Across Virginia
A member of one of the Roanoke Valley’s Sister City’s subcommittee has organized a benefit concert at Roanoke College this Sunday to aid Ukrainian Refugees. A world-renowned Ukrainian pianist will be performing. More details from WFIR’s Emma Thomas.
https://www.rvsci.us/2022/06/25/ukrainian-refugee-benefit-concert/
New round-trip Amtrak routes will start Monday between Washington and two Virginia cities: Norfolk and Roanoke.
The additions will bring to eight the number of state-funded round trips from the nation’s capital, The Washington Post reported Saturday.
“We’re adding more options for people at the right time,” said Michael McLaughlin, chief operating officer at the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority. “Capacity on the trains is getting full, and ridership is at record-high levels.”
The extra train to Norfolk will be the third round trip to the area, according to the newspaper. It will depart Norfolk at 1 p.m. and arrive in Washington in a little over 4.5 hours. A new southbound train will depart Washington at 12:05 p.m.
Amtrak already runs one morning trip from Roanoke to D.C. and an evening return trip. Starting Monday, a new train will leave Washington for Roanoke at 8:05 a.m., and a Washington-bound train will leave Roanoke at 4:30 p.m., arriving shortly before 9:30 p.m.
Amtrak, which expanded service to Richmond last year, said the additions will give riders more options to travel in Virginia and boost connections to the Northeast.
Virginia is among 17 states that have state-sponsored Amtrak service, the Post reported.
On July 9, 2022 at approximately 2:45 a.m., Roanoke Police were notified by City of Roanoke E-911 Center of a person with a gunshot wound in the 800 block of Queen Avenue NW. Responding officers located an adult male victim with what appeared to be a non-life threatening gunshot wound inside a residence in the area. Roanoke Fire-EMS transported the man to Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital for treatment.
Officers had previously responded to that address at approximately 1:50 yesterday morning, regarding a disorder. Persons involved in that disorder were known to one another and some of the individuals left the scene after speaking with officers.
Throughout the course of the investigation, Quintiy L. Steelman, 20 of Roanoke, was identified as the suspect. Steelman arrived at the Roanoke Police Department shortly after 5:00 yesterday morning. Steelman was interviewed by officers, then taken into custody and charged with Malicious Wounding and Use of a Firearm in Commission of a Felony. Steelman and the victim are known to one another and this appears to be an isolated incident related to the previous disorder.
Within hours of his arrest, Steelman was granted a bond by the Roanoke Magistrate’s Office and released from the Roanoke City Jail. This remains an ongoing investigation and no other details are available at this time.
BRISTOL, Va. (AP) — Virginia’s first casino has opened for business in a temporary space inside a former Bristol shopping mall.
The Bristol Casino will be open 24/7, offering 870 slots, 21 tables and a sportsbook. A line of customers wrapped around the building as they waited for Friday’s grand opening, WDBJ reported.
“We had to come and save my sister from spending all her money,” Christiansburg resident Cheryl Hubbard told the station. “And spend all of his,” she joked, pointing to her husband.
In 2020, the Virginia General Assembly approved legislation to allow developers to build large casino resorts in five cities — Norfolk, Bristol, Portsmouth, Danville and Richmond — in what supporters billed as a way to boost struggling economies.
Potential operators had to first clear a voter referendum. That happened in every city but Richmond, which rejected the initiative last year. But city officials have mounted an effort to bring the issue back a second time.
Bristol voters overwhelmingly approved their referendum, and the project got its license earlier this year.
Developers eventually plan to open a $400 million resort and Hard Rock casino, with a hotel, restaurants, bars and lounges, and a concert venue. The full-scale project is expected to open in 2024 and employ 1,200 people.
The initial location has 600 employees, local news outlets reported.
State Sen. Louise Lucas, a Portsmouth Democrat who had long pushed to change Virginia law to allow for casinos, was on hand to celebrate, according to the Bristol Herald Courier.
“It’s like I’m having my own personal party because it’s taken so long,” she said. “I’m so excited for Bristol and I’m going to be ready for the party in Portsmouth in February.”
From Roanoke County Police Department: On Friday July 8, 2022, a 2005 Toyota RAV-4 driven by Susan Snyder was traveling southbound in the 5800 block Plantation Rd in Roanoke County. Ms. Snyder crossed the double yellow line and struck a 2012 Chevy Equinox head on. Ms. Snyder was not wearing a seatbelt, and was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of the Chevy was transported to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Drugs and alcohol were not believed to be a factor in the crash however, weather may have played a factor. The investigation is ongoing and no charges are pending. The roadway was closed for a period of time, but is back open to traffic.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A tipster who warned police in Richmond, Virginia, about a potential mass shooting on July 4 told police the man who was planning the attack has connections to a drug gang that operates in Mexico and the U.S., according to a search warrant affidavit.
The tipster, who is described as a “concerned citizen” in the affidavit, identified the man planning the shooting as Rolman “Chapin” Balcarcel Ac, 38, one of two men arrested by Richmond police in connection with the alleged plot.
The tipster told police Balcarcel Ac has connections to the Los Zetas criminal syndicate. Detective Michael Kiniry wrote in the affidavit that “Zetas” is a reference to a gang affiliate with operations in Mexico and the U.S.
The tipster also told police that Balcarcel Ac showed him three guns on June 21.
The affidavit was used to obtain a warrant to search a home in Richmond where Balcarcel Ac lived with a second man who was also arrested in connection with the alleged plot, Julio Alvarado-Dubon, 52. It contains no details of the alleged plot, except to say that the tipster told police a mass shooting was planned in Richmond on July 4.
Authorities have said both men are from Guatemala and are in the U.S. illegally. The only charge against them is possession of a firearm by a non-U.S.-citizen, although Richmond police have said they could face additional charges.
During a news conference Wednesday, Richmond police Chief Gerald Smith said the tipster said the attack was planned for the Dogwood Dell Amphitheater, where an annual fireworks show is held. The search warrant application filed Thursday does not mention any specific location for the alleged planned attack.
The announcement from Richmond police that they had thwarted an attack came on July 6, two days after a gunman opened fire from a rooftop during a Fourth of July parade in the affluent Chicago suburb of Highland Park, killing seven people and injuring more than three dozen.
Richmond police have released few details about the alleged plot or said how formulated the plan was when they arrested Alvarado-Dubon on July 1. Balcarcel Ac was not arrested until July 5. They have not identified any motive for the alleged plot.
“It was a very serious threat. Any threat against life and certainly that of a mass shooting is gravely serious. No further information is being provided about this beyond what’s been provided at this stage,” police spokesperson Tracy Walker said in an email Friday.
“The suspect clearly announced a plan to carry this out and clearly had the means to do so based on the weapons and several hundred rounds of ammunition that was seized,” Walker said.
Both men are being held in local jails, Balcarcel Ac in Charlottesville and Alvarado-Dubon in Richmond.
Immigration officials told news outlets that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has lodged immigration detainers on both men. Detainers are notices that the Department of Homeland Security issues to law enforcement agencies to inform them that ICE plans to take custody of someone who is currently in their custody.
Court documents filed in General District Court in Richmond say Alvarado-Dubon has lived in Richmond for three years and works in the construction industry. The documents say his visa expired four years ago.
The search warrant affidavit says that after police received the tip about a planned mass shooting, they contacted Homeland Security, then went to a home in Richmond, where Alvarado-Dubon answered the door and allowed them to come inside.
Kiniri wrote that police saw two Glock magazines and a rifle round in plain view in the living room. The affidavit said a second man appeared and provided a Colorado identification with the name “Rolman A. Balcarcel AC.” The affidavit said the man had two Colorado driver’s licenses, a Guatemala ID and a Mexico ID. An agent from Homeland Security Investigations determined that both men are in the U.S. illegally and that Balcarcel Ac has had two previous deportations, the affidavit states.
Alvarado-Dubon’s attorney, Jose Aponte, did not immediately return a call seeking comment Friday. No attorney is listed on court documents for Balcarcel Ac.
Police said Wednesday that officers seized two assault rifles, a handgun and hundreds of rounds of ammunition from the home.
Chris Obenshain
A newly created House of Delegates seat that includes western Roanoke County and parts of Montgomery County, will be on the ballot during next year’s General Assembly elections. Republican Chris Obenshain , who will look to win that seat:
A Republican running to represent a parts of Southwest Virginia in the House of Delegates says reducing crime is one of his top priorities. WFIR’s Clark Palmer explains.
MGN
On July 7, 2022 at approximately 3:30 p.m., Roanoke Police were notified by the City of Roanoke E-911 Center of a reported suicidal subject with a firearm in the 4600 block of Long Acre Drive NE. The caller advised the male subject was no longer on scene and had left in a vehicle. The description of the vehicle was aired to all Patrol Units. Officers were also advised that the man had an active felony warrant from another jurisdiction. Shortly after this information was aired, an Officer observed the vehicle traveling in the area near Orange Avenue and Williamson Road NE. The Officer began following the vehicle.
The Officer verified that the driver of the vehicle was the suicidal subject and noted that there was a passenger in the vehicle as well. The Officer initiated a traffic stop, but the man did not comply. Due to reports of a weapon in the vehicle, the active warrant, and in the best interest of the passenger’s safety, the Officer continued the pursuit. The pursuit did not reach excessive speeds and traffic was not impacted.
The driver continued at a low rate of speed out of the City of Roanoke. Additional Patrol Units deployed pursuit intervention devices, in an attempt to stop the vehicle safely. Despite the vehicle being damaged by the devices, the driver continued fleeing.
The driver lost control of the vehicle and crashed in the 3100 block of Read Mountain Road in Botetourt County. At that point, the subject used the firearm in his possession and ended his life. The passenger of the vehicle did not sustain major injuries in the crash. Rescue Units from Botetourt County Fire&EMS transported the passenger to Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital as a precaution. After learning the identity of the passenger, we learned that he had active felony charges from both the City of Roanoke and another jurisdiction. The passenger will be taken into custody and those charges will be served after they receive medical treatment. No one else was injured regarding this incident.
The Botetourt County Sheriff’s Office will be handling the crash and death investigation.
Photo: Virginia DWR
Close to 500,000 fawns are born each year across Virginia, and this is the time you may encounter them on or along roadways. Experts say the young deer don’t really get how to deal with moving vehicles — and neither do older ones. Many newborn fawns become victims of predators like coyotes, bobcats or bears, but the many others that survive are now starting to move about with their mothers. When they come across roads and highways, it seems neither never really learn how to handle traffic encounters. WFIR’s Evan Jones has more:
The problem is always most pronounced during mating season in late fall, but Knox says the dangers of striking a deer are always present, mostly around dawn and dusk. Evan Jones, WFIR News.
UPDATE — ROADWAY NOW OPEN — HAZMAT ON SCENE CLEANING UP OIL ON THE SHOULDER*******
East bound Challenger Ave at Valley Gateway Blvd is currently blocked due to a traffic crash. There is a detour in place but drivers can expect delays in the area. Additional information may be released as it becomes available to include when the roadway is back open.