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Fairfax County police released crazy video of a “street takeover” that left an officer injured and a patrol car damaged last weekend.
Hundreds of people gathered in Springfield, Virginia, around 3 a.m. Sunday to watch drivers do donuts and drive recklessly at a car rally. Police Chief Kevin Davis said the purpose of the meeting was “total chaos and disorder” and that it was dangerous for the first officer to respond to the scene.
“I think we narrowly escaped a line-of-duty death scenario. Because one of our officers was surrounded by a group of masked wannabe thugs, tough guys who surrounded his car and acted criminally, in a manner which I assure you will never happen again in Fairfax County,” Davis told reporters at a news conference.
The police chief said the “blockade” in a parking lot in the 6600 block of Electronic Drive in Springfield endangered the lives of both participants and bystanders. An officer on duty responded after witnessing several vehicles pull into the parking lot and begin driving recklessly.
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Photos released by police showed at least one individual waving a rifle while hanging outside a vehicle.
Dash camera video released by the police department shows a large group of masked people surrounding the officer’s patrol vehicle. At least one person tried to remove the license plate from his vehicle and others blocked a second patrol car that arrived at the scene.
Fairfax County police said some in the gathering tried to get into the vehicle while others banged on the windows. Davis said the officer showed “a lot of grace under pressure in that very volatile scenario.”
The police chief said dozens of officers came “en masse” to help.
“So what does that mean for residential and business communities? It means there were no police officers protecting their neighborhoods, their communities, their businesses because these criminals diverted all of our attention to handling an attack on one of our police officers.” Davis said .
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Once reinforcements arrived, the crowd of drivers and pedestrians began to dissipate.
Four people have been charged in connection with the incident.
Carlos A. Martinez Jr., 18, was arrested at the scene and charged with reckless driving after driving on the wrong side of the road and crashing into a patrol car. FOX 5 DC reported. He was reportedly released after receiving a summons.
A driver hit an officer with his car and then fled the scene. The officer suffered minor injuries. Another police officer began a vehicle chase that ended without an arrest.
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The alleged hit-and-run driver was later identified as 18-year-old Ronal Urrea Hernandez. Police obtained a warrant for his arrest on charges of felony hit and run, speeding to elude and no operator’s license.
Another suspect sought by police is Dylan Heckard, 20, of Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. Police identified Heckard after he posted a selfie making a rude hand gesture on social media. His charges include assault on law enforcement and kidnapping for getting into the police cruiser and preventing the officer from leaving.
A 17-year-old boy, who was not identified because he is a minor, is also charged.
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Davis said police have created a Civil Disturbance team to identify where these street takeovers are planned and respond to incidents before they become dangerous.
“This will not happen again in Fairfax County,” Davis said.
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