Suspects Charged In Springfield Double Homicide Of Military Vets

SPRINGFIELD, VA — Fairfax County Police have made two arrests in the double homicide of two military veterans Wednesday in the Newington Forest area of Springfield.

Ronnie Marshall, 20, and D'Angelo Strand, 19, of Fort Washington, Maryland, were arrested Thursday, according to Police Chief Kevin Davis. Each was charged with two counts of second degree murder and two counts of use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.

Police had responded to the 8000 block of Flint Street around 9:20 a.m. Wednesday. Officers arrived within two minutes of the 911 call, found two victims who had been shot in their front yard, and provided first aid. Fairfax County Fire and Rescue personnel responded as well as pronounced the victims dead.

The victims were identified as Col. Edward McDaniel Jr., 55, and Col. Brenda McDaniel, 63, of Springfield. Davis said the victims were husband and wife and both distinguished military veterans. Edward McDaniel Jr. was a physician in the U.S. Army, and Brenda McDaniel is a retired former physician in the U.S. Army.

Davis said at a Thursday news conference the motive remains under investigation. The two suspects and a relative of the victims were coworkers.

"We've lost two brave dedicated, lifelong servants to our country. Two full colonels were murdered in a residential neighborhood, and for what? That's what has got us shaking our heads, for what?" Davis said in a Thursday news conference.

The double homicide is connected to a 911 call and burglary incident on Monday, Davis said. At least one of the suspects was present at the Monday incident.

Tips from the community led police to get a description of the suspect vehicle and ultimately track down two suspects, according to Maj. Ed O'Carroll, commander of the police department's Major Crimes Bureau. O'Carroll said police received a tip Thursday morning that the suspect vehicle was at a business in Lorton. Strand was apprehended and charged.

That same afternoon, police said they had an active murder arrest warrant for Marshall. Fairfax County Police and the U.S. Marshall Service in the area of Janna Lee Avenue in the Mount Vernon area spotted Marshall and arrested him.

The police chief expressed gratitude to the community for providing tips, patrol officers for their response, detectives for the investigation, and the U.S. Marshal Service's Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force for assisting police.

"We wouldn't be here announcing these arrests without our community," said Davis.

These were the ninth and 10th homicides of the year in Fairfax County. The investigation remains active. The gun has not yet been recovered by police.

O'Carroll encouraged anyone with information to call the Major Crimes Bureau at 703-246-7800 or contact Fairfax Crime Solvers. Information may be anonymous.