In the early morning hours of November 19, 2023, the life of Charles Anthony Ashe Jr., a 44-year-old Black male from Maryland, was cut short in a fatal shooting at the Falls Church Marriott Fairview Park hotel in Merrifield, Virginia. The incident, which has led to a homicide investigation, was determined by authorities not to be a random act of violence.
Just after midnight, police were called to the hotel where they discovered Ashe near the elevators with gunshot wounds to his upper
body. Fairfax County Fire and Rescue personnel, who were already at the hotel for an unrelated matter, were able to provide immediate medical attention. Ashe was then rushed to a local hospital, but tragically, he succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead.
The investigation quickly zeroed in on a suspect, Hiep Van Vo, a 43-year-old resident of Annandale. Detectives determined that Ashe and Vo were acquainted. On the night of the shooting, Ashe had entered a hotel room that Vo was occupying with four other individuals. It was inside this room that Vo allegedly shot Ashe. Following the sound of gunshots, friends of Ashe helped him out of the room and towards the elevator. In the ensuing moments, Vo fled the hotel. Investigators later found evidence of narcotics within the hotel room.
A swift investigation led authorities to locate Vo's unoccupied vehicle at a residence in Gaithersburg, Maryland. Through the collaborative efforts of the Fairfax County Police, the United States Marshal Service, and the Montgomery County Police Department, Hiep Van Vo was arrested without incident outside a Giant supermarket in Gaithersburg later that same day. He was initially held at the Montgomery County Detention Center before being extradited to Fairfax County.
In May 2024, a Fairfax County grand jury indicted Vo on charges of second-degree murder, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
