T H E E X A M I N ER8 SU N DAY, J U LY 26, 2009
By FREEMAN KLOPOTT
and SCOTT McCABE
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CRIME&PUNISHMENT
CRIME HISTORY
THE BLOTTERALEXANDRIA
TOP COP
On this day, July 26, in 1988,
Robert T. Morris became the first
person charged under the Com-
puter Fraud and Abuse Act for
creating a worm
virus as a gradu-
ate student at
Cornell Univer-
sity.
Called the
"Morris Worm,"
the bug was
designed to
count how many
computers were
connected to the
Internet, which was still in its
early stages.
A flaw in the worm caused it
to replicate rapidly, spreading
to thousands of computers and
causing an estimated $530,000 in
damage.
He was convicted in 1990 and
sentenced to three years proba-
tion and 400 hours of community
service.
In 1995 he started a company
that made software for online
stores. Three years later he sold it
to Yahoo for $48 million. He is now
a professor at the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology.
� Freeman Klopott
Student charged for
creating Internet virus
Morris
By Maria Schmitt
Special to The Examiner
Cpl. Stephen Galloza has served
with the Montgomery County police
for eight years, filling various roles.
He's currently in a 60-day position
in the media relations office. Usually,
he works the 3 p.m.-to-1 a.m. patrol
shift in Bethesda and used to patrol
Germantown from 8:30 p.m. to 6:30
a.m. Galloza, 34, is married with two
children and lives in Damascus.
How did you become involved with law
enforcement?
I didn't always know I wanted
to do this. I actually wanted to
become a doctor. I went to Cornell
University and then life happened.
I joined the service and was in the
Coast Guard for four years. There,
I was exposed to search and rescue
and law enforcement. I spent a lot
of time on the water searching and
rescuing. I really enjoyed that. It
was a passion and I actualized it
when I got out and I became an
officer.
What is one of your achievements?
I spent three years as an edu-
cational facilities officer and I
created the Northwest Youth
Intervention and Diversion Pro-
gram. It was a way to deal with
at-risk youth -- those who are at
the brink of getting into trouble
but haven't yet. We were able
to work with the National Asso-
ciation for the Advancement of
Colored People, the faith commu-
nity and the police department to
find ways to address our issues by
meeting with and mentoring them.
I saw a lot of success in that. We're
trying to come up with something
comprehensive to help kids who
are on the cusp of going down that
road.
What is the best part about your job?
I like being there when no one
else can be and recognizing when
someone's in great need. I am glad
I have the privilege to be there and
be that person to help. I count that
as a privilege, not just something I
do for my job.
Corporal created program for at-risk youth
COURTESY PHOTO
Cpl. Stephen Galloza has served with the Montgomery County police
department for the past eight years, filling a variety of roles over that time.
Son of South African
developer indicted in
2 building schemes
By Freeman Klopott
Examiner Staff Writer
The son of a prominent South
African developer has been
accused of swindling four Vir-
ginia investors of $450,000 in two
separate schemes, according to an
indictment filed in Alexandria's
federal court.
Ibn Muquaddin Shafi, of Hern-
don, allegedly ran the scheme
through his company Yasik Group
LLC. His father, Connie Mack McK-
ithen, heads the board of directors
for Notae Resorts, a development
group that in 2004 partnered
with Marriott Hotels and Resorts
to develop 17 resorts in South
Africa, according to Notae's Web
site.
According to an indictment filed
Thursday, in November 2004 Shafi
convinced three people to invest
$300,000 in a development proj-
ect called the Belles at Malta
near Saratoga, N.Y. Shafi told
the investors the cash would be
used for clearing the land, permits
and designs for the nanotech-
nology company for which he
claimed to be building a home. The
investors were promised a
return of $1 million on their invest-
ment.
Instead, Shafi spent $23,733 on
the project, which never got off the
ground, charging documents said.
The remainder of the cash was
spent on a BMW for his girlfriend,
rugs, artwork, spa treatments
and his rent. He also used $65,000
to pay off a settlement in a civil
suit.
Shafi also did not pay the man
he hired to oversee the project,
despite the project's financial
officer spending months acquir-
ing vendors for the development,
court documents said.
Shafi's attorney, Whitney
Minter, declined to comment.
In a separate scheme that Shafi
is accused of starting in August
2005, he persuaded a Falls Church
homeowner to sign over her title in
exchange for Yasik Group assum-
ing the remaining $150,000 on her
mortgage, the indictment said.
Shafi told the woman he planned
to build a second home on the
lot and that she could live in her
home before and after construc-
tion.
When the settlement of the
agreement was completed, Shafi
received $51,000 from the set-
tlement agent for a fabricated
invoice claiming costs incurred for
consulting services, court docu-
ments said. Shafi then never made
the mortgage payments, nor fur-
ther developed the land, and the
house fell into foreclosure in June
2007.
fklopott@washingtonexaminer.com
Man accused of stealing $450K from Va. investors 4 killed in helicopter
crash were returning
from charity event
The four people killed in a heli-
copter that crashed onto Interstate
70 in Frederick County were on
their way back from Hagerstown,
where they had been giving helicop-
ter rides to children during a charity
event, authorities said.
Three of the victims worked for
Advanced Helicopter Concepts,
and the fourth was a friend of
theirs, said a spokeswoman for the
National Transportation Safety
Board, which is investigating the
crash. The helicopter slammed into
the highway late Thursday night
and was fully engulfed in flames
when firefighters arrived.
Witnesses saw the helicopter
flying low when it hit power lines
before it went down, authorities
said. Investigators are unsure of the
exact cause of the crash, but poor
weather might have been a factor
Last member of Virginia
heroin ring sentenced
A 20-year-old Centreville man
was sentenced to 20 years in prison
for providing the heroin that killed
his 19-year-old girlfriend, prosecu-
tors said.
Skylar Schnippel was the last of
16 defendants to be sentenced in the
suburban heroin ring busted last
fall. Despite her overdosing three
previous times, Schnippel supplied
Alicia Lannes the heroin that led to
a fatal overdose.
The 20-year sentence was the
minimum the judge could impose.
Police investigating
homicide in Annandale
Fairfax County police are inves-
tigating a homicide in Annandale,
where they found a woman's body
inside her home. Officers found 53-
year-old Chung Auh at her home on
the 4100 block of Hummer Road on
Friday afternoon. They said she suf-
fered trauma to her upper body. An
autopsy is planned and Auh's death
is being investigated as a homicide.
Detectives continued to work at the
scene on Saturday to gather evi-
dence from the home. No suspect
has been identified.
Compiled from staff, wire reports
A 22-year-old man was killed overnight
Friday in Northeast Wash-
ington, police said.
Just before 1 a.m. Satur-
day, police responded to a
report of an assault in prog-
ress on the 1800 block of M
Street. They found 22-year-
old Nelson Ryan of the 600
block of Edgewood Street
suffering from apparent gunshot wounds. Ryan
was taken to an area hospital, where he was
pronounced dead.
The homicide came
during one of District
police's All Hands on Deck
weekends, when all avail-
able officers are on duty
throughout the city. The
initiative began at 6 a.m.
Friday and concludes at 6
a.m. Sunday. � David Sherfinski
District police investigate homicide in Northeast

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