On October 11, 2024, David Rodriguez, 40, of Manassas, was arrested at a Sheetz gas station in Fredericksburg after officers responded to reports of erratic behavior and an attempt to set items on fire. Upon officers’ arrival, Rodriguez grabbed a gas pump nozzle while holding a lighter but was swiftly restrained. He was charged with arson, vandalism, trespassing, shoplifting, obstruction of justice, and property damage.
Fredericksburg police press release:
On October 11, 2024, at 1:58 a.m., our E-911 Communications Center received a call from Sheetz management regarding a male, David Rodriguez, who had been trespassed from the property the previous day. He was observed displaying erratic behavior and attempting to set items on fire in the parking lot.
Upon the arrival of Officers Taylor and Berry, they were unable to locate Rodriguez. According to the manager, Rodriguez had ignited a candy bar in the parking lot near her vehicle. Another bystander reported witnessing Rodriguez acting strangely before leaving the area. While Officer Taylor spoke with the bystander, she noticed a Hispanic male matching Rodriguez’s description walking toward the gas station. Officers Berry and Taylor promptly called out to Rodriguez and began to approach him. At this point, Rodriguez ran towards the gas pumps and grabbed a nozzle while holding a lighter in his other hand.
Officers Berry and Taylor quickly grabbed Rodriguez’s arms, which caused him to drop the pump. Rodriguez ignored officer commands, resisted arrest, and attempted escape. However, he was ultimately detained without further incident.
David Rodriguez, 40, of Manassas, was arrested on the following charges:
• Arson
• Vandalism x2
• Trespass: After being Forbidden
• Shoplifting
• Obstruction of Justice
• Property Damage
Following months of heated discussion about Grace E. Metz Middle School's declining Standard of Learning (SOL) scores and school culture, new Principal Juliet Finnegan vows to lead the school toward improvement. Finnegan, who took over in July 2024, replaces Gary Morris, who left earlier this year after just two years. Her appointment comes amid ongoing debates about tackling the school's challenges.
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Simone Reddington, co-host of the “Until They Kick Us Out” podcast, sat down with Uriah Kiser, publisher of Potomac Local News, to discuss local politics, business, and the pulse of Manassas. Simone and her co-host, Nikki France, have used their platform to spotlight the city’s political landscape while celebrating its small businesses and tight-knit community.
The interview explored Simone’s evolving involvement in local politics, an area she didn’t initially set out to cover. When asked about Manassas’s state, Simone expressed her optimism and concerns.
“I would be ignorant if I didn’t acknowledge that there hasn’t been a lot of improvement over our city in the past three years… But I’m seeing it go in a direction where I don’t believe it’s being led healthily,” she said. Reddington emphasized the disconnect between local government and business owners, sharing her frustration over land purchases, the lack of effective leadership, and the underrepresentation of small businesses.
Simone also touched on the city’s Real Estate purchases, including the controversial acquisition of properties like the Mathis Avenue Shopping Center and the underdeveloped Old Town site. “We’ve been staring at fencing and concrete slabs for almost a year now, and there’s no plan for it,” she remarked.
A major theme in the interview was Reddington’s commitment to amplifying the voices of small business owners in downtown Manassas, particularly as they navigate economic challenges. “They’re suffering. They pull in money on First Fridays, but that’s one day. The rest of the time, many are struggling,” she explained, calling for more government support and collaboration with the community.
Listeners can catch the full interview on Potomac Local News’ YouTube or Facebook page. Simone’s candid take on Manassas’ leadership, her passion for small business, and her call for change in the community make for a compelling listen. Don’t miss this insightful conversation!
National Take Back Day is led by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which established this day to address the drug overdose epidemic in the U.S. Thousands of people die each year in prescription opioid deaths; in 2022, the number of deaths was 14,716 according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
“DEA is committed to making our communities safer and healthier, and we can do this by reducing overdoses and overdose deaths,” the DEA’s website states. “While the community does its part to turn in unneeded medications and remove them from potential harm, we are doing our part to further reduce drug-related violence.”
The DEA hosts a take-back day every six months in April and October with thousands of law enforcement agencies participating each time. In April 2024, 335 tons — or 670,135 pounds — of drugs were collected nationwide. In Virginia, 17,425 pounds of prescription drugs were collected in April. Since the first take-back day in 2010, nearly 19 million pounds of drugs have been collected.
In Prince William County and Manassas, the following locations will be open on Oct. 26 and participating in the take-back initiative.
- UVA Health System Prince William Medical Center, 8700 Sudley Road, Manassas
- UVA Health System Haymarket Medical Center, 15225 Heathcote Blvd., Haymarket
- Sentara Healthcare Lake Ridge, 12825 Minnieville Road, Lake Ridge
The DEA also provides a search engine for other participating locations across the country and state. Several items will be accepted at these sites, including:
- Prescription and over-the-counter solid-dosage medications
- Vape pens and e-cigarettes AFTER batteries have been removed
- Intravenous solutions
- Injectables
- Needles
- Hydrogen peroxide
- Compressed cylinders (asthma inhalers and the like)
The county said in a release that a permanent marker may be used to blacken out personal information in an effort to protect your privacy.
Illicit drugs like marijuana or methamphetamine will not be accepted.
For more information, please call the Crime Prevention Unit at 703-792-7270.
The City of Manassas is now offering new services to Spanish speakers in an effort to better reach residents.
The new services include an anonymous Spanish-only WhatsApp channel to stay updated on the city, Spanish email notifications and emergency alerts, Spanish messaging for events and YouTube videos that can be viewed in Spanish.
For many years, the Manassas City Council has discussed ways to reach the Spanish-speaking community in the city, the second-most spoken language in Manassas. In 2022, Council discussed providing translation services at public meetings to allow Spanish speakers to voice their thoughts and opinions.
Currently, the city provides an interpreter for Spanish-speaking residents who wish to address Council, X — formerly known as Twitter — messages are published in English and Spanish, translations of meetings are provided on Instagram and Facebook and residents can access a short audio summary of the approved minutes in Spanish after the meeting.
The press release in Spanish:
Con el fin de comunicarse mejor con los residentes de habla hispana, la Ciudad de Manassas ofrece medios de comunicaciĂłn nuevos, produce los comunicados bilingĂĽes, brinda servicios de interpretaciĂłn durante sus reuniones y se interactĂşa con los residentes durante eventos comunitarios.
Durante las sesiones del concejo municipal, una intérprete está presente para ayudar a los residentes quienes hablen español que deseen dirigirse a los concejales y concejalas en persona. Los mensajes X en vivo informan en español lo que sucede en las sesiones del concejo en tiempo real. Los mensajes que se publican en Facebook e Instagram durante las sesiones también incluyen las traducciones producidas por un ser humano. Después de la sesión, los residentes pueden acceder a un audioresumen en español de cinco minutos de las actas aprobadas de la reunión.
Los miembros del personal que hablan español asisten a reuniones y eventos tales como la Serie E3 para Padres [Parent E3 Series] de la PolicĂa de la Ciudad de Manassas [Manassas City Police] y las reuniones comunitarias con el enfoque en los parques, el urbanismo y los proyectos de transporte.
Para mantenerse informados, los residentes de Manassas que hablan español pueden:
- unirse anónimamente a un Canal de WhatsApp en español para obtener información sobre recursos, eventos y noticias de la Ciudad
- registrarse para recibir notificaciones en español por correo electrónico
- registrarse para recibir alertas en casos de emergencia
- recibir mensajes en español sobre los eventos para familias (enviando la palabra clave “Mensajes” al 888-777 para registrarse)
- ver vĂdeos en español en YouTube
El sitio web de la Ciudad de Manassas ofrece la información más completa sobre los servicios municipales y está disponible en 86 idiomas.
Simply submit your event through our quick and easy form to get it in front of thousands of local readers. Events posted on our calendar can also be featured in our weekly newsletters, reaching an even broader audience across Prince William County, Stafford, Manassas, and Fredericksburg.
Want even more exposure? You can upgrade to a paid promotion that guarantees your event will be highlighted in multiple news emails and showcased on our homepage for 14 days — giving your event the spotlight it deserves!
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The server farm will be one of four in Manassas and will have three buildings. Post says that the construction has caused significant issues for his business. “The blasting has caused our sprinkler standpipe to shift in the ground, and a truck damaged our portico. It has cost me $2,900 in repairs,” he said. “There have been instances where the blasting has disrupted funeral [ceremonies]. During a funeral, a minister was giving a eulogy, and without any warning, they let off a giant explosion. Then, the fire alarm went off right after the blast and sounded throughout the funeral.”
Despite these challenges, Post says that the city has been largely indifferent to the struggles of existing businesses in the area. “It seems like the new city leadership is letting the data centers walk all over us,” he noted. “The old leadership would never have allowed this to happen. They understood the importance of protecting local businesses while managing growth.”
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The manually powered wheelchairs have two mountain bike wheels and a manual lever to allow for greater access to visitors who may need the wheelchair to experience the battlefield. The chairs will be available for free each day the park is open.
“The all-terrain wheelchairs are the first phase of the park’s increased accessibility strategy,” Park Superintendent Kris Butcher said. “Providing equitable access for all visitors is an integral part of our mission. I look forward to continuing to provide more opportunities for all visitors to experience Manassas National Battlefield Park.”
MNBP has employed several other accessible ways for visitors to access the park. Throughout the park, there are several handicapped parking spaces and paved, level pathways in addition to wheelchair-accessible ramps. There is also signage available in large type.
The all-terrain wheelchairs are available from the Henry Hill Visitor Center, which is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. starting Oct. 14.
The category 4 hurricane hit the southeastern region of the United States in late September and was the deadliest to strike the mainland U.S. since Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Parts of North Carolina had access cut off due to flash floods and landslides.
These two teams — one made of five men and the other of four — helped local cooperatives restore power to the more than 1.4 million coop households in these impacted areas.
The team of five (pictured above) was first sent on Sept. 27 to southwestern Virginia, then, on Oct. 3, the crew was deployed to Lenoir, N.C. to assist Blue Ridge Energy. The four-man crew began in New Castle, Va., on Oct. 1, before being sent to assist Blue Ridge Energy to join the other crew on Oct. 2.
Blue Ridge Energy, according to a NOVEC press release, had 6,800 miles of its 8,500 miles of lines damaged in Hurricane Helene.
“We do know there are parts of our system that will take weeks to repair or rebuild. In many cases, there is no road — not even dirt — where there once was one and our poles are down mountainsides or in the river in some cases,” Renee Walker, director of public relations at Blue Ridge, said.
The cost of Hurricane Helene’s damage is in the billions, according to several reports and analyses. The death toll is above 200 people as well.
