A former Trump administration official and married father of three is fighting for his life after being shot by a suspect in a series of carjackings in the greater Washington, D.C., area Monday night.
Mike Gill, who served as chief operating officer of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission under President Donald Trump, was critically injured in the shooting and was admitted to the hospital Tuesday night. told Fox 5 Washington, DC.
The gunman is believed to have shot and killed another car-stealing victim, as well as three attempted or successful carjackings, as well as two incidents in which he fired shots at police.
The suspect was ultimately killed in Maryland after approaching officers with two firearms.
Police said the man began the crime Monday around 5:45 p.m. by breaking into Gill’s car, which was parked outside an office building on K Street NW, and shooting her in the head before fleeing on foot.
Authorities are investigating whether the suspect was trying to steal Gil’s car when he shot her.
Mr. Gill, senior vice president of capital markets at the Housing Policy Council and previously the Republican representative on the D.C. Board of Elections, was picking up his wife from work at the time of the shooting. According to the Washington Post.
Witness Yolanda Douglas told the newspaper she saw the victim sprawled on the sidewalk with the car door open and one foot on the passenger side of the car. He was wearing a dress shirt and sweater, blood pooling around his head and his hands twitching.
Douglas then saw a woman come out of a building on the block, frantically yelling, “Oh my god, that’s my husband,” as she ran up to him and grabbed his hand.
When paramedics arrived and placed Gill on a stretcher, Gill’s car keys and another small metal object fell off him, police said.
Douglas told The Washington Post that one first responder said it was a shell casing, confirming he had been shot.
In a statement to Fox 5 on Tuesday, Gill’s family described him as a “wonderful husband, father, friend and co-worker” with a “great sense of humor.”
“He befriends everyone and is always looking for opportunities to bring people together and make them feel included and loved,” the statement said. “His warmth and kindness touched the lives of many people, as evidenced by the outpouring of love and support his family received during this difficult time.”
About an hour after allegedly shooting Gill, the suspect attempted to carjack another vehicle on Northeast Third Street, but was unsuccessful.
Ten minutes later, the gunman shot and killed the driver, 35-year-old Alberto Vasquez Jr., and stole his 2016 gray Chrysler 200, authorities said.
Investigators have linked the three incidents and identified a suspect believed to be involved in all three crimes.
But the carjacker continued his criminal activities, reportedly ditching the Chrysler and stealing a Toyota Camry from a rideshare driver in Montgomery County. Police said the man then abandoned the car and stole a Nissan Rogue from University Park in Prince George’s County.
Early the next morning, at 2:30 a.m., someone driving a Nissan fired shots at a Maryland State Police cruiser that had stopped to help a disabled vehicle on Interstate 95 near Route 198. The authorities have found out. The bullet hit the hood and missed the officer. said the official.
According to the Washington Post, authorities said the vehicle used to pass and shoot the marked DC police car at Exit 1 of DC 295 was also a Nissan. At least one bullet struck the driver’s side door, but the officer was not injured.
New Carrollton police found the unoccupied Nissan in a Prince George’s County business district by about 4:30 a.m., officials said. The suspect then approached the officers with two firearms, and both officers opened fire, killing each other.
The violence comes as carjackings in the nation’s capital more than double to 950 from 2022 to 2023, the Washington Post reported.
But officials believe the Monday-to-Tuesday assaults were not motivated by material gain, but rather by an unstable man who was emotionally cornered. D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said the crime was “indiscriminate” and “unthinkable,” according to the newspaper.
