice: Conviction in Stabbing Death." The Washington Post: D16. Nov 26 1998. ProQuest. Web. 27 July 2016.
48. ↑ Trugman, Kristan. "Crash kills police employee - Causes 20-mile I-95 jam." The Washington Times, 4 Dec. 1998, 2, CMETROPOLITAN TIMESCOVER STORY, p. C7. NewsBank. Accessed 1 Jan. 2018.
49. ↑ Benning, Victoria. "Fairfax Sheriff Ordered to Reinstate 2 Deputies." The Washington Post: B.07. National Newspapers Core. Jul 09 1999. Web. 12 Mar. 2012.
50. ↑ Mustac, Frank. "Stinnette to Leave Office in May after Three Decades with Department." FairfaxTimes.com. Post-Newsweek Media, Inc./FairfaxTimes.com, 5 Mar. 2003. Web. 11 Nov. 2014.
51. ↑ Smith, Leef. "A Cheery Presence is Missed at School Where Hit-Run Victim Worked." The Washington Post: G09. Dec 11 1998. ProQuest. Web. 4 Feb. 2017.
52. ↑ Glod, Maria. "Officer Fined $500 in Shooting of Dog; Man Acquitted of Animal Cruelty Charge." The Washington Post: V.03. National Newspapers Core. Dec 13 1998. Web. 12 Mar. 2012.
53. ↑ "METRO in Brief: Woman, 81, Dies in Annandale Crash." The Washington Post (1974-Current file): 1. Dec 21 1998.ProQuest. Web. 29 Aug. 2016. Note: Reference incorrectly spells Ayres' last name as "Ayers".
54. ↑ "METRO IN BRIEF: Clifton Woman, 32, Killed in Car Accident." Washington Post. The Washington Post, 21 Dec. 1998. Web. 29 Aug. 2016.
55. ↑ Smith, Leef. "Teenager Found Dead in Va. Fire." Washington Post. The Washington Post, 23 Dec. 1998. Web. 26 July 2016.
56. ↑ Jackman, Tom. "Falls Church Woman Sentenced to 14 Years for Killing Daughter." The Washington Post (1974-Current file): 1. Dec 18 1999. ProQuest. Web. 26 July 2016 .

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