Police step up patrols in crime hotspots in Annandale and Bailey’s Crossroads

Vista Drive in Culmore, the site of several assaults in recent months.

In response to the continuing problem of assaults and robberies in Annandale and Bailey’s Crossroads, the Fairfax County Police Department has increased its presence in certain areas.  

For the Mason Police District, the hot spots are Fairmont Gardens in Annandale and Culmore in Bailey’s Crossroads, said crime prevention officer MPO Eduardo Azcarate.

“Gang activity in the area has continued and there is some indication that it has increased,” Azcarate said.

The Mason police station has added more patrols in the hot spots. Officers also periodically carry out “gang saturations,” where they stop all known suspected gang members in a particular area and follow up on every warrant. 

However, Azcarate says, “a lot of the bullying, assaults, and robberies might not be gang related. And the overall activity in the area is not gang related,” Azcarate said. The homicide at Fairmont Gardens in July was a domestic situation, for example. 

The West Springfield police station, which covers the area around Americana Drive and Patriot Drive, has also implemented a hot spot imitative for that area, which calls for a more visible police presence and additional officers assigned to high-crime areas, usually in the evening, said crime prevention officer PFC Anthony Capizzi. 

“We do take gang activity throughout the county seriously,” Azcarate said. Gangs are also prevalent in Reston, Lorton, and along Route 1. 

While MS-13 has had a long history in Northern Virginia – and is responsible for several murders – there are many others. The Fairfax County Police Department’s Gang Investigations Unit monitors and investigates reports of gang-related activity, said Sgt. Greg Bedor, but it’s the FCPD’s policy “to not promote criminal street gangs by specifically naming them.” 

Gangs operating in the county have a mix of ages and races – some are predominantly Black. Others are Hispanic, White, or reflect a variety of backgrounds. Most have a mix of ages, although teens usually get the most publicity. 

Many of the assaults in Culmore and Annandale involve groups of teens attacking other teens. According to one parent, “there are juveniles running wild who have a whole arsenal of weapons, and their parents are too busy working to deal with them.”  

That parent complains that one such teen has been in and out of juvenile detention and is back on the streets terrorizing other kids. 

Juvenile offenders are handled on a case-by-case basis, depending on several factors, such as the number of previous offenses and how the victim wants to proceed, Capizzi said. 

Knollwood Drive in Culmore area of Bailey’s Crossroads.

Both Capizzi and Azcarate say they haven’t a big increase in assaults, robberies, or gang activity during the pandemic. Gang activity “is cyclical like everything else,” Azcarate said, although the lack of activities gives young people more free time to get into trouble. 

The biggest issue for both officers during the pandemic is the increase in larceny from vehicles. Those crimes – usually involving stealing whatever people leave inside unlocked cars – have gone up significantly countywide during the past few months. 

Community outreach has taken a hit, too. Before the pandemic, Azcarate and other officers had gotten to know residents and build trust with them at community events, such as Culmore Multicultural Day, but those activities were canceled this year. 

Neither Azcarate nor Capizzi think security cameras are useful in deterring crime, although they could help during an investigation. 

Security cameras “provide a false sense of security,” Capizzi said. But it’s really hard to see something of value, as they usually aren’t close enough. And with people wearing masks, it’s hard to identify a suspect. Cameras aren’t monitored in real time, anyway.

Police from the Mason station communicate regularly with apartment managers, encouraging them to beef up their security measures, such as adding lights and repairing a fence that allowed nonresidents to cut through the property, Azcarate said. 

The manager at Hillwood Manor Apartments in Culmore has been helpful, he said, but other apartment managers aren’t as interested in spending money to maintain their properties.

Related story: “Opportunity Neighborhoods” formed in Annandale and Bailey’s Crossroads

The best crime prevention method, Capizzi said, is “neighbors looking out for each other and reporting suspicious vehicles and suspicious people.” 

People can anonymously report things like gunshots or a suspicious person, he said. But if they see someone they know commit a crime, it’s harder to be anonymous “because at some point you would need to go to court to be a witness.” 

Awareness is the number-one way to prevent being a crime victim, Azcarate said. “Have a phone with you, have lights with you, know where you are,  and have your destination in mind and know how to get there. Travel in pairs if possible.” 

As long as you’re aware of your surroundings, “the average person walking around the streets is going to be fine,” Azcarate said. “It’s still safe to walk around Culmore and Fairmont Gardens at all times of the day or night.”