An intoxicated driver led deputies on a high-speed chase through North Stafford late Thursday night, reaching speeds of 100 mph before being stopped with a PIT maneuver. Deputies say 38-year-old Edgard Martinez Martinez turned off his headlights and tried to evade arrest after being spotted speeding on Garrisonville Road. The pursuit wound through multiple roads and commuter lots before ending when the suspect’s car spun into woods near Little Forest Church Road. Martinez allegedly tried to run but was quickly caught. He faces charges including DUI, felony eluding, reckless driving, and fleeing law enforcement, and is being held without bond.

In other incidents, a verbal dispute on Shaw Court escalated into an assault when two women allegedly attacked a victim. Both were charged with assault and battery and released on personal recognizance.


STAFFORD, Va. – Stafford County’s newest dog park is open, and it carries the name of a four-legged public servant who spent years protecting the community.

Friends of Havoc Dog Park opened Saturday, August 9, at 2085 Mountain View Road, just south of Margaret Brent Elementary School. It’s the first dog park in the Rock Hill District and was named for Havoc, a Stafford County Sheriff’s Office K9 who served from October 2013 to March 2020. Havoc died on July 29, 2021, due to health issues.


Editor’s note: This article is part of a series by Potomac Local News introducing candidates for the Stafford County Board of Supervisors. This fall, voters will choose representatives for the Garrisonville, Hartwood, Falmouth, and Aquia Districts. To help local voters learn more about their candidates, Potomac Local News invited all Board of Supervisors candidates to a virtual interview with the same five questions. Their answers have been condensed for clarity. The remaining candidates either declined, had scheduling conflicts, or did not respond.

Videos of the interviews are available here.


A single-story home in Stafford County’s White Oak area was heavily damaged in an early-morning fire Saturday.

Fire and rescue crews were called to the 00 block of McCauley Lane, off Belle Plains Road, at about 3:15 a.m. They arrived within six minutes to find the house fully engulfed in flames.


Editor’s note: This article is part of a series by Potomac Local News introducing candidates for the Stafford County Board of Supervisors. This fall, voters will choose representatives for the Garrisonville, Hartwood, Falmouth, and Aquia Districts. To help local voters learn more about their candidates, Potomac Local News invited all Board of Supervisors candidates to a virtual interview with the same five questions. Their answers have been condensed for clarity. The remaining candidates either declined, had scheduling conflicts, or did not respond.

Videos of the interviews are available.


FREDERICKSBURG, Va. – The folks at VDOT just gave Potomac Local News the heads-up: expect plenty of overnight lane closures and daytime work zones in Stafford County, Spotsylvania County, and the City of Fredericksburg from Sunday, Aug. 10 through Saturday, Aug. 16.

On I-95, crews will be milling and paving northbound between Thornburg (Exit 118) and Spotsylvania (Exit 126) and southbound between Courthouse Road (Exit 140) and Centreport Parkway (Exit 136). Police will direct traffic during the mobile paving operations.


Stafford County investigators say they’ve identified the driver who struck and killed a pedestrian along Richmond Highway early Tuesday morning — and she’s on the run.

Authorities are searching for 21-year-old Gabriela Alejandra Bonilla Flores, wanted for a hit-and-run resulting in death. Deputies say she was behind the wheel of a white Audi Q5 that hit a 36-year-old man walking along the road near Foreston Woods Drive just before 2 a.m. Tuesday, August 5. The victim died at the scene.


Stafford County Public Schools officials say they’re more prepared than ever to get students to class this year, thanks to sweeping changes in the division’s transportation department.

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Editor’s note: This article is part of a series by Potomac Local News introducing candidates for the Stafford County Board of Supervisors. This fall, voters will choose representatives for the Garrisonville, Hartwood, Falmouth, and Aquia Districts. To help local voters learn more about their candidates, Potomac Local News invited all Board of Supervisors candidates to a virtual interview with the same five questions. Their answers have been condensed for clarity. The remaining candidates either declined, had scheduling conflicts, or did not respond.

Videos of the interviews are available here.


FREDERICKSBURG, Va. – International opera and musical theater performer Kelly Glyptis is returning to her roots this month, starring as Mother Abbess in The Sound of Music at Riverside Center for the Performing Arts.

Glyptis, who grew up in Manassas and graduated from what was then Stonewall Jackson Senior High School—now Unity-Reed High School—called the opportunity to perform back home “really special.” She previously toured with The Sound of Music in 2018 and now steps fully into the role for a limited run that begins August 20 and continues through October 26. Glyptis is scheduled to perform through October 6.


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