AlexandriaNews

Vice President Joe Biden came to the Alexandria police department yesterday to talk about how the American Jobs Act will keep police officers and other first responders working.

Governor Bob McDonnell announced three upcoming national energy events that the Commonwealth of Virginia will host in October. McDonnell will kick-off the month with the Governor’s Energy Summit, organized by the Southern States Energy Board of which he is chairman, in Alexandria. Later he will host the SSEB annual meeting in Richmond.

Yonis Muhudin Ishak, 44, an immigrant from Somalia, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to distribute cathinone.

Yesterday, the Virginia Department of Education announced the accreditation results for state public schools based on SOL standards. All Alexandria City Public Schools were fully accredited with the exception of T.C. Williams High School and Jefferson-Houston School.

Osvaldo A. Mercado, 53, of Gainesville, Va., was indicted by a federal grand jury yesterday for defrauding Virginia banks of nearly $3.4 million in fraudulent loans.

Alexandria Police are asking for the public’s help in identifying a vehicle that was caught on surveillance cameras during an attempted use of Lenwood “Lenny” Harris’ credit card around 12:00 A.M. Thursday, September 22 in Prince Georges County, Maryland. The vehicle appears to be a white Dodge Caravan with no front tag and more than one person inside.

The home of The VeloCity Bicycle Cooperative was recently sold. The cooperative will need to relocate in January and volunteers of the cooperative are looking for a new space to continue to educate the community in bicycle maintenance, refurbish and recycle donated bikes, run programs for disadvantaged youth, and promote the ecofriendly and health promoting use of bicycles.

Just over one third of those who will eventually be employed at the new Washington Headquarters Services facility at Mark Center are there and Alexandria City staffs have seen few problems so far.

Yesterday, Representatives Jim Moran, Gerry Connolly, and Senators Jim Webb and Mark Warner wrote Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta expressing concern with the ability of the Department of Defense’s transportation management plan to prevent crippling traffic congestion near the Mark Center in light of the DOD’s aggressive occupancy schedule.

The T. C. Williams High School golf team concluded the 2011 season last week with the Patriot District tournament but the season continues for other sports. Here’s how they all did last week.