Burke resident Tom O'Conner's recent late-night jaunt to the store for a half-gallon of milk turned into anything but ordinary as he just missed a head-on collision with a vehicle being chased by police.
O'Conner's near miss occurred at approximately 11 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 19.
"The guy was trying to elude them right through Burke Centre. He was heading east in the westbound lane. I just saw him blow by me, I got out of his way," he said.
Fairfax County police public information officer Jacqi Smith confirmed the incident, which started in Burke when police approached the vehicle and saw someone sleeping inside.
"Initially they approached his car. He sped off. It was a pursuit," Smith said.
The individual, who police identified as Ali Issa, 34, of no fixed address, was driving on a suspended license. Police determined it was Issa from the vehicle registration and identifying him by sight.
"It was determined through investigation," Smith said.
Issa is being charged with speeding to elude, reckless driving and driving on suspended license. He remains at large, according to Smith.
The car stopped by Wesley Pond Court off Burke Centre Parkway, where police pursued the individual on foot. Burke United Methodist Church is on Wesley Pond, along with a few houses. Ed Pruitt is the pastor at the church and a resident of the court. He was watching the news when he heard the commotion.
"I was up watching the news when I heard the sirens and saw the lights," he said, pointing to the wooded area between his neighbors’ houses. "The dogs went right between those houses."
Tessa Gedney, a neighbor, also came out to see what was going on.
"We don't know what it was. We saw the police cars. They were right by the trees, searching in the woods. My neighbor went out, and they told him to go back inside," she said.
According to Smith, the police will keep an eye out for Issa, but no all-points-bulletin was issued.
"If officers come across him again and they run his name, it will show he's wanted," she said.