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Lowes Island Party Ends Fatally

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Average: 4.5 (2 votes)
By
Crystal Delgaudio
Sunday, 19 July 2009
 
...two individuals had a skirmish on the adjoining Lowes Island Boulevard. One subject pulled a firearm and shot the male victim.
 

Close to 3 a.m. on Sunday morning, Lowes Island resident Lisa Tarro heard the sounds of shouts coming from the house across the street and what she assumed to be fireworks a bit too late in July. Moments after rising from bed, she discovered there was a tragic murder crime scene that had unfolded while she was lying safely in her home.

“ I came out and found a police man right here in my bush… they did a lot of questioning…they separated the kids into groups…,” said Tarro.

The questioned subjects were released close to 6 a.m.

Police received a call at 2:48 a.m. Sunday July 19, 2009. Moments later, Sheriff's deputies arrived at the 20412 Tappahannock Place on the scene of a homicide-the fifth this year in Loudoun County.

According to Sheriff's Office spokesman Kraig Troxell, there was a party taking place at the Lowes Island home in Sterling when two individuals had a skirmish on the adjoining Lowes Island Boulevard. The conflict turned deadly, however, when one subject pulled a firearm and shot the male victim.

The body was found by officers on the lawn of the home where the party was being held. The victim was transported to Inova Fairfax hospital, where he was pronounced dead. A suspect is in custody.

The identity of the college-age, male victim has not been released to the public yet and police are verifying the victim's identity. 

Neighbors report that the house where the party occured is in the foreclosure process and the couple who owned the house have already moved out and were allowing their college age son to live there.

UPDATE (1 p.m., July 19): 

The Loudoun County Sheriff's Office has released the names of two men involved in the shooting on Tappahannock Place. 

Guillermo A. Alvarado, 20, of Berryville, and Rasheed L. Nurse, 26, of Herndon have been charged with 2nd Degree Murder. Both are being held without bond at the Loudoun County Adult Detention Center. Both men were attending a house party, along with the victim. 

The incident apparently began with Alvarado became engaged in an argument with the victim (whose name is being withheld pending notification of next of kin) at the home in the Lowes Island community of Sterling. The argument was taken outside where an altercation occurred between the victim and both suspects. 

Nurse allegedly brandished the firearm that caused the victim's fatal gunshot wound. 

 

NOTE: This is a developing story. More details will be released as they become available. 

 
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Comments

Anonymous (not verified)

Loudoun is changing, and not for the better, it's sad! Areas that were safe to walk and be out at night, are no longer, and are becoming more and more like Fairfax.

Anonymous (not verified)

The world is changing in a sad way...

Anonymous (not verified)

The person who made this comment is a complete idiot. It's perfectly safe to walk around Potomac Falls. These idiots weren't from the area and this was clearly not a random act. Get a clue.

Anonymous (not verified)

What's up with the ownership of that property? Who was actually living there?

I've know I've seen that name before, in other property transactions around Loudoun. And, that's a really expensive house to be renting to someone who'd have a house party for such young, and armed guests. Are there any gang affiliations at work here? By the way, the home address given as the owner of this property has been foreclosed upon.

Something doesn't smell right about all this - I wouldn't be surprised if there's more to this "Mr. Vargas" than meets the eye ...

Anonymous (not verified)

I didn't see the name Vargas anywhere in this article. Am I missing something here?

Anonymous (not verified)

The ownership was made clear in the article. The parents own the property while they await full foreclosure, they moved out and allowed their adult aged son to stay there for a while- basically until the bank tells him he has to go.

Anonymous (not verified)

As long as Parents continue to absolve themselves of their responsibilities and turn a blind eye, I fear this will get worse. Why have we become so easy on our kids. I live in this neighborhood, and it's true this sort of thing does not happen, but I also see a ton of teenagers staying out late and causing a ruckus. And for the life of me, I CANNOT understand the parents who let their kids drive around those golf carts at night with 4-5 other kids in tow. It's dangerous and obnoxious. GET CONTROL OF YOUR CHILDREN AND TAKE SOME RESPONSIBILITY

Anonymous (not verified)

While I agree that parents are not very good at parenting these days, all involved were adults.

Anonymous (not verified)

not to contradict your fine judgement of parenting...but by that age they are their own person. teens will always be teens. no one person is alike there for you shouldn't judge them for what they do with out knowing, and for sure you can't judge the parents ether.Things happen in life that you can not control.

"he that has not transgressed may cast the first stone"

Anonymous (not verified)

did you not read the article? it was his parents house, they are getting forclosed apon but they are not kicked out yet. they decided to let their son live there for the time being while they still have the house. he throws a party. kid gets killed.

Anonymous (not verified)

"I came out and found a police man right here in my bush…"

(snicker)

Anonymous (not verified)

r.i.p Bryan Vidarte

Anonymous (not verified)

there any gang affiliations at work here???
ive read dozens of articles about this case and not ONE has mentioned any gang affiliations. What an ignorant thing to say. how does that even come across? u hear about a shooting with young people at a party and asume a gang must be involved. Bad situations happen unfortunatly and in this case it was just a very sad one. I speak because I know, now stop letting your clueless mind mis lead your very wrong judgements.

Anonymous (not verified)

there any gang affiliations at work here???
why would that even come upon subject. ive read dozens of articles and that comment is the first to bring up a typicall "oh my god they must have been a gang fight" reaction. how ignorant must i say for such a stupid question. Things happen that shouldnt, situations go wrong. ALL three people involved were good hearted people that got into an extrmely sad situation. And i say becuase i know not out of ignorance.

Anonymous (not verified)

Anyone that doesn't have their head in the sand would at least wonder about it. FYI, gangs and gang violence are prominent and growing in this area. Sorry but "good hearted" people don't shoot a man dead.

Anonymous (not verified)

It's all gone to hell ever since that Trump guy came to town... :)

Anonymous (not verified)

Why would a "good hearted" or for that matter non gang member just so happen to have a gun handy? To ask if this is a gang related incident is not a stupid question. If you are attending a party why bring a gun?

Anonymous (not verified)

"there any gang affiliations at work here???
ive read dozens of articles about this case and not ONE has mentioned any gang affiliations. What an ignorant thing to say. how does that even come across? u hear about a shooting with young people at a party and asume a gang must be involved. Bad situations happen unfortunatly and in this case it was just a very sad one. I speak because I know, now stop letting your clueless mind mis lead your very wrong judgements."

That is a very reasonable question. Most shootings at parties involve gang members. Most everyone else isn't that stupid. Spare the rest of us your PC attitude. You are going to look foolish if they are found to be gang members.

Anonymous (not verified)

The question I would pose is whether or not there were drugs being used or bought and sold at the party. If so that is a formula for all sorts of bizarre behavior.

Drugs and underage drinking were very common at parties held without parents present in the 1970's and 1980's in Fairfax County. These parties often lasted until 3 and 4 in the morning similar to the description given in the article of the time.

Our Fairfax neighborhoods were having drug houses set up by distributors to lure the underage young people into using or to supply them. Our immediate reaction was to organize Neighborhood Watch Programs, organized and run by the people who lived in the local community .

Regardless of the details, let this be a wake up call to parents and the community at large------of Lowes, Potomac Falls and Sterling and Loudoun County, generally. It's a beautiful, lovely area let's work to keep it that way.

Anonymous (not verified)

If only western Loudoun had more "good hearted" people like this, who shoot up parties on the weekend for fun.

Maybe then there would be real change in this godforsaken county

Anonymous (not verified)

The Lowes Island community, as a whole, has been deteriorating for some time. Students from Sterling Park and Sugarland selling drugs to the kids here and around Cascades . . . they go where the $$ are - kids "sneaking" out at all hours and texting each other to meet up behind Lowes Island Elementary - drinking, sex, you name it!!

Out of control party next door at 2:00 in the morning - why didn't the neighbors call the police earlier? No one seems to want to take any responsiblity and protect the community!

Anonymous (not verified)

The Lowes Island community has been deteriorating for quite some time. Sterling Park and Sugarland kids are selling drugs to the kids in Lowes Island and Cascades - they go where the $$ are. Kids sneaking out at all hours and texting to meet up at Lowes Island Elementary and they are drinking and having sex where our little ones play!!

An out of control party at the house next door? Why didn't the neighbors call the police? No one wants to get involved and protect our community!!

Anonymous (not verified)

You're right on about those kids in Lowes Island and Cascades. There must be something in the water over there that keeps them from selling drugs to eachother. Pretty smart you are.

Anonymous (not verified)

Unfortunately, nobody can out run crime. Crime is crime no matter where you live. We are all eligible to be victims, even in the richest of neighborhoods. I work with youth and what I am finding is that a lot of the youth who do not have a family background of crime/violence, drug activity, arrest seem to crave that lifestyle, because it is glorified in the popular culture. They often are quicker to pull the trigger based on others believing that they will not actually do it. Sometimes, that person is more dangerous than your experienced gangster.

Anonymous (not verified)

hollywood, minority gangsta culture, spoiled white suburban kids, rampent illegals all play a part, whos to blam. LIBERALS and those that vote to allow it all to go on.
You get what you ask for. America is destiny to collapse under its weight of everyone can do anything and no morals,
greed and money rule here hence democracy will perish. freedom is not free it must be fought for. but that means that not all get the same outcome in life. democracy is majority rule in the USA minorities rule and they have nothing to lose so they make bad laws. we are all going to have to eat it!

What IF? (not verified)

All you find from this news outlet is information from people who weren't there. Why didn't you talk to the people who were at the party or live in the house. Everyone asking about any gang relation like it would justify the actions of ONE person. It was an unfortunate event, that college students, who were enjoying themselves had to witnesses one persons mistake. Your so focused on making story out of nothing.
Your looking for someone to be guilty... how about the people arrested, why don't you start there and stop. WHAT IF? What if hosting the party at there home was an innocent gift from one friend to another. What if the night went perfect and everybody was happy, thanking the host for welcoming them to there home. What if a problem that started out side the home came in uninvented and left when asked to leave. What if they waited outside for the victim to come out. What if a victim shoot and bleeding from the neck fell on your lawn. What if you were the owner? Would you have been on your knees with your shirt covered in blood on the victims wound for OVER 15 minutes praying to God repeating the prayer "our father" over and over again hopping with every inch of your heart that your making a difference and keeping him from passing away. What if you were told everything you did came to an end when the victim arrived at the hospital. What if strangers started to judge you and had no clue how much people are suffering from this event. Please stop judging ask questions... but don't judge

Anonymous (not verified)

but alas we do have the right to judge. see this is not YOUR neighborhood but all of ours. and those of us that invested our life saving to buy homes and bring our small kids here do not have to feel sorry for some irresponsible kids with very very poor judgement,. clearly someone was friends or couting some very bad people. one way or another those thugs hear about this party from someone on the inside. you are judged by the company you keep in life. if you want to be cool and hang with the gangstas then you will pay the price in you career, and in this case on life its self.

having this party was dumb from the start. the son should have know better than to host a party. back in my day only the idiot kids did this, nothing has changed. and yes in my day this also happened that has not change either. attending an unsupervised party is not safe now or ever... you see their is a reason why bars and clubs have bouncers. security checks etc. cameras and frequent police drive bys, not to mention liquor laws etc. those things help keep things in line. not perfect .. no one can stop a mad man from commiting a random act but it may reduce it.

i feel oweful for the loss but i am mad that someone has brought this to MY neighborhood. They have cost us all money, worsened a hard fought reputation, lost a life, endangered our families.

so please stop your whining, take responsibility for what has happened. you may not have cause it directly but you caused the environment for it to happen. next time follow the old saying. dont dump where you sleep.. even a dog knows that!

Anonymous (not verified)

We all need to be diligent in disciplining our kids and, where lacking, discipline others. But don't lump all Latinos and foreigners in to a bad category. There are alot of sweet caring, family-centered Latino men and women as there are in any culture. Want proof, go to any Fairfax or Loudoun park on the weekends! But just like in WV, you have white guys and kids that shoot others as well. But I say take an interest in the community, see something going wrong, speak up! Like another person said, had any neighbor given a hoot about the party and called the Police, that kid may still be alive! But remember, that Nurse Fella decided to buy or gain access to the gun, he decided to buy ammo, he had a conceal the gun, he had to pull the gun Sunday morning and he decided to pull the trigger. As a gun expert, I know the process of gun logistics. Hold him accountable...go for First Degree murder and let our struggling society get rid of him via the death penalty and move on. Put the $75,000+ per year towards community intervention and education, as well as to cleaning up Sterling Park.

Anonymous (not verified)

every word well said

Anonymous (not verified)

my brother is an innocent man, he is not guilty.
he did not physically do anything and shall therefore not be held against anything.

Anonymous (not verified)

if he pulled th etrigger he should hang, sooner the better
and his friend should never see daylight again.

Anonymous (not verified)

why haven't any of the people who attended the party commented on this horrifying tragedy? I am sure they could shed some light. Find it hard to believe the host didn't know the victim or the two arrested...

Anonymous (not verified)

let me shed some light on the ignorant public.
READ ALL of the articles, not just one. Because they all say things in different ways. One says they dont know who even shot the gun, two G and the victim were already having confrentation in the party and went out to have a "fist fight" and even so the three were fighting phyically because in the mug shots you will notice how one of the two men has a busted lip. Im not defending the actions but i am defending on the situtation. A dear friends life is gone and that can never be returned but dont be so closed minded and sterotypical to relate such activities always to things that ARE NOT EVEN IN DISCUSSION!

ALSO
Why would a "good hearted" or for that matter non gang member just so happen to have a gun handy?
If you did not know the law in virginia, anyone can have a registered gun concealed. I can have a gun in my car with a towel over it, am i a gang memeber? if someone OWNS their gun, there could be many reasons; but one simple one comes to mind which is protection. There are alot more other idiots with guns that have it for dumb reasons. IT WAS JUST A BAD AND VERY SAD SITUTATION for ALL THREE!

RIP B.

Anonymous (not verified)

To Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 2009-07-20 17:48

NO ONE BEFORE YOU ON THIS THREAD "dumped on Latinos" so why are you BRINGING IT UP????? You are like many in this sad day and age, looking for racial things to be offended by. How about being offended by a VIOLENT, UNJUSTIFIED DEATH?

Now, to the person who posted right above me... a responsible gun owner would NOT be armed and looking for trouble, at 3am on a weekend. Did the gun go off by itself??? I'm sorry you lost your friend but face the facts, the shooter needs to be held accountable for his actions. I grew up in a rural area, we all had guns and no one ever shot each other. Think about it.

You people on this thread think you're doing right by defending the shooter, but unless you stand up to the problems within your own circle of friends, this violence will continue to occur and MORE innocent people will die! It's a sad day in this ultra-liberal society when your friend is dead and you can't bring yourself to say that HIS MURDERER WAS IN THE WRONG!!!!!!!!

God bless you in your time of sorrow, I am sorry that tragedy occured to people you know, but I hope you can soon come to understand the difference between RIGHT AND WRONG

Anonymous (not verified)

My friend did not deserve to die that way!!! No one does! The two subjects deserve to be in PRISON!!!!!!! How can you try to justify and defend a person who takes a gun to a party?? If you attend a party it is to have a good time, what is the need for a gun? especially if there are drinks??? Or are they just some want to be thugs that apparently by the looks of the picture got their asses handed to them. Could not accept it like real men, he just had to pull out a gun like a COWARD?!?!? It is wrong to assume that it was gang related but two against one? and that one ending up dead?? Guns don't kill people, STUPID and IGNORANT people that serve no purpose to society do!!!!!

-I would be EMBARRASSED to know and attempt to defend these two CRIMINALS (Alvarado & Nurse)!!! I am sorry for you if he is your friend or brother BUT the judge should through the book at BOTH of them!!! do society a favor!!!! Justice is needed for the victim and his family.

Rest in peace B.

Anonymous (not verified)

First of all i would like to express to you all how sorry i am for bryan's death, i knew him very well and had our differences over a situation that took place a couple of years ago which led to this unfortunate event. I will hold all 3 victims in my prayers as well as their families and will only comment once out of respect for their loved ones with the main goal to stop all the ignorant people who judge others without knowing the facts,( i hope you all learn from this one) The "victim" Bryan used to be really good friends with me and my close friends (including Guillermo and Rashhed) and trust me he was not angel, him and a couple of other friends had been accused of armed robbery in fairfax county and he was believed to snitch on his friends (accomplices) which are still incarcerated one for 1 year and the other for 7 years! This heated tension between Guillermo and Bryan whoever Rasheed had nothing to do with this "beef", in fact he had some kind of beef with one of the people bryan snitched on and had no problems with bryan, also DEATH was not a even a thought of revenge at all(at most a good ass whooping). Once at the party my friends were really drunk and as they were on their way out Bryan walked in and Guillermo started to argue with him and went outside where everyone followed to watch the fight which was meant to be one on one. After 20 minutes of drunk arguments everyone returned to the party as they saw Guillermo put his hand over bryan's shoulder to talk things over. Then Bryan told guillermo(G) and Rasheed( sheed) "im goin to fuck you up and im going to fuck you up" (keep in mind rasheed had his handgun visible at all times). Then Bryan proceeded to punch rasheed with an unidentified metal object (believed to be brass knuckels) twice and reached for his gun, then unfortunatly sheed proceeded to shoot him without aiming. AS they fled the scene out of fear they believed they had shot them in the arm and it wasn't until they turned themselves in that they found out he had been shot in the neck and die. Sheed had just bought his registered gun two weeks prior to the events and this was his first bulle shott. I know There is no excuse for the outcome of these events but as you can see this was not planned and was an accident which due to all the little mistakes and factors was waiting to happen. I know these guys since childhood and can put my life to gurantee that they never meant this. I still can't believe all of this is happenin. God bless all of you and please let Him be the judge.

Anonymous (not verified)

If you have so much to say about this murder, don't you think you should be talking to the police; not here pretending to be a good friend that knows everything even that the murder had a gun in his possession at the time and you did nothing about it. May be you could prevent this tragedy accident as you graciously call it.
Can you sleep at night.

Anonymous (not verified)

Another perfect example of misjudging... when will you self-claimed "good" people stop judging others or assuming. I never said i was there because i wasn't and i know that if i woul have been there then none of this would have happened. I can sleep perfectly everynight knowing that God is by my side and it is He who will take care of my enemies.

--And to the person who said don't reproduce: LOL now you are really ignorant sir. God bless you. hahhahahaha wow that was the most ingorant comment i have ever read.

Anonymous (not verified)

So they were armed drunken criminals, that makes it ok? They are idiots and so are you for defending them and being friends with them. Please don't reproduce.

Anonymous (not verified)

im so happy that finally people are starting to come out and really shed light on who all three really were. i aswell am in great shock because i believe the situation just is a shocking one. NEVER would have thought anythign like that would happen. BRYAN, RASHEED, GUILLERMO I LOVE YOU ALL.

Anonymous (not verified)

let them all be judged, the deceased by god for what he too has done in the past and the other two by the hangmans noose. the rest of you at the party do us a favor stay the heck out of our neighborhood as we homeowners

We will now call the cops from now on at the drop of a pin. and i dont care if you think its racist to get pulled over because you are from herndon or where ever. the HOA is already on this, more police patrols

stereotypes are created by actual events you are reenforcing them. no parties in lowes island, stay out. time for gates on our roads to lock you out.

for the rest of us.. if your neighbor is getting foreclosed call the HOA and make sure they know. if anything strange goes on in that house call the police asap. desperate times call for tougher stance.

its one thing for these scum to dies but imagine had that bullet strayed into a home and killed a sleeping child. wake uo, protect your home, your family, your neighbors. consider carrying a firearm as well concealed, with proper training and documents. last time it was a CIA retiree in landsdown know its here at our door step. act now before next time its your home. be aware of whats going on. be nosey, call the police

Anonymous (not verified)

First of all, why are YOU freinds with young adults that carry guns.
Second, this guy had just bought a gun, carried it but has never fired it. That is totally insane. Why not get in a plane with him that he has never flown too.

Third, why would this guy open carry a gun to a party where alcohol and possibly drugs would be present having never used it if he didnt intend to ever use it. i dont mean to say he came to use it but rather that he knew a situation was possible and HE choose to out gun the lesser armed guy. this is not to mention why is he looking to go fight.

forth - why are you parting in LOWES ISLAND!!!! this is a very very family oriented place. understand that if this had occurs slightly down the road several neighboors would have been outside with shotguns had they seen some guy walking around at a party with a hand gun. after calling police of course.

fifth - DRUNK and GUNS is illegal, not to mention dumb

six - it is illegal to pull a gun and just shoot a warning shot
a gun is to be used in a fear for life situation as a last result. and since this was not the gun holders home he had NO RIGHT TO DEFEND IN HIS HOME, see castle doctorine, nor did he have a right to stand his ground. since the other guy did not have a gun your friend should have retreated,

seventh - you have a very very poor judgement in the friends you keep. you too are at risk of death if you continue to hang out with people like this. these people have commited murder, they are not nice nor good. they made decisions that were very poor and dumb. they should pay the price with their own lives which in VA will be quiet soon. you should wake up , mature and dump anyone that lives or behaves like this. go to school and make friends with kids that avoid these types... school last for 4 years and then you join the rest of us, moms, dads, older golks, young 30 somethings.. non of us wants you around if this is who you hang with, you wont get a good job nor respect if this is how you choose to live your life.

wake up, sober up, stop the parting and focus on some good grades, maybe youll get into grad school and make something of yourself.

as for the person that lost his life he seems to also have been looking for it. if he had brass knuckles, or wanted to fight, had a criminal past then maybe some kid, or old person wont fall victim to him on some other occasion, no loss there,. ill take an 8 yrs playing ball or a granny sitting on a bench over some trouble maker.

Anonymous (not verified)

It is a shame what is happening with our youngsters no matter how much parents try to make them see that moral and respect for others is the way of living in a good society. They also ignored good convictions that are teach at school some decide to ignore everything that will make them good citizens and others respect and obey everything they learned.

Those teenagers that refuse to live by the law and rules of a civilized society can't wait to be able to buy their own alcohol can't wait to drive or do everything your suppose to be doing at a legal age but when something like killing another human being happens by a 20 and 26 year old we need to expect that their acts are going to be punish the same way they were demanding to be treated as adults in everything else and that the law is here for those that decided to respected as well for those that decided to violated it.

No matter how many permits you have to posses a gun it doesn't allowed you to bring it into a home were a party is going on supposedly among friends unless you are expecting to use it like Mr. Nurse did in company of Mr.Alvarado two cowards that shoot and kill a 19 year old kid that was still a teenager.

I pray to God for the family of the victim and to let them know, that still people that care about what happened to them and hope they get justice and comfort in their lost.

Anonymous (not verified)

R.I.P BrYaN
We WiLL MiSzx Yuu

Anonymous (not verified)

im gOiN T2 mIsXZX BrYAn

Anonymous (not verified)

By defending Rasheed and Guillermo doesnt mean we(everyone who knew them) dont remorse for Bryan and his family. If you knew all three maybe you would understand, but MAJOIRTY of you dont so i dont blame you for your harsh criticism. But please dont say horrible things about people you dont know, it makes our community look like its getting even weaker. But at the end of the day i know in my heart the truth! and for those who are just curious, i really hope one day you thought process will kick in.

Anonymous (not verified)

first of all this case is a very sad situation, i know rasheed and guillermo are not bad people but it is sad to know that it happened at the wrong moment and wrong time now also no one has the right to shoot someone but i knew all of them three so if you guys knew them all you would UNDERSTAND! how we feel those who actually were close or friends with the three of them they all have families behind and thats one thing now i do feel bad and sad for everything and i feel like it could of been prevented but unfortuanely no one did ONE thing my question is where were the witness those who supposly are friends with them? why didnt any of them stopped the whole situation? because i know if i would of been there i would of stopped everything.
****R.I.P BRYAN**** we are qonna miss you

Anonymous (not verified)

the whole situation is very sad. young people have become more and more reckless and disrespectful towards themselves and others in the community. while these individuals were all 'adults', they didn't arrive at this path overnight. they've been on it a while, and it makes me sad for them, and the others traveling the same way.

Anonymous (not verified)

Brass knuckles and guns at a party in one of the richest and safest neighborhoods around? Sounds like thugs who definately don't belong in this area.

Anonymous (not verified)

and what do you define as a "thug". having brass knuckles or a registered gun in a holster? wow. i think you need to take a trip and see some real "thugs".

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