Sterling: 2 missing Teens Found, Job Fair Thursday AM

Congressman Wolf Job Fair Thursday July 29

Congressman Wolf is hosting another job fair July 29 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Harper Park Middle School which is just off route 7 east of Leesburg. It is free and open to the public. A list of companies participating is posted at wolf.house.gov/jobfair.

Missing 15 Year old Ashburn Teenager Located Safe & Unharmed in Reston

A missing Ashburn, Virginia teenager was located safe and unharmed Thursday, July 22, 2010 in Reston, Virginia.

Ana Maria Ferster, 15, had last been seen on June 12, 2010 and was reported missing a few days later. She has been returned to Loudoun County.

And Another Missing Teenager was found Safe and Unharmed.

A 13-year-old reported missing Saturday, July 24, 2010 has been located safe and unharmed.

Rachael Cardenas was reported missing after she left her residence in Ashburn, VA around 8 a.m. to go running. She was located Sunday night near the Ashbrook Commons Plaza in Ashburn.

It has been determined she left her residence on her own accord

STERLING PLAYMAKERS' BRIGADOON OPENS FRIDAY

Sterling Playmakers presents Lerner and Lowe's BRIGADOON, a musical about a Scottish village that appears only once every 100 years, though to the villagers it is only the passing of one night. The show is wonderfully directed by Kathleen Bleutge and co-produced by Doris Argall and Emilie Pugh.

BRIGADOON opens July 30 and runs for three weekends at the theatre in Potomac Falls High School. Friday and Saturday performances, July 30, 31 and August 6, 7, 13 and 14 are at 8:00pm. Sunday matinees are at 2:00pm on July 1, 8 and 15. Tickets are $15 for Reserved Seating or $12 for General Admission and are available at the door or on line at www.sterlingplaymakers.com.

CA Plowman Obtains Jail Time for Phantom Probation Violator

Jose Carlos Hernandez appeared before the Circuit Court of Loudoun County on Friday, July 23, in custody, after his whereabouts were unknown to Probation Officers for over two years.

Hernandez, originally from Brooklyn, New York, pled guilty in May 2006 to Felony Hit & Run stemming from a December 2005 altercation outside the Regal movie theater in Sterling. Hernandez received a sentence of five years, with three years, three months suspended. Upon being released in February 2008, Hernandez failed to maintain contact with the probation office and a Capias for his arrest was issued in March 2008. Hernandez' whereabouts have been unknown until his recent arrest in New York this past May.

During Friday's hearing, Hernandez, claimed that he fled the area out of fear of retaliation despite there being no indication of any communication or threats to him from the victim. Hernandez was associated with the Latin Kings street gang. However, at Friday's hearing he claimed that he had disassociated himself with that lifestyle.

Judge James Chamblin revoked one year and six months of Hernandez' suspended sentence, sending him back to the Virginia Department of Corrections.

"It's hard to accept the excuses of a man who completely absconded from supervision for over two years," said Commonwealth's Attorney Jim Plowman. "The fact that he now claims to have no gang affiliation, flies in the face of the fact that he returned directly to the breeding ground that brought him into that lifestyle."

Repeat Drunk Driver to Serve 4 Years
after Striking Deputy Sheriff's Cruiser

July 23, 2010. Jose Joe Velasco appeared before the Circuit Court of Loudoun County and was sentenced for an October 2009 incident that nearly saw three Sheriff's Deputies injured.

At approximately 2:00 a.m. on October 10, 2009, Sheriff's Deputies were called to Enterprise Street in Sterling for a report of a disorderly individual. Upon their arrival, Deputies found Velasco, 30, behind the wheel of his pickup truck. When a Deputy approached and asked to him exit, Velasco backed out quickly in an attempt to leave the scene, almost striking a guard rail. Ignoring commands to stop, Velasco sped away, almost striking the first Deputy and his cruiser.

As two additional responding Deputies were arriving, Velasco nearly struck the first of those two cruisers before impacting the second. Velasco then proceeded to flee, running a stop sign, before losing control of his vehicle. Shortly thereafter, Velasco was apprehended and transported to the hospital to be treated for injuries.

Subsequent tests confirmed that Velasco was intoxicated with a blood alcohol level of 0.323, over four times the legal limit. Among other convictions, Velasco was previously convicted of DWI in Fairfax County in 2000, 2001 and 2005.

"This is the exact type of person that our community fears most," said Commonwealth's Attorney Jim Plowman. "This man's uncontrollable behavior cannot be supervised or monitored under any set of circumstances and will ultimately lead to a random innocent victim being injured or killed. Our community is extremely grateful to our law enforcement personnel that put themselves at risk in situations such as this in order to protect us and we're very fortunate that none of them were harmed during this."

Velasco entered pleas of guilt on January 21, 2010 to DWI (4th in 10 years), Assault on a Law Enforcement Officer and Driving on a Revoked License (3rd), all felonies. Circuit Court Judge James Chamblin sentenced Velasco to serve four years in the Virginia Department of Corrections. Velasco is originally from El Salvador and has been in the United States illegally for the past twelve years. An immigration detainer has been lodged against him and it is anticipated that he will be removed from the country upon his release.

NEW "SMISHING" SCAM MAY APPEAR IN TEXT MESSAGE
ON YOUR CELL PHONE

The Loudoun County Sheriff's Office issued a warning Friday, July 23, 2010 regarding cell-phone texting scams that attempt to obtain personal banking information from the victim. The scam involves a bulk text message, called SMiShing, stating that your card has been disabled and to contact a local number with a 703 prefix.

When the victim contacts the number it asks the victim to enter a bank account and pin numbers. Locally the scam has involved the Loudoun Credit Union. There have been several reported victims of this scam in Loudoun County.

SMiShing is similar to Phishing where subjects use e-mail to attempt to fraudulently obtain personal information from a victim. The text messaging scam has been dubbed SMiShing, a term derived from SMS technology used for cell phone text messages.

The Loudoun County Sheriff's Office Crime Prevention Unit reminds residents to take a few precautions to protect themselves from becoming a victim of this scam:

Never respond to unsolicited requests for personal financial information received via text message - even if the request appears to come from a legitimate institution that you do business with. This includes request to "confirm, verify or update" your information.

Always know who you're dealing with. Don't click on links in text messages, or call numbers listed in text messages.

Put strong passwords on all your financial accounts.

Monitor your credit report regularly for signs of irregularities.
If you think you have been a victim of this scam you are asked to contact Investigator T. Ortwein of the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office Financial Crimes Unit at 703-777-0475.