A shocking crime spree in the Washington, D.C., area this week laid bare the chaos unfolding in the nation’s capital.
In an 11-hour stretch on Monday night, one suspect was involved in eight dangerous incidents before he was shot dead by police in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
D.C. Police Executive Assistant Chief Jeffery Carroll told the Washington Post the first attack took place at 5:45 p.m. on Monday when a man was found shot on a sidewalk on K Street NW. The victim was targeted in his vehicle and was shot in the head. The victim was later identified as Mike Gill by his family spokeswoman, Erica Richardson. He’s a former chairman of D.C.’s Board of Elections. As of Tuesday evening, Gill was in “very critical condition,” per D.C. police.
Less than 90 minutes later, there was another attempted carjacking at 7:05 p.m., this time targeting someone unsuccessfully at the 1000 block of 3rd Street NE. Ten minutes later, a man was shot and killed, and his 2016 Chrysler 200 near the NoMa Gallaudet Metro Station was stolen. The man’s family identified him as 35-year-old Alberto Vasquez, per News4.
Police say the carjacker abandoned the car in Takoma Park before carjacking the driver of a Toyota Camry in a rideshare in Montgomery County.
Then, shortly before 3 a.m., a person carjacked a Nissan and shot at a Maryland State Police cruiser, hitting the car but not injuring the officer. Half an hour later, a drive-by shooter targeted a D.C. police cruiser on D.C. 295, and police reported no injuries.
The string of violence comes amid concern for an alarming rise in crime in the city. The district ended 2023 with a 26% increase in overall crime compared to last year, according to Metropolitan Police Department data. That included a 39% increase in violent crime, and carjackings rose for a sixth year in a row, totaling 959 reported incidents.
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As of Wednesday, the MPD has reported 46 carjackings and 9 homicides in 2024.
“The violence that we saw yesterday was senseless and tragic. We know two families are experiencing an unspeakable tragedy.” D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said at a press conference on Tuesday.