Montgomery County Police responded to a shooting around 10:15pm on Thursday, April 13 on Fairdale Rd, near Bradshaw Dr and Fairland Elementary School. According to MCPD, “3rd District officers and MCFRS responded to the 14300 block of Fairland Rd. for the report of a shooting.  An adult male victim was located suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. He was transported to an area hospital with serious, but non-life threatening injuries.  No suspect(s) in custody at this time.  This is an active and ongoing investigation.”

According to public safety reporter Cordell Pugh, the victim was struck while inside of a home after shots were fired outside and rounds penetrated the nearby residence.


Montgomery County Police are investigating a homicide that occurred on Sunday, April 9, 2023, on Old Columbia Pike in Silver Spring.  Per MCPD“At approximately 3:22 a.m., Montgomery County Police responded to a residence in the 11800 block of Old Columbia Pike to assist Montgomery County Fire Rescue.  

Upon arrival, officers located an adult male with trauma to the body. Officers provided life saving measures to the victim who was then transported to an area hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Baltimore will conduct an autopsy to officially determine the cause and manner of the death.  


Per Montgomery County: Montgomery County Recreation will host the “Project Prom Dress” giveaway event from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on Saturday, April 15, at the Marilyn J. Praisner Community Recreation Center in Burtonsville. Any high school student with their school I.D. card can shop, try-on and take home a free dress or suit and accessories so they are ready for their school’s prom. The Marilyn J. Praisner Community Recreation Center is located at 14906 Columbia Pike in Burtonsville.

The event will have hundreds of items that have been donated by members of the community throughout February and March. The project helps decrease the financial obstacles of attending prom. WPGC 95.5 FM is co-sponsoring the event. Midday personality Poet will broadcast live from the event and serve as host and celebrity personal shopper for the students.


Montgomery County native Fredricka Whitfield anchors the weekend edition of CNN Newsroom from CNN’s world headquarters in Atlanta, and is also a fill-in/substitute anchor for CNN’s At This Hour With Kate Bolduan. She has been with CNN for over two decades, starting with the news agency in 2002.

Whitfield grew up in Burtonsville and attended/graduated from Paint Branch High School in 1983. She went on to Howard University in DC, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Howard’s School of Communications in 1987. While at Howard, she was a news anchor for campus radio station WHUR.  Whitfield worked for News Channel 8 after college, as well as television stations in Miami, Dallas, New Haven, and Charleston prior to serving as the Atlanta-based correspondents for NBC Nightly News from 1995-2001.


Per MCPD: The Montgomery County Department of Police – Collision Reconstruction Unit (CRU) is investigating a fatal collision that occurred on Saturday, April 1, 2023 in Colesville. At approximately 7:36 p.m., a white 2012 Honda Pilot was traveling westbound on Norbeck Road, just before Norwood Road, when it hit the curb and crossed the center line into oncoming traffic, colliding with a white 2019 Honda Pilot traveling eastbound on Norbeck Road.

The driver of the 2019 Honda was transported to an area hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The driver of the 2012 Honda, 66-year-old Altai Khaltar of Derwood, was transported to an area hospital, where he later died. A third vehicle, a 2019 Nissan Rogue, was behind the 2019 Honda and suffered minor damages from debris caused by the collision. The driver of the Nissan was not injured. This is an active and ongoing investigation. Anyone with information regarding this collision is asked to contact CRU detectives at 240-773-6620.


Per the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Maryland – U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang has sentenced Israel Ramirez, age 29, of Burtonsville, Maryland, to 17 years in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for an armed robbery of an armored truck, two armed bank robberies and the armed robbery of a convenience store.  In each of the armed robberies, Ramirez discharged his weapon.  Ramirez discharged his handgun multiple times in the bank robberies.  

According to his guilty plea, on July 4, 2021 Ramirez committed the armed robbery of convenience store in Laurel, Maryland.  During the robbery, Ramirez brandished a firearm, which he fired into a cigarette display behind the register when the employees had trouble opening the register.  Ultimately, the employees were able to open the register and provided Ramirez with cash.  On July 12th, Ramirez robbed the same store.  An employee recognized Ramirez as the person that had robbed the store and discharged his weapon the week before.  Ramirez kept his hand in his pocket and demanded that the employee open the register.  The employee provided Ramirez with cash from the register and Ramirez left the store.


The preliminary investigation has revealed that the four suspects arrived at the store in a white sedan. The suspects then forced entry into the store by breaking a glass panel with a stone. The suspects then entered the store, stole merchandise, damaged property and left the scene.  Detectives reviewed the surveillance footage of the store and obtained a description of the four suspects.


Community encouraged to sign up to testify and continue providing feedback on draft plan that recommends better access to public transportation, housing, retail, and pedestrian connections along U.S. 29/Columbia Pike

The Montgomery County Planning Board will hold a public hearing Thursday, May 4 at 6 p.m. on the Montgomery County Planning Department’s Fairland and Briggs Chaney Master Plan. At its March 23 meeting, the Planning Board added its comments and accepted the Working Draft of the plan as the Public Hearing Draft, which the public is encouraged to review and provide in-person or virtual testimony. Read the Fairland and Briggs Chaney Public Hearing Draft. Sign-up to testify in-person or virtually at the May 4 public hearing.


Per MCPD: Detectives form the Montgomery County Department of Police – Special Victims Investigations Division (SVID) are asking for the public’s assistance in locating Gabriella Zamora, a missing 17-year-old from Burtonsville.  Zamora was last seen on Saturday, March 25, 2023 in the 3900 block of Blackburn Lane.

Zamora is approximately 5-feet, 4-inches tall and weighs 140 pounds. She has brown hair and green eyes. She has tattoos on her left wrist and forearm, upper/middle back and on her left calf. Zamora was last seen wearing a black hooded sweatshirt and black sweatpants.  Police and family are concerned for her welfare.


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