Photo: Matt Gush / Shutterstock.com The shooting near Logan Circle in Washington, DC, left one person dead and four others injured Thursday morning, November 12.
Police identified the deceased victim as 46-year-old James Stewart, the building manager at Vida Fitness, and the suspected gunman as 55-year-old Matt Wade Lambert, who was found dead inside his apartment after a police standoff.
Interim Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) Chief Jeffery Carroll said officers responded shortly after 8 a.m. to reports of a shooting inside the Vida Fitness gym in the 1500 block of 15th Street NW. As police headed to the scene, additional calls reported gunfire at several nearby locations.
Investigators believe Lambert first shot Stewart inside the gym before returning to his apartment on the building's seventh floor. From a patio or balcony, he allegedly fired at four other people on the ground below.
Two adult women and two adult men were transported to local hospitals. One victim was in critical condition, while the other three had injuries that were not considered life-threatening, according to Carroll.
Police located Lambert barricaded inside his apartment during a search of the building. He fired through the apartment door twice while officers were outside, but no officers were injured.
Negotiators subsequently established telephone contact with him. During the standoff, police discovered that the suspect had broken a gas line connected to his apartment's fireplace and started a fire. Flames were visible outside the building, while the sprinkler system helped contain the blaze. DC Fire and EMS crews responded and shut off the building's gas supply.
While negotiations were underway, officers heard a single gunshot. Tactical teams forced entry into the apartment and found Lambert suffering from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Emergency responders pronounced him dead at the scene.
Police recovered three firearms inside the apartment: a shotgun, a rifle and a handgun. Carroll said Lambert had no firearms registered to him in Washington, DC. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) is assisting with the investigation.
Carroll said investigators believe the shooting may be connected to an ongoing dispute between Lambert and the condominium association and building management over maintenance issues, including mold.
The suspect had filed a civil lawsuit against the association, according to the police chief. Investigators are examining whether that dispute was a motive for the attack.
Police are reviewing surveillance footage from the gym and apartment building and interviewing witnesses. Carroll said the shootings appeared to have taken place within a matter of minutes, although investigators are still establishing the exact timeline.
The incident triggered a major police operation, with 11 public schools placed on alert and additional patrols deployed at nearby Metro stations. Although the standoff ended and police declared the scene safe, traffic restrictions remained in the Logan Circle area.