Zak Failla

Assistant Managing Editor

zfailla@dailyvoice.com

Equal parts Lois Lane, J. Jonah Jameson and Vicki Vale, Zak! has traveled from coast-to-coast covering small and big town community news in both in print and online for nearly a decade since his graduation from the award-winning Roy H. Park School of Communications at Ithaca College in 2010.

Before settling into the Hudson Valley, Zak! previously spent time in the New York Daily News newsroom and worked for hyperlocal digital news outlets on Long Island. He wrote sports for The Ithacan and The Ithaca Journal before taking his talents to the Pacific Northwest, where he served as the sports editor at the Shoshone News-Press until heading back east to work with Daily Voice.

Zak Failla's Contributions

He Drove From NY To Rob Loudoun County Charities — Now He’s Going To Prison He Drove From NY To Rob Loudoun County Charities — Now He’s Going To Prison
He Drove From NY To Rob Loudoun County Charities — Now He’s Going To Prison He traveled from New York to rob donation centers meant to help people in need. Now he’s headed to prison for it. Louis Thomas Menatac, 61, of Windsor, New York, was sentenced to 10 years in prison after being convicted in Loudoun County of breaking into nonprofit donation centers and stealing thousands in cash, officials announced. Menatac was specifically targeting charitable organizations in Sterling — nonprofits that provide job training and services for people with disabilities or barriers to employment — because, prosecutors say, they often handle cash due to low-price inventory. Acc…
Drunk Virginia Man Steals Truck From Stafford Wawa, Blames 'Quite A Few' Beers: Sheriff Drunk Virginia Man Steals Truck From Stafford Wawa, Blames 'Quite A Few' Beers: Sheriff
Drunk Virginia Man Steals Truck From Stafford Wawa, Blames 'Quite A Few' Beers: Sheriff A Stafford man made one too many bad decisions before sunrise — starting with stealing a stranger’s truck and ending with his second DUI in a decade, according to the sheriff’s office. William Sullivan, 35, was arrested on Saturday, Aug. 2, after deputies found him drunk and in possession of a stolen vehicle, the Stafford County Sheriff’s Office said. It all started just after 4 a.m. at the Wawa on Butler Road, where a customer ran in for coffee and came out to find his truck missing — stolen in the time it took to grab a cup of joe. Deputies reviewed security footage and saw another custo…
Largo Man Shot Dead In Maryland, $25K Reward Offered As Officers Hunt Killer: Police Largo Man Shot Dead In Maryland, $25K Reward Offered As Officers Hunt Killer: Police
Largo Man Shot Dead In Maryland, $25K Reward Offered As Officers Hunt Killer: Police A man was gunned down in broad daylight in Prince George’s County, and now police are offering $25,000 for help catching whoever pulled the trigger. Demetrius Moore, 41, of Largo, was found shot to death outside on Friday afternoon, August 1, according to the Prince George’s County Police Department. Officers were called around 4:45 p.m. to the 200 block of Harry S. Truman Drive, where they found Moore suffering from gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. Homicide detectives are now trying to determine a motive and identify the shooter or shooters. A reward of u…
Deported Rapist Snuck Back Into US, Raped Woman In Rockville: Feds Deported Rapist Snuck Back Into US, Raped Woman In Rockville: Feds
Deported Rapist Snuck Back Into US, Raped Woman In Rockville: Feds A Mexican national who illegally crossed into the United States and was later convicted of rape in Maryland has now pleaded guilty to unlawfully re-entering the country, federal prosecutors announced. Dimas Gonzalo Contreras-Nolasco, 54, is currently serving a 10-year prison sentence for second-degree rape and sex offense charges in Montgomery County.  Now, he now faces up to two more years in federal prison, a $250,000 fine, and supervised release after pleading guilty to re-entering the US without permission. Contreras-Nolasco was first removed from the country in 2005, after he tri…
Virginia Man Tried To Run Down Woman, Friend Before Beating Them In Woodbridge: Police Virginia Man Tried To Run Down Woman, Friend Before Beating Them In Woodbridge: Police
Virginia Man Tried To Run Down Woman, Friend Before Beating Them In Woodbridge: Police A Virginia man is behind bars after he tried to mow down a woman and her friend with his car — then got out and beat them both, police said. Devin Thomas McLean, 35, of Hampton, was arrested on Sunday, Aug. 3, in connection to a wild assault in Woodbridge, according to the Prince William County Police Department. It happened around midnight on July 30 in the 13100 block of Tory Loop, where police say McLean — described as a former acquaintance of one of the victims — spotted two women walking to a car. That’s when police say McLean intentionally tried to hit both women with his vehicle. T…
‘Multiple Criminal Indicators’ Lead To Gun, Drug Bust On I-695 In Baltimore: MSP ‘Multiple Criminal Indicators’ Lead To Gun, Drug Bust On I-695 In Baltimore: MSP
‘Multiple Criminal Indicators’ Lead To Gun, Drug Bust On I-695 In Baltimore: MSP Three men are behind bars after Maryland State Police say they were caught with two loaded guns — including one reported missing last year — during a traffic stop in Baltimore County. Troopers pulled over a Mazda 6 around 11:00 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 2, on the outer loop of I-695 near Dulaney Valley Road for a "Move Over law" violation and a busted headlight, according to police. While speaking with the occupants, a trooper from the Golden Ring Barrack “observed multiple criminal indicators,” which led to a search of the car, state police said. That search turned up two loaded handguns, in…
Murder Outside Baltimore Liquor Store Ends With Guilty Verdict, Life In Prison Looming Murder Outside Baltimore Liquor Store Ends With Guilty Verdict, Life In Prison Looming
Murder Outside Baltimore Liquor Store Ends With Guilty Verdict, Life In Prison Looming A repeat violent offender has been convicted in the deadly Baltimore shooting of 34-year-old Gary Lee Matthews outside a liquor store, authorities said. Amir Barnes-Henderson was found guilty on Monday, August 4, of first-degree murder and multiple related charges, according to Baltimore City State’s Attorney Ivan J. Bates. Amir Barnes-Henderson Baltimore Police Department Barnes-Henderson now faces life plus 25 years when he is sentenced on September 25, 2025. The shooting happened around 5:22 p.m. on Nov. 21, 2024, outside One Stop Liquor on the 4900 block of Frankford Avenue, po…
SUV Slams Stalled Truck, Kills Driver In Fiery I-66 Crash In Fairfax County: VSP SUV Slams Stalled Truck, Kills Driver In Fiery I-66 Crash In Fairfax County: VSP
SUV Slams Stalled Truck, Kills Driver In Fiery I-66 Crash In Fairfax County: VSP A 20-year-old Virginia man was killed when his pickup burst into flames after being rear-ended on I-66 in Fairfax County, authorities said. Virginia State Police say the deadly crash happened just before 6 p.m. on Saturday, August 2, on the westbound side of the highway at the Fairfax County Parkway. Will R. Hernandez-Villalta, of Manassas, was behind the wheel of a 1996 Nissan pickup that had stopped in a travel lane due to a mechanical issue, police said. That’s when a 2016 Honda Pilot slammed into the back of the truck, sending it spinning across the highway, into bollards separating th…
Wanted Upper Marlboro Man Busted With Cocaine, Suboxone, Stolen Rental Car At Walmart: Sheriff Wanted Upper Marlboro Man Busted With Cocaine, Suboxone, Stolen Rental Car At Walmart: Sheriff
Wanted Upper Marlboro Man Busted With Cocaine, Suboxone, Stolen Rental Car At Walmart: Sheriff A wanted man was busted with a stolen car and drugs in the Walmart parking lot in Dunkirk, according to the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office. Brendan Anthony Morris, 25, of Upper Marlboro, was caught with cocaine, Suboxone, and a stolen vehicle during an investigation in Maryland, officials said. A deputy was dispatched late last month to a southbound stretch of Southern Maryland Boulevard at Route 260 in Dunkirk for a report of a stolen car, according to a sheriff’s office report released Monday, Aug. 4. Deputies tracked the vehicle to the Walmart parking lot in Dunkirk and made contact wi…
Woman Airlifted After Stabbing Inside Calvert County Library, Suspect Nabbed Nearby: Sheriff Woman Airlifted After Stabbing Inside Calvert County Library, Suspect Nabbed Nearby: Sheriff
Woman Airlifted After Stabbing Inside Calvert County Library, Suspect Nabbed Nearby: Sheriff A woman was stabbed inside a Calvert County library on Monday morning, and the suspect was caught just steps away, officials said. Deputies rushed to the Southern Branch Library in the 13900 block of HG Trueman Road in Solomons at around 10:08 a.m. on August 4, according to the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office. They found a woman suffering from a stab wound. The suspect — a man — was still in the area and was immediately taken into custody, authorities said. The victim was flown to a nearby trauma center. Her injuries are not believed to be life-threatening. The library was shut down as d…
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