mallwide evacuation. some businesses remained open, but anyone who left the mall when police arriv was not allowed back in. >> at this point, the task force indicated they're going to take the investigation from the arlington county police department. we'll be assisting in that matter. >> reporter: officials are quick to point out they're not calling this a terrorist attack. these photos from inside the mall from our friends at arlington now show you the scene of the crime. witnesses are telling investigators a man threw a 40- ounce beer bottle with a lit fuse and a liquid that smelled like gasoline into the food court from an upper floor. the liquid did not ignite or explode. >> during the course of the subject, similar bottles were found on the property matching the one that was dropped by the suspect. >> reporter: arlington police say what appeared to be three additional molotov cocktails were found in a bag on the second floor of the mall. again, within the last couple of hours, a person of interest who, according to atf agents s probably the guy they were looking for, a lookout was put out. african-american male, curly hair, a red tie with one of the lookouts. we believe that police and some citizens who heard that lookout will, were able to identify the guy again and east of here at the cheesecake fact or, we don't know what it was about, but the mall is reopened. >> thank you for the update, bob barnard. new details on the arrest of an accused terror suspect in new york. 21-year-old quazi nafis was caught in an undercover fbi sting. he was stopped yesterday as he tried to detonate a car bomb outside of the federal reserve building in new york city. the bomb was fake because the people he thought were helping them were undercover agents. we learned he considered targeting president obama or the new york stock exchange. the father said he is shocked by his son's arrest. [ through translator ] >> i don't believe a fearful boy like him can do anything risky. without any doubt, i can say he's not linked with this. >> fafis is from bangladesh. the father said his son went to the u.s. to study business in college. now, some lawmakers are saying it was just too easy for him to get a student visa. nafis is charged with attempting to use a weapons of mass destruction and at the same timing to provide material to al qaeda. the trial of two prince georges county police officers accused of assaulting a university of maryland student during an offcampus civil disturbance nearly ended in a mistrial today? paul wagner is live outside of the courthouse in upper marlboro. this is a twistna thano one expected, right? >> reporter: no -- a twist that no one expected, right? >> reporter: no, will. none of this, none of what i am about to tell you was said in open court or on the record, and the jury knows nothing about this. this is what we understand from a law enforcement source happened after lunch today. there were a number of meetings between the prosecution, the defense, and the judge. the reason being, a local reporter decided to look into the background of judge beverly woodard and discovered that several years ago she was married to a police officer who had been convicted of excessive force. the reporter wanted to know why the judge had not recused herself since this is a trial about excessive force. the judge then asked for a meeting with the prosecution and the defense. according to the source, there was a meeting in the judge's chambers. this lasted for quite some time after the lunch hour. we understand from our source that the judge said she didn't want to recuse herself. she felt she could be a fair and impartial, the defense didn't want a mistrial, and the prosecution felt that if they accepted a mistrial, then there could be double jeopardy and they would not be able to retry the officers. at this hour, the trial will continue tomorrow with closing arguments. now, earlier today, the codefendant in this case, james harrison, took the stand in his own defense. under questioning from his defense attorney, officer james harrison said he first saw john mckenna about 45 seconds before his codefendant, officer reginald baker, hit the student with his shield sending him into a wall. harrison told the court he saw mckenna hit bake or his helmet while holding a cell phone in his hand. he was concerned about the cell phone because he had received bulletins saying that firearms could be disguised as cell phones. harrison said he told mckenna to drop it and hit him seven to eight times. did you strike him in the head, asked the defense attorney. harrison replied never. when asked by prosecutor joseph ruddy why he lived to internal affairs claiming he was not one of the striking officers seen in the video, harrison replied it was for financial reasons. he's the father of eight children, and the sole bread winner in the family, and he was afraid of losing his job. officer harrison also added that he had heard on the news that chief roberto hilton, the chief at the time, was going to fire any officer who took part in that beating. there was no mention in this trial about john mckenna having a cell phone in his hand. that was another a part that was brought out in croaks because -- cross examination, no one mentioned, not even john mckenna mentioned there was a cell phone in his hand. this was the first time they heard mckenna had a cell phone in his hand and that is why harrison felt he needed to go in with a baton. another note, harrison didn't report the use of force. he said he thought his supervisors were going to do it. will. >> paul, really quickly here, in your opinion based on what is happening with the judge, do you think there is an avenue now for an appeal, depending on who doesn't like the outcome? >> reporter: well, i sat through a lot of the trials before. usually this stuff has to be set in open court, will, and on the record. none of this was done on the record. it was all behind the scenes. that is why we reported it through sources. >> all right, paul wagner with the update. thank you, paul. to another news alert. this is out of howard county. the police are asking for your help finding a man accused of secretly videotaping two women inside their home. look at the video. the police say this is the suspect setting up the hidden camera inside the ellicott city home. they don't know who the man is or how he got inside. investigators say he entered the condo several times to move the camera around. if you recognize the man, police would like to hear from you. another big story tonight, police in northern virginia announcing the results of a major crackdown along the richmond highway chord door. the 10-month operation netted more than 100 arrests. karen gray houston is live in fairfax county with the latest. karen. >> reporter: shawn, we're talking about an operation that started in january. police say that they seized, altogether, 10 pounds of cocaine, 30 pounds of marijuana, 23 guns, two bulletproof vests, and $560,000 in cash. at least 30 of the arrests were made today and the sweep included a search warrant executed at this dollar depot on richmond highway in fairfax where police were investigating count fitting of dvds, cds, handbags, and other merchandise. fairfax county police teamed up with police from prince william county and the virginia state's police. the joint criminal intelligence team targeted what they called problematic areas along the richmond highway stretching from fairfax into prince williams. stolen property seized, included electronics, jewelry, credit cards. they also confiscated a large quantity of prescriptions and non-prescription drugs. >> the same individuals that were committing crimes in prince william county were the same individuals that were committing crimes, obviously n fairfax county. obviously, you know, the criminals don't respect the boundaries. just like the police would, if we had jurisdiction. >> this has been a lengthy investigation, it used ingenuity, a mix of traditional and non-traditional tactics and i commend how much they cared and how much they sought to arrest that guy, arrest the offenders and keep our communities, our collective communities. >> reporter: now, that attempted murder-for-hire plot that we motioned involved a prince william -- mentioned involved a prince william county man asking him to kill his wife. and, by the way, the end of the police operation leaves the fairfax county police chief, david rorer, going out with a big bang. he's finishing up his term as fairfax county. the police chief tomorrow stepped into the new job next week as fairfax county deputy fairfax county executive for public safety. we're live in fairfax, back in to you, shawn. >> thank you for the update, karen. president obama courting votes in the battleground state of new hampshire. the president addressed veterans in manchester and, again, hammered mitt romney's economic plans saying romney promised $5 trillion tax cuts to favor the wealthy and will balloon the deficit. the president talked about his own foreign policy saying he kept his promise to end the war in iraq and bring the war in afghanistan to a close. mitt romney's only public appearance will happen later tonight in new york city. he and the president will attend the annual al smith dinner. the white-tie gala has become a tradition in politicsins is the end of world war ii. candidates take lighthearted pokes at each other and themselves. smith was a democrat and he was the first catholic to be a presidential nominee. he lost in 1928 to republican herbert hoover. the dinner raises money for catholic healthcare programs in new york. we want ton what you think about the race for the white house. use the hash tag fox 5 d.c. you decide to tweet your thoughts. we're going to use some of your tweets for your now show debuting as election day approaches coming quick. fox 5 news edge 2012 will focus on local and national candidates and issuing doors the final two weeks of the came -- issues during the final two weeks of the campaign. it starts here monday night on fox five at 6:30. george mcgovern has taken a turn for the worse. the 90-year-old's family issued a statement saying he's no longer responsive. mcgovern lost to richard nixon in a historic landslide in the no one 72 presidential election. mcgovern's daughter said her father appears peaceful and is a blessing that she and other family members are able to be with him as he nears the end. coming up next on fox 5 news at 5, you can soon be shelling out little more for your favorite bottle of wine. why the price of certain vinos could be on the rise. >> brian said buy california. we won't have this problem. and what exactly do those sell buy and best buy dates mean and which foods really last past their expiration date. we're breaking it all down for you. hi, gary. >> thank you, will. listen, it's been real nice today. the temperatures in the 70s. some rain is coming. thunderstorms possible, too. we'll show you radar and when we think they might be here and how long it's going to stick around. stay with us, a first look at the forecast is coming up and there is more news, too. as governor, i cut five billion dollars in spending and balanced the budget every year. and tim kaine and i both cut our own pay as governors, to lead by example. mark warner and i reached across party lines to get things done. we were a great team in richmond and we'll be a great team in washington. i'm tim kaine and i approve this message ...because we'll work together to restore fiscal responsibility, grow our economy and create jobs. [ male announcer ] tim kaine. bringing people together to tackle the challenges of tomorrow. would ban all abortions and contraception seemed a bit extreme. so i looked into it. turns out, romney doesn't oppose contraception at all. in fact, he thinks abortion should be an option in cases of rape, incest, or to save a mother's life. this issue's important to me, but i'm more concerned about the debt our children will be left with. i voted for president obama last time, but we just can't afford four more years. [ romney ] i'm mitt romney and i approve this message. . after 80 years in print, "newsweek" is going all digital starting early next year. "the washington post" company sold "newsweek" two years ago when it was merged with the daily beast online news operation. the magazine was started in 1933 by a foreign news editor for "time" magazine. staff cuts are expected and no word by how much. "newsweek"'s last u.s. print edition will be december 31st. wine prices could be going up because of bad weather over in europe. drought, frost, and hail combined to damage many vineyards across europe. france's grape harvest is expected to fall by 20% compared to last year. italy's grape crops is showing a 7% drop. europe's grape harvest is a global impact because it accounts for more than 60% of the wine produced worldwide. from wine to food. how do you decide if a food is fresh enough to eat? most people go by the sell by or used by dates. you might be surprised to know that the -- weeks after fired. fox's theresa priola has details. >> reporter: who hasn't been there? you're preparing a home cooked meal and go to the fridge for that one crucial ingredient. only to find it's past the use by or expiration date. so is it still good? >> if it's in the fridgey dare, i'm assuming it's still okay. it smells okay. >> too risky. >> yeah, and they have like growing bacteria like who knows, you know. >> reporter: this is a topic of great debate, something that is studied in depth. >> i studied eggs weeks afterwards and they're still fine. >> reporter: dr. michael hanson said there is a big difference between a use by and sell by date. one is a remindder to the grocery store that it's time to move the products. the other is for the consumer that the product is past its peak. >> it's always best if it's a perishable commodity, milk or bagged salad. try to buy it with as a sell by date as long and the future possible. that means can you take it home and put it in their refrigerator and that might be good for a longer period of time. >> and sell -- >> and sell by/use by is not a myth. these states do matter. sometimes we take them too literally. the reality is that american families talk more than -- toss more than 120 pounds of food each month. more often than not, it's because the product is past the used by date. it doesn't mean it's bad but not as fresh. when it comes to your food shelf life, eggs can last weeks past the use by date as long as they're stored in their original packaging. cheeses, hard cheeses can last months and canned goods, years. cold cuts last one week past the use by date and frozen raw meat whole not ground is typically edible about 12 months past the expiration date. frozen ground beef will hold for about three months. but the same time -- about the same time can you keep ice cream. new yorkers we spoke with are as invested in this issue as they are grossed out by it. >> if it has freezer burn, i throw it out. >> i use my common sense and jump on what it looks like. i don't say it expired i have to get rid of it. >> if it's milk, i will throw it out. i will open it and smell it. >> we try to keep everything fresh. this is why i am so sexy. [ laughter ] >> got to love that outlook there. >> reporter: feel guilty about throwing food away before i have to. >> eat it fresh and you will be sexy like her. >> yeah. gary mcgrady what, about the weather forecast? what is going on for the rest of the evening? >> the thunderstorms, too. i don't think that is for everybody right away, the rain. don't think it's right there on our doorstep. we have thunderstorms looking like overnight tonight. let's go to central radar and give you an idea where stuff is right now. a little bit of rain creeping up to the south. this is passing over 64, interstate 64. and up i-95. that is coming up on the south and you so some other showers back to the west of us and kind of moving in our direction. so, this broad area of rain is going to sweep through, and i think it's going to be intensifying a little bit, too, over the next few hours and zooming to the south. this is rain coming up, and this is well south of spotsel vania, fredericksburg. again, it's coming up at us and this probably expands a little bit over the next hour, hour and a half and that continues to track up i-95. still some rain coming. big picture shows you back out to the west of us this frontal system is moving in our direction. so, again, rain pretty much in the forecast later on this evening and through the overnight hours. 69 degrees. cooled off from 71 and gaithersburg, 66. just to show nut forecast this evening, a few showers in at 7:00 and from can be a thunderstorm at 9:00 and 11 that will stay stay with us overnight tonight. motor long range forecast is coming up. >> see you in a few. what about this one? drop, cover and roll middle school students brad. the drill was conducted in langston. the earthquakes are not common in our region, but you remember, we did experience a moderate quake last year. the federal health officials have been conducting the so- called shakeout drills since 2008, the first year they being held in the southeast. >> reminds me of hailed my childhood growing up in southern california. >> i remember that. >> drop, cover, and roll. >> a local mother is leading the charge to change school start times in montgomery county. she joins us live to see why she believes high schoolers shouldn't begin their day earlier than 815 i'm a.m -- . >> if you have a story idea, call us or send us an e-mail at www.fox5tips@wttg.com. @wttg.co man: to some people, social securirity is just a number. but to me, it's money that i earned. i count on social security. and i don't want washington politicians like george allen... privatizing it. if george allen wants to risk his own money on wall street... that's fine. but i don't want him risking mine. george allen just isn't watching out for us. anncr: the democratic senatorial campaign committee is... responsible for the content of this advertising. maybe you're wondering what to believe about mitt romney. well, when it comes to protecting your access to birth control... and the basic women's health care services planned parenthood provides... one thing we must remember, is this: i'll cut off funding to planned parenthood. [ female announcer ] he'll cut it off. cut us off. planned parenthood. we're going to get rid of that. [ female announcer ] women need to know the real mitt romney. [ obama ] i'm barack obama and i approve this message. would ban all abortions and contraception seemed a bit extreme. so i looked into it. turns out, romney doesn't oppose contraception at all. in fact, he thinks abortion should be an option in cases of rape, incest, or to save a mother's life. this issue's important to me, but i'm more concerned about the debt our children will be left with. i voted for president obama last time, but we just can't afford four more years. [ romney ] i'm mitt romney and i approve this message. and balanced the budget every year. and tim kaine and i both cut our own pay as governors, to lead by example. mark warner and i reached across party lines to get things done. we were a great team in richmond and we'll be a great team in washington. i'm tim kaine and i approve this message ...because we'll work together to restore fiscal responsibility, grow our economy and create jobs. [ male announcer ] tim kaine. bringing people together to tackle the challenges of tomorrow. . parents in montgomery county started a movement to start classes later. they are collecting online signatures asking for it to start to 8:15 or later. the online petition has collected by my count at 4:30 and 3300 signatures. amend