A tragic incident unfolded in Virginia as an undocumented migrant, despite having an extensive criminal history, allegedly murdered a 41-year-old mother at a bus stop. This individual, Abdul Jalloh, had been arrested 30 times previously, yet remained free due to legal constraints faced by prosecutors in the Washington, DC, suburb.
Jalloh, a 35-year-old from Sierra Leone, had a record that included serious charges like rape, assault, and theft. However, many cases could not be prosecuted because numerous victims were homeless and unwilling to testify, as explained by the Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office.
This failure to detain Jalloh culminated on February 23, when he allegedly fatally stabbed Stephanie Minter, a 41-year-old mother, at a bus stop on Richmond Highway in Fairfax County.
“Our office managed to convict the defendant on a malicious wounding charge in 2023. Since then, we have strived to ensure accountability every time he encountered the legal system,” stated Laura Birnbaum, the chief of staff for the Fairfax County prosecutor.
Birnbaum highlighted the difficulties in prosecuting Jalloh, noting his pattern of selecting victims without permanent addresses, who are among the community’s most vulnerable.
In numerous instances, the prosecution was hampered by the absence of victims willing to participate or attend court hearings, making it challenging to secure a conviction without their testimony, Birnbaum added.
Fairfax County says it is not a sanctuary jurisdiction, but top Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee slammed Commonwealthâs Attorney Steve Descano and Sheriff Stacey Kincaid for failing to cooperate with ICE on the arrest of illegal migrants.
The US Department of Homeland Security, which said it lodged an immigration retainer for Jalloh as early as 2020, slammed “Virginia’s sanctuary politicians.”
Virginia court records show that Jalloh was first arrested there on assault charges in 2017, and over the following year alone he was picked up for grand larceny, destruction of property and rape.
He was arrested on the rape rap on Oct. 23, 2018, but no details were available and the case is listed as a “nolle prosequi” — which translates to unwilling to prosecute.
Birnbaum said that case was filed under a prior prosecutor’s administration and no details are currently available — but the same designation appears on several other of Jalloh’s prior arrests.
The records show that he was arrested at least 18 times between January 2023 and last week — when he was charged with Minter’s murder — for petty larceny, trespassing, public drunkenness, assault and malicious wounding — a shooting or stabbing “with the intent to maim, disfigure, disable, or kill.”
The online records do not provide further details of the earlier cases.
What is clear is that Jalloh was a free man when he allegedly attacked Minter, with the incident caught on surveillance footage and eyewitness accounts after both got off a bus at the crime scene, police said.
DHS called on the new Democratic governor to commit to working with ICE to keep dangerous migrants off the streets.
“We are calling on Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger and Virginia’s sanctuary politicians to commit to not releasing this murderer and violent career criminal from jail without notifying [Immigration and Customs Enforcement],” DHS Deputy Assistant Secretary Laren Bis said in a statement.
Spanberger in January signed an executive order rescinding an earlier directive that called for Virginia law enforcement to assist the feds in civil immigration matters.
The governor’s office did not respond to a request for comment from The Post on Monday.
