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Soros-backed Democratic prosecutor Steve Descano has been hit with a formal federal complaint alleging that his lenient policies led to the “preventable” murder of a woman who was stabbed to death by an illegal alien in Virginia’s most populous county.
This comes as Descano, Fairfax County’s commonwealth attorney, faces mounting criticism and pressure over his handling of a spate of illegal immigrant crime in the area. Descano rose to power with heavy financial backing from the Soros family’s Justice and Public Safety PAC. Three of the four murders actively being investigated by authorities in Fairfax County were committed by illegal aliens, according to the Department of Homeland Security. The debate mirrors broader national scrutiny of how sanctuary leaders handle migrant crime in their jurisdictions.
Victims Rights Reform Council (VRRC), an advocacy group for victims of violent crimes, filed a federal civil rights complaint against Descano this week on behalf of Cheryl Minter. Minter’s 41-year-old daughter, Stephanie Minter, was fatally stabbed at a bus stop earlier this year, allegedly by Abdul Jalloh, a 32-year-old illegal alien from Sierra Leone. Jalloh is now being held without bond and charged with second-degree murder.
In a Tuesday statement, Minter remarked that her daughter “should be alive today,” saying, “She was taken because the system chose to release a violent offender again and again.”
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Fairfax County Commonwealth Attorney Steve Descano is facing heavy criticism following a string of violent crimes by illegal immigrants, including the killing of Stephanie Minter, right. (Sarah L. Voisin/The Washington Post via Getty Images; Fairfax County Police Department)
This particular killing has caused significant national outrage, as Jalloh entered the country illegally under the Obama administration in 2012 and has had a final deportation order since 2020. He has a lengthy criminal history, including more than 30 arrests for charges of rape, malicious wounding, assault, drug possession, identity theft and other offenses. In 2023, he was convicted of malicious wounding and sentenced to seven years in prison, with five years suspended. He only ended up serving about seven months in prison, according to local outlet WUSA9.
Minter asserted that “had I murdered someone, I would be doing life in jail.”
She suggested that “it seems that citizens are doing a lot more time and receive a lot more punishment for the same crimes than the illegals are.”
VRRC is requesting that the Trump Department of Justice conduct a federal pattern-or-practice investigation into policies and practices it alleges resulted in the “preventable murder” of Minter’s daughter.
In its complaint, VRRC alleges that systemic failures in Descano’s office include discriminatory prosecutorial practices, including policies that consider and seek to mitigate immigration consequences in criminal cases. It also alleges that Descano’s office shows deliberate indifference to public safety by “repeatedly releasing a known violent offender despite clear warnings and a broader pattern of leniency toward repeat and violent offenders.”
Additionally, it alleges that Descano’s office has “potential outside influence on prosecutorial policy.”
Descano’s entry into political office was propelled by a massive $627,653 donation from the Soros family’s Justice and Public Safety PAC, which made up roughly 70% of his 2019 campaign budget.
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Abdul Jalloh, 32, is accused of killing Stephanie Minter, 41, at a bus stop in Virginia. (Fox 5 DC)
In a statement shared with Fox News Digital, Jennifer Harrison, executive director of VRRC, explained the group is “demanding accountability for a system that failed Stephanie and too many others.”
“When known violent offenders are repeatedly released despite clear warnings, and policies yield unequal outcomes, the federal government must act,” she went on. “Equal justice means protecting innocent people — not prioritizing ideology over safety,”
In response, Descano’s office shared a statement from the commonwealth attorney who said, “I can’t speak to any individual lawsuit, but I can tell you that the idea that we favor one group over another is completely wrong.”
Descano said that the idea his office favors certain groups “has been fed by, in my opinion, purposeful misreporting and people taking things out of context for political gain.”
“I can tell you that my job and our office’s job is to keep us safe,” he added.
Descano delivered these remarks outside the Fairfax County Courthouse on Tuesday, following the sentencing of 18-year-old illegal immigrant Israel Flores Ortiz to 360 days of incarceration for assault by groping of several teenage girls. Descano said after the press conference that his office is “happy” with the sentence. Flores Ortiz is expected to serve about 135 days of his 360-day sentence.
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Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano speaks at an event in Fairfax County, Va. (Sarah Voisin/Getty Images)
Meanwhile, Sean Kennedy, president of Virginians for Safe Communities, remarked that the DOJ “should heed Cheryl Minter’s warning,” because “Descano’s discriminatory policies are deadly.”
“Stephanie Minter would be alive today if Fairfax’s top prosecutor treated everyone equally and obeyed the law,” alleged Kennedy in a statement to Fox News Digital.
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“DOJ must act now before another parent buries a child because Descano decided to protect an illegal alien instead of the public,” said Kennedy.
The DOJ did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
