THE DISTRICT

Gunmen fail to rob

medical pot dispensary

Gunshots were fired but no one was injured Sunday in an attempted robbery of a D.C. medical marijuana dispensary, police said.

D.C. police responded to the sound of gunfire in the 6900 block of Blair Road Northwest at about 10:30 a.m.

Wil Manlapaz, commander of the police department’s Fourth District, wrote to neighbors early Sunday afternoon, announcing on a community email group that the commotion was an attempted robbery of the Takoma Wellness Center.

The center is one of only three authorized medical marijuana dispensaries in the District. It was started by Jeffrey Kahn, a rabbi, who said the incident occurred about an hour before the dispensary was to open.

Two men wearing masks approached the entrance and “said something like, ‘we want weed,’” Kahn said. When they were refused entry, one pulled out a gun and fired at the dispensary’s security guard. The guard was not struck.

Bullets damaged the entrance, but Kahn and others eventually opened the dispensary later Sunday. It was the first robbery attempt since the center opened almost four years ago, Kahn said. An employee triggered a panic button and police arrived quickly, he added.

— Aaron Davis

VIRGINIA

Man is arrested for

attempted abduction

A Woodbridge man was arrested Saturday for allegedly attempting to abduct a woman near his home earlier in the day, police said Sunday.

Prince William County police said Keith Richard Griffin, 43, was being held without bond in the incident.

According to police, a 33-year-old woman had been walking in the neighborhood about 5:10 a.m. Saturday when Griffin approached her and tried to pull her away.

“A struggle ensued and the suspect assaulted the victim, causing minor injuries,” police said in a news release.

Shortly thereafter, the woman broke free and called police. The incident occurred near Griffin’s residence, at Castile Court and Oakwood Drive in Woodbridge, police said.

Griffin was charged with abduction and malicious wounding, police said. He is due in court on July 11.

— Faiz Siddiqui