A McLean high school student was arrested for arson, creating a bomb and other charges after the Fairfax County Fire Marshal's Office investigated a house fire caused by a Molotov cocktail, according to Fairfax County Circuit Court documents.
Fire Department investigators found remnants of a Molotov cocktail that has been thrown at a McLean house on Nov. 15 at 12:37 a.m. The improvised incendiary device had duct tape on it, atypical of a regular Molotov cocktail, according to search warrants filed in Fairfax County Circuit Court on Nov. 23.
When investigators interviewed the homeowners, fire officials learned the 16-year-old son of the residents received an e-mail from Garrett Scott McNamara, 18, who hoped to purchase drugs, according to the court documents. The mother of the 16-year-old saw the e-mail and informed McNamara's mother of the drug solicitation.
McNamara's mother found drugs in her son's room at their home in the Rotonda on Greensboro Drive after confronting him, according to the warrants.
"Further investigation of this incident revealed that Garrett McNamara [and his friend] were upset because [the 16-year-old] had advised Garrett McNamara's mother of the drug solicitation," according to the warrant.
Fire officials conducted a search of McNamara's car at his high school. They found duct tape, matches, lighters, a machete, bats, double sided knives and an empty bottle with the same name brand as the bottle used to make the Molotov cocktail, according to the warrants.
Fire investigators requested the search warrant to search McNamara's computer for reference materials that would help in manufacturing an incendiary or explosive device.
McNamara, according to computer records, was arrested Nov. 29 for arson, possession of burglary tools, creating or using a bomb or explosives device which are all felonies. He was also charged with misdemeanors of possessing weapons at school as well as purchasing alcohol under the age of 21.
The high school student had a bond motion scheduled for Monday in Fairfax County Circuit Court and a preliminary hearing scheduled for February.
<b>A Good Neighbor?</b>
<bt>Be wary of giving house keys to a neighbor.
After his neighbor reported the theft of her $30,000 diamond ring from her bedroom, McLean resident John A. Dammer, 20, was charged with grand larceny, selling stolen property and burglary, according to computer records.
The McLean woman reported the theft of her wedding ring as well as cash from her son's and daughter's bedrooms on Nov. 11, according to search warrants certified in Fairfax County Circuit Court on Nov. 26.
Her home "did not display any signs of forced entry" and "the interior of the home was undisturbed," according to the warrants.
While talking to the woman, Fairfax County Police Officer M. Hunter learned that the woman's neighbor — the mother of Dammer — was also robbed and was missing a pair of diamond and gold earrings valued at $4,000.
The officer conducted an investigation through the Regional Pawn Data Sharing System and determined that John A. Dammer sold a 1.75 carat diamond on Oct. 8 for $900 to Crossroads Pawn in Falls Church, according to the court documents.
The officer learned the next door neighbors had been provided with a house key to their home. He also learned that Dammer's mother told the neighbor that her son had stolen her diamond and gold earrings and pawned them because of "a debt."
"Dammer apparently informed his parents after learning of the police involvement," according to the warrants.
Police filed the warrant to search Dammer's home for records and documents of pawn receipts, his neighbor's house key, as well as two baguette diamonds and a platinum ring bearing the inscription "Always my [woman's name]."
Dammer's preliminary hearing is currently scheduled for February.
<b>$500,000 Abduction?</b>
Police have requested to search Guan Yu Lu's 2001 Mercury Sable for masks, bindings, blood, bloody clothing, hair, fibers and fingerprints, as well as cell phones, documents pertaining to the purchase of cell phones and men's clothing and records of the rental of Room 27 at the Stratford Motor Lodge in Falls Church.
Lu and Bai Chuan Shu, both 19 and students from the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, were charged with abduction with intent to extort money. They face a preliminary hearing in February in Fairfax County General District Court.
Police received a call from a McLean man who said his 20-year-old friend and occupant of his house had been abducted. The complainant told police he received several telephone calls on Nov. 20 from an Asian male who told him in Chinese that his friend would be killed if he did not give the callers $500,000, according to search warrants filed in Fairfax County Circuit Court.
Telephone calls were made from cellular phones, including the victim's. Records and cell site locations were retrieved from Cingular/ATT Wireless, which indicated that some calls were placed in the area of Park Avenue and Little Falls Street in the City of Falls Church.
Fairfax Police detectives conducted surveillance of the Stratford Motor Lodge, and observed two Asian males entering and exiting Room 27 of the motel.
"The detective from the Fairfax County Police and the agent from the FBI knocked on the door of Room 27 and were greeted by two Asian males," according to the search warrants. "The males allowed the officers into the room at which time one of the agents noticed that the victim was bound and gagged with duct tape and was lying in the bath tub."
Lu and Shu were immediately arrested, according to court documents.
The victim told police the suspects were wearing masks when they abducted him and implied they had a handgun and knife, according to warrants.
The victim's credit card was used to purchase $1,290 worth of clothing from Tysons Corner Mall, and two Asian males were depicted purchasing clothing with the credit card from video surveillance, according to the warrants.