Crime & Safety

Police: Manassas Shooting Suspect Sought for Deportation Since 2002

Police identify suspect charged in Manassas shooting spree that killed three and wounded three more. Deceased victims also identified.

Manassas City Police have arrested and charged a 37-year-old man who is in the U.S. illegally for a multiple shooting Thursday night in the Georgetown South area that left three dead and three more wounded.

Police said Jose Oswaldo Reyes Alfaro was brought in for questioning following the shootings last night and has since been charged with three counts of first-degree murder.

Reyes has been sought for deportation since 2002 after going before a judge in 2001, Manassas City Police Chief Doug Keen said in a press conference Friday.

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Police first responded to 9213 Hood Road in the Georgetown South area of Manassas shortly after 7 p.m. for the report of a shooting. Police discovered four victims at the home near Maury Lane, including 56-year-old Brenda Ashcraft who was found deceased in the front yard. She had been shot multiple times. 

The second victim, 37-year-old William Ashbey Ashcraft, was taken to Prince William Hospital where he was pronounced dead, Chief Keen said.

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Two additional female victims, including a 15-year-old, also suffered gunshot wounds during the attack. A 34-year-old woman is said to be in critical condition after being flown by helicopter to Fairfax Hospital last night and the juvenile was treated and released from a local hospital.

Ramon Gonzalez lives next door to where the attack occurred.  He said Reyes had been living at the residence since at least August or September, but could not specify on his relationship to the family. Gonzalez was home at the time of the shooting and said he heard "two loud bangs" and "a lot of yelling."

Gonzalez said he looked out his window and saw the suspect walking briskly away from the scene. He said it looked as though the suspect was pursuing someone.

Gonzalez said he believes the suspect is from El Salvador.

After the shootings, Gonzalez said about 20 to 30 people arrived at the home trying to talk to police and find out what had happened.

Today, a lone flower pot someone dropped off  sits at the entrance to the home.

Police were called to yet another shooting 30 minutes after the first one,  just across Grant Avenue on Brent Street. That is where they found the third fatality, 48-year-old Julio Cesar Ulloa. Chief Keen said Ulloa suffered a gunshot wound to the head. A 77-year-old female was also found at the home suffering from knife wounds to her head.  She was flown to Fairfax Hospital where she is said to be in stable condition.

Today, a window at the home, located at 9625 Brent St., is broken and glass and police tape litter the scene.

Police immediately put out a vehicle and suspect description provided by witnesses at the Hood Road location following the first attack.  Authorities in neighboring Prince William County discovered the suspect’s vehicle traveling on Dumfries Road near Cobb Road. That is where the suspect was taken into custody without incident shortly after 8 p.m. Thursday.

The investigation is ongoing but police said the two incidents are related and the suspect and victims all knew each other.

Police gathered evidence and witness testimony at both scenes late into the night Thursday. All evidence indicates the shootings were an isolated incident and there is no continuing threat to the community. No motive has been determined at this time, police said.

It had been reported that the second location on Brent Street was the same location where a 15-year-old boy was stabbed to death while walking home from school in November. Chief Keen said the November incident happened on a walkway near the residence and last night's attack happened inside the home. There is no reason to believe the two incidents are related, the chief said. 

Manassas City Manager Lawrenc D. Hughes spoke at the conferece Friday. He called the shootings a "community tragedy." He said the city, along with area schools, local nonprofit organizations and the Boys and Girls Club of Manassas have been working together to develop a presence and relationship with the Georgetown South community.

Several residents along Hood Road Friday called the attacks "shocking" and said there is a lot of sadness in the community. Some residents said the most recent rash of violence is not common in the neighborhood.

"I hear about a lot of gang-related [violence], but nothing like this," said one resident who did not want to be identified.

Police said the attacks are not believed to be gang related.


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