‘What a day this was’: 1 arrested after firing shots at police during chase through Northern Virginia
A person who police said fired shots at officers following a traffic stop in Northern Virginia is in custody.
What police described as a nearly 12-hour crime spree ended in the area of Arlington Boulevard and Graham Road in West Falls Church on Thursday night.
A witness said a person jumped out of a car following a crash and started firing at police who were following. Police identified the man as 27-year-old Ricardo Singleton.
The chain of events that ended in Fairfax County began Thursday morning in Arlington County, according to police.
Around 9 a.m. a man — later identified as Singleton — inside a car at 1400 North Courthouse Road motioned to Arlington County Sheriff’s deputies to come over. When the deputies came over, they saw that he had a firearm.
That’s when Singleton sped off, Arlington County police Chief Charles Penn said in a news conference Thursday night.
The deputies got in their vehicle and found Singleton in a nearby garage, where Penn said the Singleton mentioned “something about needing help.” They saw that Singleton had a firearm once again.
Singleton then drove off and was next involved in a hit-and-run crash, Penn said. The deputies worked to identify the driver and get warrants for eluding police, brandishing and the hit-and-run.
Throughout the day, law enforcement officials looked for Singleton and just after 7:30 p.m., officers found him in the area of George Mason Drive and Columbia Pike, where they tried to stop him.
When Singleton did not stop, officers pursued him into Fairfax County. During the chase, Penn said the Singleton fired his weapon at the officers.
“What a day this was that began in Arlington County and concluded just behind me,” Fairfax County police Chief Kevin Davis said Thursday night.
Davis said that when Singleton stopped his car in the middle of the intersection near Arlington Boulevard and Graham Road and took off running, he also took out his firearm and “recklessly fired several rounds” at police officers from Arlington and Fairfax counties and Virginia State Police troopers.
Police found a “semi-automatic with an extended magazine” at the scene.
One Fairfax County police officer discharged his weapon, according to Davis.
“It’s an absolute miracle that no one was struck, killed or injured” during the two shootings in Arlington and Falls Church, Davis said, describing the area of the second shooting as lined with restaurants and gas stations. The second shooting happened “early enough in the night that there were pedestrians walking around,” he said.
“Several citizens were in harm’s way,” Davis said.
WTOP’s Kyle Cooper, who reported from the scene, said there were bullet holes at gas station pumps nearby. Singleton struck several cars while he was being pursued, according to Davis. He said police are still counting how many.
At some point during the foot chase, Davis said that they lost Singleton. One witness told Cooper that he saw Singleton run toward a grocery store, while police were running the opposite way before correcting their direction. Singleton was later found hiding behind one of the stores.
WTOP’s Kyle Cooper and Mike Murillo, who reported from Fairfax County, contributed to this report.