<bt>Andrew M. Jacobs, 42, of Ware Street West, Vienna, was arrested Sunday night for the apparent attempted kidnapping of 10-year-old twin Vienna girls. Jacobs was the girls' martial arts instructor at Mt. Kim Tae Kwon Do, also in Vienna.
According to police reports, at about 12:30 a.m. Sunday morning, Vienna police went to the 1000 block of Moorefield Hill Grove in response to a 911 call reporting a burglary in progress. The residents had reported that someone had entered their house and proceeded to their children's bedroom.
According to Capt. Mike Miller of the Vienna Police Department, when the suspect entered the girls' bedroom the two girls screamed and fought back, kicking and scratching. The noise alerted the parents, who intervened. A struggle ensued, and the suspect fled the home.
Miller said the girls' reaction was in accordance with how Jacobs himself had instructed them to respond if accosted.
The residents told police the suspect was wearing a black ski mask, but, said Miller, "the mom picked up on the voice, and the physical description made the parents believe it could be the girls' martial arts instructor."
Police sought out Jacobs, said Miller and "proceeded to interview him, and he confirmed at that point that he was one and the same as who had perpetrated these crimes." However, said Miller, he would confess only to burglary. Miller noted that the intruder went directly to the girls' bedroom, which is not typical of a burglary.
Jacobs was arrested at 10:15 p.m. the day of the incident and was charged with burglary, two counts of abduction and four counts of assault. His bond hearing was Monday, and he is being held on all charges without bond, said Miller.
NEIGHBORS were upset by the crime but pleased with the arrest.
"I have an 8-year-old son, so I'm outraged," said Dani Raphael. "There's at least four houses on this block that have small kids, and if they'd known him it could've been any one of them." However, the crime itself, she said, was no shock. "My husband's car was stolen from our driveway in broad daylight, so it doesn't surprise me," she said.
Raphael also applauded the family's response. "I'm thrilled. I think it's great that the kids took care of business and the parents took care of business."
"It was scary," said Marlene Threlfall. "I'm just glad they caught him." For Threlfall, whose house is for sale, the affair was not only frightening but highly inconvenient. "I had people looking at the house when all the filming was going on," she said, referring to the television news coverage that ensued. "And it's such a quiet, safe neighborhood," she said.
Deborah Woodcock said she knows the girls and has known them to be "very alert and mature," so she was not surprised by their response to the invasion. "Obviously, it was very frightening and very sad that someone they knew and trusted turned around and tried to hurt them," she said.
Woodcock said she was somewhat relieved to learn that the crime was personal and "not a random act of violence" in her neighborhood. She also applauded the Vienna Police Department for their swift reaction. "It makes me feel safer to know they were able to come up with this guy within 24 hours," she said.