Thread: Completely failed Stephanie: Family of woman killed speaks out | Stephanie Minter

'Completely failed Stephanie:' Family of woman killed in Fairfax County speaks out

https://wjla.com/news/local/mother-o...-cheryl-minter

by Nick Minock

Mon, March 9, 2026 at 5:30 PM
Updated Tue, March 10, 2026 at 1:16 PM





6VIEW ALL PHOTOS


Family of Stephanie Minter shares her photos. Minter was killed while waiting at a bus stop in Fairfax County. Her accused killer, Abdul Jalloh, is an illegal immigrant with a lengthy criminal record. (7News)

• STEPHANIE MINTER
• FAIRFAX COUNTY
• ABDUL JALLOH
• CRIMINAL JUSTICE
• PROSECUTION FAILURE
• COMMONWEALTH’S ATTORNEY
• ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION
• VICTIM'S FAMILY

FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. (7News) — Stephanie Minter was a mother, a daughter and a sister.

Stephanie Minter was killed in Fairfax County. Her accused killer, Abdul Jalloh, is in the country illegally, and he has a lengthy criminal history; however, he was repeatedly let free after Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano’s office dropped several serious charges against Jalloh before her death.

“She always had that bright smile from early on and the love of everybody,” said Cheryl Minter, Stephanie Minter's mother. “She loved people. She was the most amazing, she was the friendliest person I think I've ever met in my life. She never went anywhere without her smile on her face. I think she smiled when she was angry and to get through it sometimes, but she always had a smile on her face. She always was trying to be the most positive thing she could be, and outgoing. Bible verses she would pull from. It was like she memorized half the Bible. She could always pull them out of thin air, along with the chapter and the verse. She always amazed me with that.”

Cheryl Minter gave her daughter a Bible as a Christmas gift. On Monday, Cheryl Minter opened it to find this message from Stephanie Minter.

“Merry Christmas 2024, the word of God itself is a gift, but this year it's extra special, because of the particular Bible my mother chose as a gift for Christmas. She knows my love for the Lord and how journaling and coloring helps my emotional mental stability. So Lord, thank you for providing, protecting, loving and giving me the most grace for the moments I need,” the note read.
Cheryl Minter said her daughter was there for people when they needed it, pointing to all the people who came to her funeral and wrote notes in her memory.

“We had so many that night that just told me that Stephanie had brought them to him and brought him to God and to the Lord and to the Bible,” Cheryl Minter said. “And it changed their lives. I mean, she did change people's lives.”

“Stephanie could be put in the situation where most other people would say, 'I'm not having a great time,' and she'll still find the beauty, the fun, the love, the laughter, the joy, the jolliness of it, that was who she was at her core,” said Ashton Minter, one of Stephanie Minter's brothers.

Cheryl Minter and her two sons said Stephanie Minter's death could have been prevented had the Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney prosecuted her accused killer in three prior cases where Jalloh was charged with felonies for stabbing and beating strangers in Fairfax County. Despite several police warnings about how dangerous Jalloh was, including a warning that predicted something like this would happen, Descano dropped charge after charge. allowing Jalloh to walk free.

“I just know that what is in your heart, it's got to be horrible to be able to do things like that and allow somebody, anybody back onto a street that's capable of what they're saying,” Cheryl Minter said.

“It should never have happened,” said Gary Minter, one of Stephanie’s brothers. “[Jalloh should’ve] never been out in the streets. He had [a final order of removal] to be sent back to his country, back in 2020. That should have happened six years ago.”

“Steve Descano completely failed Stephanie,” Ashton Minter said. “He's failed other people, and he will continue to fail other people unless he is just voted out of office.”

“Do you think the prosecutor failed your daughter?” 7News Reporter Nick Minock asked Cheryl Minter.

“I think a lot of people failed her, including him,” Cheryl Minter said.

Jalloh has been arrested more than 30 times. Descano’s office dropped most charges that came across his desk, including an assault charge and two malicious wounding charges in 2024 and 2025.