Editor’s Note: An adjustment was made to this article regarding the woman’s name following the police report’s release.
UPDATE, March 30, 12:10 a.m. — Police said in a tweet at 12:08 a.m. that “the woman was safely taken into custody.” They said Richmond Highway would soon be reopened.
UPDATE, March 29, 11:10 p.m. — Richmond Highway was still closed. The Fairfax County Police Department said that the situation was still unresolved in a tweet at 8:57 p.m.
UPDATE, March 29, 5:40 p.m. — The Fairfax County Police Department said that the unresolved situation was impacting rush hour traffic.
UPDATE, March 29, 12 p.m. — The woman in the barricade has identified herself as Brittany Copelin. DC News Now’s Lex Juarez spoke with Copelin who said that she didn’t realize that police were chasing her at first.
Police said that Copelin is accused of kidnapping a woman, but Copelin denies that accusation.
UPDATE, March 29, 11 a.m. –Fairfax County police said the situation remains unchanged. They said they continue to work to peacefully resolve the situation.
Richmond Highway continues to be closed between Lockheed Boulevard and Boswell Avenue and asks people to avoid the area.
UPDATE, March 29, 7 a.m. — Fairfax County police said they are still on the scene of the barricade in the 7400 block of Richmond Highway where a woman with a gun remains in a car.
Police said Richmond Highway remains closed between Lockheed Boulevard and Boswell Avenue. They said the closure will impact rush hour traffic and asked people to avoid the area.
UPDATE, March 28, 8:37 p.m. — Police provided an update several hours into the barricade situation saying that the situation started off with a police chase.
Lieutenant James Curry said that around 11 a.m., another agency called Fairfax County police to the area for a welfare check. While officers were in the area, a woman approached them, saying that she had been abducted and that the suspect had just fled.
Officers found a car nearby. There was a short chase, which ended at the scene of the barricade, Curry said.
Police said that they had the equipment to help communicate with the woman. The police department’s Crisis Negotiation Team was working with clinicians from their community service board.
The roads were still closed as of 8:34 p.m., according to a tweet from Fairfax County police.
FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. (DC News Now) — Fairfax County police said officers were working to help a woman who was experiencing a mental health crisis after she barricaded herself inside a car Tuesday.
The Fairfax County Police Department (FCPD) tweeted about the situation in the 7400 block of Richmond Highway in the Alexandria area at 12:14 p.m. As a result of the incident, that part of the roadway was closed in both directions.
As of 1:26 p.m., the department said police still were working to resolve the situation peacefully.
A tweet at 3:21 p.m. said the woman had a gun. Police clarified at 3:58 p.m. that the woman was the only person in the car. The police asked members of the community to avoid the area.
FCPD specified that the stretch of Richmond Highway that was closed was between Lockheed Boulevard and Boswell Avenue.
As of 5:31 p.m., police were still at the scene. They said that the road closure was impacting rush hour traffic in the area.