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Yahoo
4 days ago
- Yahoo
Boyfriend charged with fatally shooting DC cop nearly 30 years ago
The boyfriend of a police officer who was found shot to death in her Maryland apartment nearly 30 years ago has been charged with her murder again, decades after the case against him was previously dropped, authorities said Wednesday. Officer Denna Fredericka Campbell, 24, was found dead in the White Oak apartment she shared with her boyfriend on Sept. 16, 1995, according to police. The four-year veteran of the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department had been shot five times, police said. Her department-issued handgun was missing from the apartment and was never found, police said. Her boyfriend, Amir Jalil Ali, told police that he found Campbell unresponsive upon returning from a store, according to the Montgomery County Department of Police. He called 911 to report that his girlfriend had been shot during a burglary, police said. Ali -- who was known by the name Kenneth Burnell Wonsom at the time -- was initially charged with murder in 1995, though the case was dropped two months later, police said. MORE: Cold case murder solved 40 years after Utah teenager killed after hitchhiking to work: Police The 62-year-old Ali has been newly charged with first-degree murder in her death, according to Montgomery County Department of Police Chief Marc Yamada. He was taken into custody on Tuesday in Laurel, police said. "This arrest closes one of the longest-standing cold cases for our department," Yamada said during a press conference on Wednesday. "While this arrest won't erase the pain of losing Denna, we hope that it does bring some resolution or sense of peace," he added. Ali is being held in the Montgomery County Detention Center, police said. Montgomery County State's Attorney John McCarthy said he doesn't know why his predecessor initially dropped the case against Ali. "The decision was made not to proceed in that matter," McCarthy said during Wednesday's press briefing. "I was not privy to, nor do I know, what the conversation was regarding why the charges were dropped at that point in time." McCarthy did say there has been "a lot more detail" developed by the police department's cold case unit since Ali was initially charged, that "fleshes out this case." The state's attorney was unable to go into the specifics of the case ahead of the suspect's bond hearing. Montgomery County Detective Paula Hamill said investigators have been reexamining the cold case for the past year or so, including conducting new interviews. Detectives spoke to people who were able to shed light on Campbell's life and the "fear that she felt at that time and the concerns that she had" about her boyfriend, Hamill said. Ali's attorney, Richard Finci, countered in a statement that "little has changed" since the initial case against Ali. "The prior Indictment was dismissed by the State due to lack of evidence after Mr. Wonsom was detained for a lengthy period of time and little has changed," Finci said. MORE: Cold case solved over 50 years after a young mom was killed, her 3-year-old daughter left alive Hamill said she was able to speak with Campbell's father on Tuesday about the arrest. "The only words that he could get out were, 'Thank God,'" Hamill said. Her mother died several years after the deadly shooting, Hamill said. Campbell had a "promising career" with the DC police department and was already a "hero in the community" before she was killed, D.C. Metropolitan Police Executive Assistant Chief Andre Wright said Wednesday. "In 1993, she selflessly pulled four victims out of a burning van on Pennsylvania Avenue," he said. "Her actions that day earned her commendation from MPD leaders and praise from her community." Her colleagues remembered her as being "energetic and full of life," Wright said. "We recognize that today's news doesn't bring Officer Campbell back to her family, our community or our department, but we hope this news can bring some form of closure to all of those who have carried the burden of this tragedy for over three decades," he said.
Yahoo
17-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Oregon man faces charges after car found filled with weapons, ammo near White House
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – An Oregon man was arrested in Washington D.C. for allegedly parking a car full of weapons near the White House on Wednesday. Officers said Nolan R. Churan, 23, was parked in an area reserved for Congressional staff without a parking permit and with what seemed to be a bow and arrow, knife, and empty pistol holster inside. Tree falls into power line, causing power outages for thousands in Vancouver U.S. Capitol Police said Churan was not near the car and was eventually tracked down near the north barricade of the U.S. Capitol. When interviewed, Churan reportedly told police he had guns in his car. The car, a Subaru Outback with a large tricycle attached to the roof, was investigated by a K-9 team with the DC Metropolitan Police Department. Officers reported finding a rifle, a handgun, and ammunition along with multiple knives, axes, a halberd, a rapier sword, and a bow and arrow. Churan faces charges of unlawful activities, carrying a pistol without a license, carrying a rifle without a license, carrying a dangerous weapon (sword), possessing a high-capacity ammunition feeding device, having an unregistered firearm and unregistered ammunition. Officials said they are not sure what Churan was doing on Capitol grounds, but added that 'there does not appear to be a nexus to the Congress.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Solve the daily Crossword
Fox News
16-07-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Man arrested with tricycle on car roof at US Capitol allegedly had arsenal of weapons, ammunition inside
A 23-year-old Oregon man was arrested Wednesday morning after U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) officers found his tricycle-toting Subaru illegally parked on Capitol grounds with an alleged trove of weapons, including an antique sword, guns, knives and unregistered ammunition inside. Nolan R. Churan is charged with unlawful activities, carrying a pistol without a license, carrying a rifle without a license, carrying a dangerous weapon — sword, possession of a high-capacity ammunition feeding device, possession of an unregistered firearm and possession of unregistered ammunition, according to authorities. Officers with the USCP First Responders Unit were patrolling Capitol grounds at about 9 a.m., when they noticed a Subaru Outback with a large tricycle strapped to the roof, according to a news release. The vehicle was parked in an area reserved for congressional staff along the 200 block of Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, and did not have the proper parking permit. Officers spotted what appeared to be a bow and arrow, a knife and an empty pistol holster inside the car. USCP analysts pulled Churan's driver's license, which officers and the USCP Command Center used to track him down near the North Barricade of the Capitol building. During an interview, Churan allegedly told officers he had guns inside the car, according to the release. The D.C. Metropolitan Police Department's firearms detection K-9 verified there was either a gun or ammunition in the vehicle, prompting a search by the USCP Crime Scene Evidence Specialists. A rifle, handgun, bow and arrow, halberd axe, rapier sword, multiple rounds of ammunition, multiple knives, and a bow and arrow were allegedly found inside the Subaru, according to police. "Our Threat Assessment Section is working to learn more about what Churan was doing on Capitol Grounds," officials wrote in the release. As of Wednesday afternoon, authorities had not determined a connection to Congress. Churan does not have an active file with USCP. USCP did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
