The following cases were submitted by Officer Russell McAndrews of the Manassas City Police Department in consideration for the 2010 "Case Of The Year" Award. These are ordered by the case occurrence date. Some of the cases may have had names or addresses removed to protect identities for cases that have not been resolved through the court system. All suspects are presumed innocent until convicted in a court of law. These cases are from official reports submitted by the officer for cases that meet the criteria for the 2010 "Case Of The Year".

Money Scan

• Handler: Officer McAndrews
• K9: K9 Mako (Patrol/Narcotics)
• Agency: Manassas City Police Department
• Date: 03-05-2010
• Location: ATF Office, Washington DC

     On Friday 03-05-2010 at 1200, I was contacted by Special Agent Christopher Demlein of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF). Agent Demlein was requesting assistance in scanning some money that was previously seized from a narcotics scene search warrant from #### #### #### Court in Beltsville, Maryland. Agent Demlein's ATF case number was #768060-10-0012. Lieutenant Lawler/18 approved the Mutual Aid request and the authorized the use of a narcotics K9 team for the money scan.
     At approximately 1300, I met with Agent Demlein at his ATF office located at 1401 H Street in Washington DC. Agent Demlein had prepared eight envelopes prior to our arrival at the ATF offices. Agent Demlein had placed bills from the seized money in envelopes, envelopes contained bills that were not from the seized money, and one envelope contained 12 pieces of regular office paper cut to the same size as currency bills.
     After Officer Hollan removed the envelopes from the wall, Agent Demlein stated that K9 Mako had properly identified 2 of 4 envelopes containing a sample portion of $35,000 in paper currency seized during the search warrant. He also advised that an envelope containing non-related paper currency and an envelope containing normal office paper cut to the size of paper currency were in envelopes ignored by K9 Mako.
     Agent Demlein requested that we check two ballistic vests that he had set on the floor of the entry corridor adjacent to a cubicle. Agent Demlein stated that he would not divulge if the vests were present at the search warrant scene or not. Agent Demlein also requested that we check a series of tan fabric bags that he had placed in a cubicle corridor. He stated that he was not going to divulge the contents or relationship to the search warrant. Agent Demlein stated that two of the bags contained firearms seized in the search warrant, one contained the bills of US currency seized in the search warrant, and one contained a sack of coins that was also seized in the search warrant. He also advised that a ballistic vest that K9 Mako had indicated and alerted upon was seized from the search warrant. Agent Demlein retained all property seized from the search warrant, none of which was turned over to me or Manassas City Police.

• Handler: Officer McAndrews
• K9: K9 Mako (Patrol/Narcotics)
• Agency: Manassas City Police Department
• Date: 06-18-2010
• Location: 9827 Buckner Rd, Manassas City

     At 0053 on Friday 06-18-2010, I was dispatched to assist Lieutenant Carroll/15 on a Possible Breaking & Entering located at 9827 Buckner Road. Lieutenant Carroll reported that there was damage to the house, and it appeared that people had broken in to the house. I arrived on scene and met with Lieutenant Carroll. I retrieved my K9 partner from my vehicle and approached the house on-lead.
     While checking the windows and door to the house, I found a latch that I was unable to reach from outside had locked the gate leading through the 6-foot tall privacy fence. To the rear side of the fence, Officer Leonard/156 found an electrical transformer box that was near to the fence. Officer Leonard was able to stand on the box and see in to the back yard. Peering through a loosed section of fencing, I could see a shed in the back corner of the yard. Both Officer Leonard and I heard a noise come from the shed that sounded like something had fallen or been dropped inside.
     While I attempted to find a way in to the backyard, Officer Leonard could see in to the shed through a window on its side. Officer Leonard announced that he saw a head appear in the window of the shed. Immediately, I pushed on the loose section of fencing and an 8-foot long section fell in to the back yard. I entered the backyard and stood in a darkened area of the yard, which provided some concealment. I saw a white female’s face inside the shed through the side window.
     I immediately shouted 2 announcements that I was a Police K9 handler, and ordered the people out of the shed. I shouted that if they failed to comply that I would release the dog. The female slowly pushed the shed door open and announced that she was coming out. As the female started to exit the shed, I ordered her to face away from me and raise her arms above her head. The female complied.
     Immediately behind her, a black male came out with his hands half-raised. I shouted several times for him to raise his arms above his head and turn away from me. The male complied slowly. Once the male was completely out of the shed, I ordered him to lie on his stomach and place his arms to his side. After repeated commands, the male complied. The female was ordered to lie on her stomach and place her arms to her side as well. The female complied immediately.
     Lieutenant Carroll detained both subjects and Officer Leonard cleared the shed, while my K9 partner and I acted as cover officers for Lieutenant Carroll. Once the subjects were handcuffed, I returned K9 Mako to my vehicle.
     Both subjects surrendered to my K9 partner without incident.

• Handler: Officer McAndrews
• K9: K9 Mako (Patrol/Narcotics)
• Agency: Manassas City Police Department
• Date: 10-10-2010
• Location: 9901 Wellington Rd, Manassas City

     At 2143 on Sunday 10-10-2010, I was dispatched for the report of a suspicious occupied vehicle parked behind the Wellington Exxon located at 9901 Wellington Road. The caller reported that there were 2 occupants of the vehicle possibly selling narcotics from the vehicle, parked backwards near the vacuum cleaners. The vehicle was described as a black Jeep Cherokee parked backwards to the rear of the business. The caller reported while on the phone with Dispatch that a second vehicle had pulled up next to the Cherokee. Officer Munsterman/126 arrived on scene prior to my arrival and reported that one occupant of the vehicle fled on foot toward Merrimack Drive. He was described as a black male with dread-locks. She advised that she had one subject still with the car and was waiting on other units to arrive.
     I arrived on scene at approximately 2150 and there were several other units on the scene. There was a black male sitting on the curb behind the vehicle, approximately 20 feet to the left of the Cherokee. Officer Munsterman told me that there was suspected narcotics in the vehicle, and she stated that one occupant had fled on foot. There were no charges at that point on the fleeing suspect and too much foot traffic in the area, so I informed Officer Munsterman that I would not track him. The vehicle was a dark grey Jeep Cherokee parked backwards at the parking spaces directly behind the building, immediately next to the vacuum cleaners on the car wash side of the building. This location was the 2/3 corner of the Exxon station.
     I conducted a safety check of the area around the vehicle prior to conducting a Free Air Sniff with my K9 partner, looking for hazards that may harm my K9 partner. I noted that both front vehicle doors were standing open prior to my approach. The vehicle was a Jeep Grand Cherokee sport utility. The vehicle was not running, but I could hear the radio playing and hear the air conditioning system operating by the sound of moving air.
     The front passenger door was standing open with the window rolled completely down. On the ground next to the curb were laying two $20 and one $10 bills. They were laying on the ground next to the curb at the front vacuum machine between the curb and the passenger door of the vehicle. I collected the bills and checked the interior of the vehicle. In the front passenger, I saw an open can of Jooze alcoholic beverage. In the vehicle. In the front passenger, I saw an open can of Jooze alcoholic beverage. In the center console cup holder, the front holder of two linear holders, was an open 40-oz glass Corona beer. I could see a set of keys in the ignition switch with a long colored ribbon hanging from them almost to the floor, that appeared to be designed to hang the keys from the neck. I closed the passenger side door, and continued my safety check around the rear of the vehicle. The front driver door was standing open and the window was opened approximately 1 inch. I closed the driver side door, and completed my safety check.
     I went to my vehicle to retrieve K9 Mako. I introduced K9 Mako to the passenger front bumper of the front of the vehicle, and gave him his "Find Drugs" command. K9 Mako began sniffing the exterior of the vehicle. As we approached the front driver door of the vehicle, K9 Mako displayed changes in his body behavior consistent with detecting the odor of narcotics. At the rear seam of the driver door even with the door handle, K9 Mako displayed a change in body behavior consistent with an indication to the presence of narcotic odors. K9 Mako alerted to the presence of narcotic odors by scratching the door at the door handle.
     I moved K9 Mako away from the driver door toward the front of the vehicle, and asked Officer Bombara/176 to remove the open alcoholic beverage containers from the vehicle to prevent the front injuring my K9 partner. Officer Bombara reached in the open passenger window and removed both containers, placing them on the ground outside the vehicle next to two trash cans that were sitting in front of the vacuum machines. Officer Bombara then moved to a position away from the vehicle while I continued with the vehicle sniff.
     I opened the front driver door and introduced K9 Mako to the interior of the vehicle. Giving him the "Find Drugs" command, K9 Mako checked the driver door storage pocket and jumped on the driver seat. K9 Mako displayed a change in body behavior consistent with the detection of narcotic odors on the driver seat around the steering wheel. K9 Mako wedged his head between the seat and the steering wheel, and then displayed a change in body behavior consistent with an indication to the presence of narcotic odors. K9 Mako kept his nose on the front driver floor mat on the edge closest to the driver seat, and displayed a change in body behavior consistent with an alert to the presence of narcotic odors by scratching the floor mat. K9 Mako also detected, indicated, and alerted on several other portions of the vehicle interior.
     I placed K9 Mako in my vehicle and returned to the Cherokee to check the areas in which K9 Mako indicated and alerted to narcotic odors. I informed Officer Munsterman where K9 Mako had indicted and alerted. I started hand searching the vehicle in the driver floor area. Under the front driver seat floor mat on the edge nearest the driver seat, I found a small clear plastic zip-lock bag with a green apple symbol printed on it. Inside the zip-lock bag, there were 4 bundles of smaller plastic zip-lock bags held together with rubber bands containing a light colored powdery material. I removed the bag and handed it to Officer Munsterman. There was an empty large zip-lock bag in the center console that had the same green apple symbol on it, which was also an area in which K9 Mako had detected, indicated, and alerted. The powdery material inside the smaller plastic zip-lock bags tested positive for Heroin in a field test kit. The other areas of the vehicle in which K9 Mako had detected, indicated, and alerted to contained small pieces of green plant material believed to be marijuana leaves and seeds. These were not collected.
     Total weight of Heroin found in the vehicle was 10 ounces, and there was 0.75 ounces on the driver's person. At total of $268 in cash were taken from the suspect and placed into the Property Section. Officer Munsterman impounded the Jeep Cherokee and had it towed to the police impound lot.

• Handler: Officer McAndrews
• K9: K9 Mako (Patrol/Narcotics)
• Agency: Manassas City Police Department
• Date: 10-24-2010
• Location: Wellington Rd/Main St, Manassas City

     At 2030 on Sunday 10-24-2010, I was dispatched for a Robbery that occurred near the Main Street/Wellington Road intersection. At 2031, I arrived on the scene and found Officer Daniels speaking with the caller. The caller reported that Gerald Thornton had produced a knife and demanded what money he had on him. The caller stated that Thornton ran toward Sandalwood Drive, where he lived. I left Officer Daniels with the victim and went to Sandalwood Drive.
     In front of the condo on Sandalwood Drive, I met Latasha Rorie who advise that her boyfriend had just robbed a friend of hers. She stated that he ran in to the house, grabbed something, and then fled in an unknown direction. I obtained his information from her, which matched most of the information that had been previously given by the victim.
     I broadcast a BOLO for Gerald Joseph Thornton, who was a black male, approximately 6'01" and weighing approximately 180 pounds. She stated that he had tattoos all over his upper body. She gave his birthdate as 03-08-1987 and advised that he was on Parole through Washington DC for narcotics distribution charges. She stated that he served 5 years in prison and would flee if he saw the police. She said that when she last saw him he was wearing a greenish-grey windbreaker jacket, black t-shirt, blue jeans, and a black skull cap. She said he shouldn't have any weapons, but did not know if he had used one in the robbery or took one from the house when he left.
     As I approached the condo prior to meeting with Rorie, I saw multiple people walking around the area and walking dogs. I determined that a track of the Suspect would be impossible due to scene contamination. We checked a large wooded area for the Suspect, but could not find anyone hiding.
     I returned to Officer Stumpf and Rorie in front of her condo. While sorting through background information on Thornton and obtaining a written statement from Rorie, she advised that Thornton was calling her phone. Thornton told her that he was standing at the 7-11 across from the Giant Burger King. He told her to come get him when the police left her house. We determined that he was at the Winterset 7-11 waiting to meet her at the Wellington Shopping Center's Burger King.
     Officer Bombara advised that the Suspect and girlfriend were crossing Grant Avenue and entering the Exxon station at approximately 2155. Officer Bombara advised at approximately 2157 that the had left the store and were about to enter the cul-de-sac of Merrimack Drive. The Suspect was allowed to get into the cul-de-sac of Merrimack before I stepped from behind the van with K9 Mako.
     I announced that I was a Police K9 Team, and ordered both subjects to lay on the ground. The girlfriend immediately laid face down in a prone position and tried to attain protective cover under a vehicle. The Suspect looked at me, looked down the street, and then looked at K9 Mako before laying face down in a prone position. Officer Urey maintained cover on the Suspect while Officer Stumpf placed him in handcuffs. At 2158, I advised that the Suspect was in custody.
     Suspect surrendered to my K9 partner without incident.

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