Court date set for Manassas Park police captain

MANASSAS PARK, Va. -- Former Manassas Park police Capt. Travis D. Mosher is set to appear in court Feb. 10 on a felony charge of grand larceny following a series of strange events leading to his arrest this weekend.

Mosher, 30, is charged with the felony, and misdemeanor petty larceny, in connection with the theft of a volunteer fire chief's SUV at an installation banquet in Woodbridge on Saturday.

The nine-year police veteran turned himself in after the incident, which police said started at the Occoquan-Woodbridge-Lorton Volunteer Fire and Rescue Department station on F Street in Woodbridge

At 7:30 p.m., police allege Mosher stole a 2005 Ford Expedition belonging to the Dale City Volunteer Fire and Rescue Department.

Three minutes later, Prince William dispatchers received a 911 call reporting a man with a gun at the IKEA store on Telegraph Road, with shots reportedly being fired.

“Shots were not fired and no one was hurt. The incident is presently being investigated,” said Prince William police spokeswoman Erika Hernandez.

Sources tell the News & Messenger that the IKEA call came from the emergency radio in the fire chief's stolen SUV. Police would not comment.

A short time later, police found the SUV undamaged and abandoned near BJ’s Wholesale Club off the Prince William Parkway in Woodbridge.

Around 9 p.m., Mosher turned himself in at the Garfield police substation in Woodbridge. He spoke with investigators for three hours before he was charged.
At midnight, Mosher appeared before the magistrate and was released on his own recognizance, said police.

The grand larceny charge is a class six felony in Virginia, punishable by one to five years in jail and a $2,500 fine. Mosher is also charged with the petty larceny of a woman's purse. Police did not say who the purse belonged to or where it was stolen from.

Fire officials said Mosher was not invited to the installation ceremony, and is not a member of OWL or DCVFD.

OWL Chief Jim McAllister on Sunday said Mosher could have been drinking alcohol before he arrived to the installation ceremony, and that his volunteers used video surveillance footage from fire station cameras to help police identify Mosher as the suspect.

Dale City Chief Christopher G. Hool said the keys to the vehicle were hidden in a console inside the SUV, and added his department lent staff to OWL on Saturday while OWL members attended the ceremony.

“Our battalion chief was filling in for OWL’s battalion chief, and was at the station checking staffing levels, and the needs of the station that night. It’s pretty much standard procedure for all shifts,” said Hool.

With his resignation, Mosher leaves behind a nearly 10-year career that began in the agency’s communications department, said Evans.

One former Manassas Park resident says Mosher always treated her fairly, despite her admitted bad behavior.

“When I lived in Manassas Park I wasn’t a good citizen, and I had my problems with the officers in Manassas Park. But Officer Mosher was the only officer to come to my old home on Holden Drive and treat me with respect,” said Sandra Merryman.

Staff writer Uriah A. Kiser can be reached at 703-878-8065.