Fairfax County police arrest suspect accused of shooting, killing man in Reston home

Suspect arrested after shooting, killing man in Reston

A suspected shooter accused of murdering a man inside a Reston home is in custody just days after he reportedly faced felony malicious wounding charges and more. Police captured the suspect following an intense manhunt.

RESTON, Va. - A suspected shooter accused of murdering a man inside a Reston home is in custody just days after he reportedly faced felony malicious wounding charges and more.

Police captured the suspect following an intense manhunt. 

What we know:

The shooting was reported just before 1 p.m. Wednesday in the 12300 block of Fan Shell Court in Reston. 

Police say the 911 caller reported hearing several shots. 

When officers arrived, they found the victim, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

A massive search kicked off across the area, causing two nearby elementary schools were on lockdown, including nearby Dogwood and Hunter Woods elementary schools.

A couple of hours later, the suspect was caught. He has been identified as 23-year-old Marvin Fernando Morales-Ortez.  

Police say they also recovered a gun on the scene.

What they're saying:

We spoke with residents in this Reston neighborhood who said they’ve never seen or heard anything like this so close to home.

"All of my years of living here, my entire life, I’ve never seen anything like this. This is crazy," another neighbor told FOX 5. 

Dig deeper:

Immigration and Customs Enforcement confirmed to FOX 5 that Morales-Ortez is an undocumented immigrant from El Salvador, and has previously been charged with assaulting law enforcement. 

A Virginia court case search with information matching Morales-Ortez’s indicates he was arrested this week on malicious wounding, assault and battery and brandishing a firearm charges. 

Those charges were dropped.

"It’s a habit of mine not to go into the criminal or mental health or behavioral health histories of our suspects or arrested persons, but that’s something that I know you all have the wherewithal to kind of dig into a little bit, so I’ll just leave that there," said Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis.

Fairfax County police say Morales-Ortez was released by a General District Court order from the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center on Tuesday. 

After his release, a Community Services Board (CSB) clinician obtained an Emergency Custody Order (ECO) for Morales-Ortez, which is valid for eight hours after it is issued.

Officers were then dispatched to serve the ECO and take Morales-Ortez into custody, but they did not locate him at his residence. The ECO expired shortly thereafter.

He remains in custody at this time.

In a statement to FOX 5, an ICE spokesperson said that "Fairfax County FAILED the victim" by releasing Morales-Ortez.

"If Fairfax County would have simply worked to uphold our nation’s laws, then this tragedy may have never happened."

What we don't know:

The motive behind the shooting is not yet known.