228 S. Royal Avenue targeted by 2nd law enforcement operation in 7 months

The targeted building from across South Royal Avenue near the South Towne Apartments – Royal Examiner Photos/Roger Bianchini

A multi-jurisdictional law enforcement raid descended on a residence at 228 South Royal Avenue in Front Royal at 8:30 p.m. Tuesday evening, July 9. Neighbors from the apartment complex across the street said it was the second law enforcement operation targeting the building within seven months.

One neighbor pinpointed that initial raid, mirroring the latest operation, to December 13, 2018, at 6 a.m.

Units from the Front Royal Police Department, Warren County Sheriff’s Office and plain clothes officers believed to be with the Virginia State Police were all at the scene Tuesday evening. FRPD gave VSP Officer Tony Fox as a contact person for information on the operation. “Members of the Northwest Virginia Regional Drug and Gang Task Force executed a search warrant Tuesday evening (July 9) at a residence in the 200 block of South Royal Avenue in Front Royal. The search warrant is related to an ongoing task force investigation. Charges are pending related to the investigation.”

Above, the SWAT transport moves in; below, an FRPD officer stationed at the front entrance – SWAT Photo/Mark Williams

Neighbors said a SWAT team vehicle approached the targeted address from an alley to the west of South Royal and through the South Towne Apartments parking lot immediately after FRPD units blocked off South Royal Avenue at Prospect Street and Stonewall Avenue.

They reported two flash bang reports coming as officers used a battering ram to bust through the front door of the residence, with a third bang being heard from inside about two minutes later.

The SWAT vehicle was seen departing the scene by way of an alley behind buildings on the 200 block of South Royal Avenue to the east at 8:49 p.m. A sheriff’s office K-9 unit approached the building from the rear shortly after the SWAT team departure.

A K-9 unit officer approaches the building from a side entrance porch at 8:52 p.m.

Witnesses said law enforcement used a battering ram to enter the front entrance of 228 S. Royal Ave. The targeted address lies between the Phoenix Project Domestic Violence Center and Rick’s Auto Care; over which the moon was rising as the operation continued past 9 p.m. Tuesday evening.

The targeted structure sits between Rick’s Auto Care at the intersection of Prospect Street and South Royal Avenue and The Phoenix Project Domestic Violence Center to the north. Thus far unverified information indicates that 228 South Royal is a rental residence, owned by one of the nearby businesses. Royal Examiner is attempting to verify that information, as well as any charges filed in the wake of Tuesday’s law enforcement operation.