News briefs

Local and VCU

Suspect arrested in four Farmville slayings

Police captured a young California man at Richmond International Airport Saturday and charged him in the slayings of four people at a Farmville home.

Farmville police confirmed only the identity of Mark Niederbrock, pastor at Walker’s Presbyterian Church in the Hixburg area of Appomattox County, among the victims found Friday at the home of Debra Kelley, a Longwood professor from whom he was separated. The other victims were females, police said.

Kelley and Niederbrock have a daughter, Emma. Another teen was believed to be visiting the home. Throughout Saturday, friends of Emma Niederbrock posted condolence messages. Although she doesn’t use her name on her MySpace page, friends posted messages and e-mails to one another throughout the day naming her and mourning her death.

The suspect, Richard Samuel Alden McCroskey, 20, of Castro Valley, Calif., was found sleeping at a baggage area at Richmond International Airport and arrested without incident about 11:25 a.m. He had stolen a car from the home, wrecked it before leaving the Farmville area and arrived at the airport in a cab, authorities said.

One of his MySpace pages on the Internet included apparent correspondence with Emma Niederbrock, who appeared to have left a message about two weeks ago saying she was looking forward to seeing him.

Brief by the Richmond Times-Dispatch

Teen believed to have targeted three at Henrico school

A teenager accused of firing a gun in a Virginia Randolph Community High School parking lot is believed to have targeted three students.

Because he allegedly shot at three people, the 16-year-old has been charged with three counts of attempted malicious wounding and three counts of use of a firearm in a felony, authorities said Thursday.

He also faces one count of possession of a firearm on school property.

No one was struck in the incident, which began Wednesday at 12:30 p.m. and ended less than 30 minutes later with the arrest of the suspect and the recovery of the handgun believed to have been used.

The suspect, who was arrested in a wooded area near Virginia Randolph, is a student at the school along Mountain Road in central Henrico County. Authorities have refused to identify the student because he is a juvenile.

Brief by the Richmond Times-Dispatch

Ex-Richmond officer accused of impersonating officer

A former Richmond police officer has been arrested and charged with impersonating a law-enforcement officer when he allegedly pulled over an off-duty cop in December.

Henrico County Police Lt. Doug Barker said Philip Flournoy, 35, of Cottontree Court in Ashland was arrested Wednesday.

Barker said at the time of the incident, Henrico authorities received a call from an off-duty police officer who said that a truck was tailgating her on Gaskins Road. The off-duty police officer pulled over and Flournoy then identified himself as a police officer.

Brief by the Richmond Times-Dispatch

National and International

3 arrested in federal terror probe

A 24-year-old Colorado airport shuttle driver and his father were arrested on formal charges of making false statements to federal agents in an ongoing terror investigation, and a third man was arrested in New York City on the same charges, the Justice Department said Sunday.

Najibullah Zazi, 24, and his father, Mohammed Wali Zazi, 53, were arrested by federal agents late Saturday at their suburban Denver homes. Ahmad Wais Afzali, 37, of Flushing, New York, also was arrested, the Justice Department said.

Each was charged with knowingly and willfully making false statements to the FBI “in a matter involving international and domestic terrorism,” the department said in a statement.

Brief by The Associated Press

Ex-aide says Edwards fathered mistress’ child

A man who once claimed to have fathered the child of John Edwards’ mistress says in a book proposal that the former presidential candidate is the real father and, according to a newspaper report published Saturday, he worked with his campaign finance chairman to hide that secret.

The New York Times said the book proposal by former Edwards aide Andrew Young states he helped facilitate the affair between Edwards and Rielle Hunter. According to the newspaper, Young wrote that Edwards once told Hunter they would wed after Edwards’ wife, who has cancer, died.

Edwards told Hunter the ceremony would be held on a rooftop in New York and the Dave Matthews Bands would make an appearance, the newspaper said, citing its examination of the book proposal.

St. Martin’s Press has said Young signed a book deal with the publisher in June and it involved a strict confidentiality agreement.

Brief by The Associated Press

Protesters hope to highlight issues at G-20 summit

An anti-war group plans to set up a tent city during the Group of Twenty economic summit this week to focus attention on the plight of women and children made refugees by war.

The group, Code Pink, will be among many groups and thousands of activists aiming to use the G-20 summit to spotlight causes including the environment and social injustice.

History shows protesters can successfully use media-saturated events to push their causes, such as when demonstrators at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul were credited with forcing South Korea’s shift to democracy, said Mauro Guillen, a globalization expert at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business.

Brief by The Associated Press