Man who Russian Embassy in DC turned away seeking asylum, held as potential suspect in slayings..

[HipChick]

A Metropolitan Police Department report shows Severance went to the Russian Embassy on Wisconsin Avenue in NW Washington on the afternoon of Friday, March 7, to request asylum. He was "sent on his way" and labeled an "unwanted guest" in a report taken by officers.

Read more: http://www.wjla.com/articles/2014/03/alexandria-murders-charles-s-severance-arrested-in-west-virginia-101154.html#ixzz2w3vRa7ms
Police are investigating whether a man in custody in West Virginia has a connection to a series of high-profile murders in Alexandria.


Charles S. Severance, 53, was arrested as a fugitive on a weapons charge on Thursday at the Ohio County Public Library in Wheeling, W.Va.

This surveillance video shows Severance checking into a Wheeling, West Virginia motel before checking out on Thursday.

"[He was] basically in town to sight-see," said the motel manager, Anand Patel.

At the time, Patel had no inkling that police in Alexandria and Loudoun County were looking for Severance. But the next day, Wheeling officers, state police, and the FBI arrested him at the local library on an outstanding Loudoun County warrant – the charge being a felon in possession of a firearm.

"The cops came, they told me about him, I told them where I sent him," said Patel. "The next thing you know, they said they had arrested him."

Police seized a library computer that Severance had been using for about two hours. In court on Friday morning, he is now in jail after declining to post the $100,000 bond.

"Right now we cannot say Severance is a suspect," said Alexandria Police spokeswoman, Crystal Nosal.

Police are declining to even call Severance a “person of interest” in the February murder of Ruthanne Lodato, the slaying of Ronald Kirby last November, and the killing of Nancy Dunning in 2003, with Nosal insisting:

"We will look at all possibilities of our investigation. We do not have anyone charged in these murder cases right now."

Police say they never found a gun at the library, and investigators will not confirm Patel’s assertion that they did not find any weapons in his hotel room. Detectives have since seized Severance’s car.

Anne Haynes is Kirby’s widow, and says that the notion of a possible break in the case does not alleviate her pain and sense of loss – regardless of who the killer is:

"I am not vengeful. There's no motivation for what he did. It was a bizarre, wrong thing to do."

Amid all of this is a bizarre side note. The MPD report describes how Severance appeared at the Russian embassy one week ago seeking asylum – but he was turned away.

Investigators are questioning whether Severance, who ran for mayor in Alexandria in 1996 and 2000, has any connection to the deaths of Lodato, Dunning, and Kirby -- all three prominent community members of Alexandria.

The murders span 10 years, but two occurred in the past four months.

Alexandria mayor Bill Euille calls Severance a "person of interest."

"I don't want anyone to think this is the person we and the police have been looking for," Euille said.

But with a white beard and similar facial features, Severance matches the description of a suspect sketch released last month in the Lodato case.

Read more: http://www.wjla.com/articles/2014/03/alexandria-murders-charles-s-severance-arrested-in-west-virginia-101154.html#ixzz2w3vmR1G6
Follow us: @ABC7News on Twitter | WJLATV on Facebook

[2banon]

1. Ok. I read this report.. there's no real connection to the Russian Embassy..

just a crazy scattershot attempt to avoid arrest. The guy apparently self identifies as "mentally disturbed" vis a vis his own website.

The headline is completely misleading, but that's soooo HUFFPO for ya.. they market in deceptive headlines all the time. I don't know if you already knew that, just saying in the future, anything and everything from Huff Post needs to be scrutinized thoroughly before lending any credibility to their sensationalized "reports".

The actual story is somewhat intriguing considering the location Alexandria Virginia. Home to a swath of known Washington elite and intelligentsia. If I lived there I'd be interested in following this.

unrec for bad headline.

[HipChick]

2. Didn't write the headlines..but yeah, these murders have been very troubling for Alexandria

but the Washington elite mostly stay in McClean,VA...Alexandria would not be the right zip code for them..

[2banon]

3. hmm, that's interesting, stand correct then..

Wonder why Alexandria keeps coming up on my reading radar list as associated with the intelligence/clandestine community among others.. Maybe it's just a few, obviously i don't live in the area. thanks for the correction.


on edit, that's why the story was intriguing to me.. three slayings of high profile people... over the span of the past 10 years, but two of them recently.

[billh58]

4. From the link:

"A Metropolitan Police Department report shows Severance went to the Russian Embassy on Wisconsin Avenue in NW Washington on the afternoon of Friday, March 7, to request asylum. He was "sent on his way" and labeled an "unwanted guest" in a report taken by officers.

Severance's effort to seek asylum happened about 24 hours after Alexandria Police Chief Earl Cook held a news conference discussing possible connections between the three killings."

[2banon]

5. I read that with interest the first time

The implication, was there was some sort of connection to Russia, (hence seeking asylum at the embassy) but apparently there's no connection with this individual and the country of Russia. Unless the man is actually Russian, which I don't see stated in this report. (?)

I am compelled to conclude that it was a last gasp attempt at trying to escape arrest after having learned that he'd been id'ed as wanted for questioning regarding those three murders.

[billh58]

6. I agree

and that's most likely the case. Maybe he figured that if Snowden could get asylum, so could he...

[Cali_Democrat]

7. What's the problem?

He's just following Snowden's lead.

Break the law, seek asylum in Russia.

[HipChick]

8. Interesting conclusion...

Bingo..we have a winner...on another note...these recent murders have been very worrying in the area..