ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Delante T. Cook, 34, of Prince George’s County, Md., has been indicted by a federal grand jury for his role in a home invasion robbery that resulted in the stabbing murders of three men in Springfield, Va., on Nov. 19, 2008. 

            Neil H. MacBride, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Colonel David Rohrer, Fairfax County Chief of Police; and Raymond F. Morrogh, Fairfax County Commonwealth Attorney, made the announcement following Cook’s initial appearance in federal court. 

            “Mr. Cook is accused of participating in a meticulously planned robbery that ended with the brutal stabbing deaths of three men in Springfield,” said U.S. Attorney MacBride. “After surveilling their intended victims for days, Mr. Cook and others allegedly armed themselves with weapons, disguised themselves as police officers, robbed their victims in their home, and then viciously stabbed all three to death. The Fairfax County Police Department did a terrific job in following leads, connecting the dots, and cracking this case.”

            According to the indictment, Cook, Jelani Slay, and other co-conspirators allegedly targeted the residence of Ryan and Terence Strope for a home invasion robbery because they believed the two men were marijuana traffickers and possessed a large amount of cash and marijuana in the home.

            On Nov. 17 and 18, 2008, Cook and his conspirators allegedly drove to Fairfax County, Va., to conduct physical surveillance of the Strope residence and plan the robbery. The indictment states that following night, Nov. 19, 2008, the conspirators are accused of dressing as law enforcement, arming themselves with weapons – including knives – and entering the Strope residence to carry out the home invasion robbery. Ryan Strope, Terence Strope, and another man, Andres, Yelicie, were allegedly murdered as members of the conspiracy stabbed them during the course of the robbery.

            On May 2, 2011, Cook was charged in a two-count indictment accusing him of conspiracy and attempt to commit Hobbs Act robbery. Each count carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. He was arrested without incident the evening of May 3, 2011, and made his initial appearance this morning. His next court appearance is scheduled for May 6, 2011 at 2 p.m.

            This case was investigated by the Fairfax County Police Department.  Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan Fahey and Sean Tonolli are prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.

            Criminal indictments are only charges and not evidence of guilt.  A defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty. 

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.justice.gov/usao/vae.  Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.vaed.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.uspci.uscourts.gov.

 

 

 

Return to Top