Career criminal and illegal immigrant Abdul Jalloh committed violent crimes for nearly a decade before he stabbed a Virginia woman to death at a bus stop in late February.
Fairfax County police arrested Jalloh, 32, for the murder of 41-year-old Stephanie Minter on February 24. Jalloh was a known violent offender in the area, with more than 30 charges for crimes including rape, assault and malicious wounding dating back to 2014.
Though police explicitly warned the Fairfax County Attorney’s Office about Jalloh on at least three occasions prior to Minter’s death, prosecutors consistently failed to recommend he be incarcerated.
Jalloh came to the U.S. illegally from Sierra Leone in 2012, according to the Department of Homeland Security. Police records obtained by WJLA show Jalloh racked up at least nine charges for offenses including assault and rape between 2014 and 2020, when a judge approved an order to deport him.
Inexplicably, Jalloh remained in the U.S., where he continued to terrorize the community.
A judge sentenced Jalloh to two years in prison, and five years suspended, in 2023 for stabbing an elderly man — his second reported stabbing offense.
Laura Birnbaum, the chief of staff for Fairfax County Attorney Steve Descano, told Fox that prosecutors “made every effort to hold [Jalloh] accountable each subsequent time that he came into contact with the criminal justice system.”
But police records and communications obtained by WJLA tell a different story. Fairfax County dropped charges against Jalloh for seven crimes, including two stabbings, he allegedly committed between 2023 and 2024 — presumably while on parole.
In May 2025, police charged Jalloh with another stabbing. Fairfax County police subsequently emailed Descano’s office asking Jalloh be kept in jail.
“The suspect has a history of stabbing community members and was on probation during the most recent assault,” the officer wrote. “For those reasons … we ask that you argue he continues to be held at the [detention center].”
Jalloh bonded out of jail just two months later.
He landed back in jail in August for “assaulting an older male and stomping his head into the ground.” When a Fairfax County police officer expressed concern about the serial offender’s eventual release, Assistant Chief Brooke Wright assured him County Chief Deputy Attorney Jenna Sands was “on board” to prosecute Jalloh — even if a victim didn’t come forward.
Per Birnbaum, Fairfax County had previously declined to prosecute Jalloh’s crimes if they couldn’t locate his victim.
“In multiple cases, we were unable to move forward with prosecution because victims could not be located or contacted,” she explained.
Jalloh’s August arrest for assault triggered a probation violation, at which point a judge could have imposed his suspended five-year prison sentence. Instead, the prosecution and defense agreed to resuspend his prison term and end his probation all together.
A Fairfax County police major emailed Attorney Sands upon Jalloh’s release in November, trying to understand why he had been allowed back on the street.
“I wanted to get your background on why he is out so soon and ask if his prior suspended sentence (of I believe 5 years) was pursued by your office?” the major asked, continuing:
Unfortunately, based on [the Mount Vernon] station’s numerous dealings with him, it is not a question of if, but rather, when, he will maliciously wound (or worse) again.
Jalloh allegedly murdered Minter three months later.
NBC Washington asked Descano’s office why it didn’t recommend Jalloh’s suspended sentence be imposed. A spokeswoman claimed Jalloh could have only spent six months in jail for a parole violation, 100 days of which he had already served.
But that’s not true. Sentencing recommendations may suggest shorter sentences for parole violations, but state law allows judges to impose suspended sentences “for any cause the court deems sufficient that occurred at any time within the probation period.”
If the county attorney’s office was truly making “every effort” to keep Jalloh under lock and key, why, after his fourth violent attack since 2023, wouldn’t they recommend the judge impose his suspended sentence?
Further, why would they agree to end his parole entirely?
Minter’s mom told NBC Washington she and her family “have many questions” about why Jalloh was roaming free. Minter’s memorial describes her as “a happy, jolly individual, filled with love and adoration for her loved ones — a beam of light in dark places.”
She is survived by her son, Caden.
Jalloh had no business being in America, let alone roaming the streets. But, once again, members of the judicial system have shown more empathy for someone causing terrible suffering than the offender’s victims.
Some critics say Fairfax’s Descano intentionally recommends lighter sentences for immigrants — legal or otherwise.
Similar attitudes led to the victimization or murder of countless innocents including Bethany MaGee, Logan Federico, Iryna Zarutska, Laken Riley, Rachel Morin, Kayla Hamilton and Lizbeth Medina.
When will people in power decide the rights of law-abiding citizens deserve protecting?
Not soon enough.
The Department of Homeland Security has requested Fairfax County cooperate with ICE to deport Jalloh. Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger says officials won’t relinquish custody of Jalloh until a local judge signs another warrant to deport him.
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