A psychiatric patient fled a Falls Church hospital on a 48-hour pass July 6 and boarded a flight to Tajikistan.

Abdulloi Toshpulodzoda had been found not guilty by reason of insanity in 2022 and admitted to the Northern Virginia Mental Health Institute (NVMHI) in 2023, the Fairfax Times reported. Courts denied his conditional release three times between 2023 and 2026. He was granted the pass to visit his apartment but instead traveled to Dulles International Airport and left the country. A bench warrant has been issued for his arrest if he returns.

The escape has renewed scrutiny of Virginia Code § 19.2-182.4, which allows the Commissioner of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services to grant acquittees temporary visits outside the hospital for up to 48 hours. The statute requires only that the visit "pose no substantial danger to others." No prior court approval is needed, though the commissioner must notify the local Commonwealth's attorney in writing.

In 2024, a judge had approved an escorted visit during which NVMHI staff took Toshpulodzoda to the Embassy of Tajikistan in Washington, D.C. He obtained a passport there.

Victim's family wants court oversight

The case alarmed Gizan Glyer, whose brother Gret Glyer was murdered in 2022. A Fairfax County Circuit Court judge accepted a not-guilty-by-reason-of-insanity plea in that case on Feb. 19.

Gizan Glyer told the Fairfax Times she fears her brother's killer could receive similar unescorted privileges. She wants pass decisions routed through the courts, with families given a real chance to weigh in.

"Families of the victims should be allowed to reasonably and meaningfully object to that if that's what they want, if they feel unsafe," she said.

Marsden says law unlikely to change

State Sen. Dave Marsden, D-District 35, told the Fairfax Times the legislature is unlikely to amend the statute. He said people can recover from mental illness and that each case differs in severity. Marsden said lawmakers would more likely push for stricter scrutiny of individual release decisions rather than rewrite the law itself.

Notification gap

Under Virginia Code § 19.2-11.01, victims are notified of an acquittee's release only if they first submit a written request to the Commissioner of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services. Without that request, families receive no automatic notice when someone found not guilty by reason of insanity begins leaving hospital grounds.

No legislative hearing on the pass law has been scheduled. Victims who want to be notified of an acquittee's status changes can submit a written request to the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services.