Police arrest active shooter in Falls Church
Police arrested a man Thursday evening after a daylong crime spree culminating at Arlington Boulevard and Graham Road in Falls Church during which he fired at police officers with a semiautomatic pistol.
Ricardo Singleton, age 27, was taken into custody.
“It’s an absolute miracle that no one was struck and injured or killed,” said Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis at a briefing on the scene. “
The event occurred at a busy intersection near Graham Park Plaza. “We had several civilians who were absolutely in harm’s way,” Davis said. The shooter had previously struck several cars while he was being pursued by police in Arlington and Fairfax County.
The situation began at about 9 a.m. on Thursday, said Arlington Police Chief Charles Penn. The driver of a vehicle parked in the 1400 block of Courthouse Road motioned for two Arlington sheriff’s deputies to come over. They noticed the driver had a firearm. The man then drove off and the deputies followed, later finding him in a nearby garage.
When officers approached, the man said something about needing help, Penn said. He then drove off and was involved in a hit-and-run accident.
Officers worked throughout the morning to identify the suspect, he said. They obtained warrants for eluding, brandishing, and hit-and-run.
At about 7:40 p.m., Singleton was located in the area of George Mason Drive and Columbia Pike. He failed to stop, so Arlington police initiated a pursuit. During the chase, he shot at the officers from his vehicle. The pursuit continued into Fairfax County.
Singleton stopped in the middle of the intersection on Arlington Boulevard at Graham Road and got out of his vehicle. As police approached to take him into custody, Davis said, he took off running and “recklessly fired several rounds” from a semiautomatic pistol with an extended magazine at uniformed Arlington County and Fairfax County officers and uniformed Virginia state troopers.
The officers quickly established a perimeter, found Singleton hiding behind a restaurant, took him into custody, and took possession of the firearm, Davis said.
One Fairfax County officer discharged his firearm. That officer-involved shooting incident is under investigation.
Both Davis and Penn lauded their officer’s professional efforts, courage, and restraint in capturing an active shooter. “What a day this was,” Davis said.
Another day in the new Falls Church. Enjoy (As I write this, I hear police sirens.)
Meanwhile, many commenters on this site shudder in fear at the prospect of high-quality mass transit ever arriving in Mason District because they claim THAT would bring a spike in violent crime to our now very peaceful and very safe Mason District.
I learn so very much from the commenters on this website, for example, how Tysons Corner Center and Tysons Galleria have random shootings “all the time.” What I learn is that some of these commenters are living in an alternate universe.
Bottom Line — if we simply end all bus service in Mason District and continue to keep out Metrorail and any and all other forms of mass transit, Mason District will continue to be the best spot in Fairfax County to live and raise a family. All thanks to our wonderful Supervisor, Penny Gross.
I agree that mass transit brings crime. Common sense in my opinion. 😃
Oh yeah, because mass shooters like to take the bus to make their getaways. Makes common sense.
Thank you Officers for keeping us as safe as possible and risking your lives for our safety!
Ditto!
First of all, the police chase started off in Arlington County, not Falls Church; secondly, the chase involved a private vehicle, not mass transit; and finally, the location of the final apprehension in Falls Church was totally coincidental, not endemic to Falls Church.
There were rounds fired in Falls Church and high-speed pursuit in Falls Church. Sure have been a lot of “coincidences” here lately. Do you use the Neighbors app? Get on it and see what is happening around you. I am in a very nice neighborhood. In the last two months there was a rape, four robberies, three shootings, and countless vehicles stolen. What a coincidence. Then there was the man killed at the Wells Fargo ATM a few months ago. The killers used mass transit. From NBC Washington: “The video on the bus was from about 1:20 a.m. Police believed the men committed other crimes and then encountered Alexander at the ATM.”
Mass transit, low income housing, and soft-on-crime police chiefs and prosecutors are absolutely crushing this area.
All pistols are “semi-automatic”. It’s anti-gun gibberish when the media reports it that way. (Even a six-shooter from the Old West is semi-automatic, even though a terminology difference is made for such revolvers.)
Semi-automatic means “can shoot more than one bullet without having to open up the gun and manually insert another bullet.” All handguns are semi-automatic.
We are very lucky to have the great law enforcement in our area of Virginia. It is sad that it seems that the troubles that used to be on the other side of the river are more common here now. Support our LEOs and remember that they go in harms way every day to protect us and keep us safe.