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ICE Presses Virginia to Hold Guatemalan Suspect in Fairfax Stabbing Case

The case tests Virginia's limits on cooperating with ICE detainers that ask jails to notify federal agents before a release.

Overview

  • Anibal Armando Chavarria Muy, 38, who police say fatally stabbed a man Sunday in Bailey's Crossroads, is charged with second-degree murder and is held without bond.
  • ICE filed a detainer requesting notification before any release, and DHS urged Governor Abigail Spanberger and Fairfax officials not to free the suspect.
  • Federal officials say Chavarria Muy is a Guatemalan national who entered the U.S. as a gotaway, meaning he had no prior DHS encounter or record.
  • Spanberger’s office has said transfers should follow a signed judicial warrant, a stance DHS disputes because detainers are civil administrative requests, a clash sharpened by February’s separate bus‑stop killing tied to Abdul Jalloh.
  • Court records show a 2024 assault-and-battery charge against Chavarria Muy in Arlington was dismissed at the victim’s request under a Virginia law that allows restitution to resolve some misdemeanor cases.