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Gunman in Virginia Beach Shooting Planned to Quit City Job, Officials Say Virginia Beach Gunman Said He Was Quitting, Then Went on a Shooting Rampage
(about 7 hours later)
VIRGINIA BEACH — The Virginia Beach city employee who killed 12 people Friday afternoon at a municipal office building had submitted his resignation hours earlier, the local authorities said on Sunday. VIRGINIA BEACH — The resignation email arrived in the morning, and the gunfire started in the afternoon.
Although the police said that investigators were still examining possible motives for the mass shooting, David L. Hansen, the city manager, said that the suspect, DeWayne Craddock, had sent an email on Friday that declared his intention to quit. DeWayne Craddock, an engineer who had worked for the City of Virginia Beach for about 15 years, notified his superiors on Friday that he intended to quit.
“He notified his chain of command that morning,” Mr. Hansen said at a news conference, adding that Mr. Craddock’s resignation had not been forced and that investigators were still trying to recover a copy of the email. Then at around 4 p.m., he embarked on a rampage in Building No. 2 of the Virginia Beach Municipal Center, turning its offices and corridors into a battleground. When it was over, 12 people lay dead and Mr. Craddock was fatally wounded.
Chief James A. Cervera of the Virginia Beach Police Department gave a more detailed timeline on Sunday about the police response to the shooting, saying that four officers reached the scene, known as Building No. 2, within two minutes of the first emergency call, which came in at 4:08 p.m. Friday. As the authorities on Sunday shared a more detailed accounting of the siege, they also acknowledged for the first time that the gunman’s employment had been nearing its end. But they said he had not been forced to resign.
The chief said that parts of the building, which was built in the 1970s, resembled “a honeycomb” of offices and corridors that was challenging to navigate. Within five to eight minutes of arriving at the building, the chief said, the officers located Mr. Craddock and “immediately engaged in a gun battle.” He said the officers were not wearing body cameras. James A. Cervera, the police chief in Virginia Beach, said investigators were focused on establishing what Mr. Craddock’s motives were and whether his job status “had anything to do with the horrific acts and events that he perpetrated.”
Chief Cervera said that he did not know precisely how many rounds Mr. Craddock had fired, but “it was well into the double digits,” and that Mr. Craddock had often been moving during the gun battle. He said one officer was wounded at about 4:19 p.m. At a news conference on Sunday, Chief Cervera offered a chilling timeline of what happened in Building No. 2, the stately 1970s-vintage brick structure where Mr. Craddock opened fire on three floors and where a small team of police officers rushed to confront an employee who had become an assailant.
The first urgent calls, the chief said, were received at 4:08 p.m., and less than two minutes later officers were outside the building, which over the years had become what he called a “honeycomb” of rooms and passageways. There was no time to consult a blueprint, no time to map out a strategy. They had to find the gunman.
By 4:18 p.m., the chief said, the officers had located Mr. Craddock, a 40-year-old former soldier who was armed with two handguns and plenty of ammunition.
A gun battle began.
Mr. Craddock moved through the building, exchanging shots with the officers, including one who was wounded at about 4:19 p.m. Precisely how many rounds the gunman fired is not yet known, Chief Cervera said on Sunday, but “it was well into the double digits.”
“At one point, the suspect was firing through the door, through the wall at the officers,” the chief said. “And then the firing stopped.”“At one point, the suspect was firing through the door, through the wall at the officers,” the chief said. “And then the firing stopped.”
He said the officers soon concluded that the suspect had barricaded himself in an office. They decided to breach the door, and found Mr. Craddock inside, alive but wounded. Chief Cervera said efforts were made to save his life, but he died later at an area hospital. Mr. Craddock had barricaded himself in a room. The officers, the chief said, were worried about an escape and another burst of violence, and made plans to breach the door.
Eleven city workers were killed in the rampage, which was among the deadliest episodes of workplace violence in the United States in recent years. The employees, who had collectively worked for the Virginia Beach government for more than 150 years, were LaQuita Brown; Ryan Keith Cox; Tara Welch Gallagher; Mary Louise Gayle; Alexander Mikhail Gusev; Joshua O. Hardy; Michelle Langer, known as Missy; Richard H. Nettleton; Katherine A. Nixon; Christopher Kelly Rapp; and Robert Williams. “That’s not an easy decision to make: There’s an individual on the other side of the door, he has a gun, he just shot one of your officers,” he said.
Herbert Snelling, a contractor who was at the municipal center to see about a permit, was also killed. They broke in and found Mr. Craddock alive but seriously wounded. Chief Cervera said the officers tried to save his life, but he died later.
[ Read more about the victims. ] As the police cleared the building, some of the workers who escaped injury had to navigate what city officials described as a “horrific” scene.
Dozens of tributes — flowers, cards, balloons and American flags among them — were neatly arranged along Princess Anne Road near the scene of the shootings Sunday afternoon. But the area immediately surrounding Building No. 2 was still ringed in crime-scene tape as F.B.I. agents processed evidence. Eleven city workers were killed in the rampage, one of the deadliest episodes of workplace violence in the United States in recent years. The employees, who had collectively worked for the Virginia Beach government for more than 150 years, were LaQuita Brown; Ryan Keith Cox; Tara Welch Gallagher; Mary Louise Gayle; Alexander Mikhail Gusev; Joshua O. Hardy; Michelle Langer, known as Missy; Richard H. Nettleton; Katherine A. Nixon; Christopher Kelly Rapp; and Robert Williams.
Local hospitals said on Sunday morning that four people injured in the attack were in critical condition. One patient who had been listed in fair condition “is critical this morning due to post-surgery recovery,” Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital said in a statement. Herbert Snelling, a contractor who was at the municipal center to see about a permit, also was killed.
Mr. Craddock had worked for the city for about 15 years, officials said, and had trained as an engineer. He spent time in the Virginia National Guard, and public records did not suggest that he had any history with the criminal justice system other than traffic violations. [Read more about the victims.]
[ Read more about the suspected gunman. ] Local hospitals said on Sunday that four people who were injured in the attack were in critical condition. One patient who had been listed in fair condition “had additional surgery and is critical during recovery,” Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital said in a statement.
Two handguns found with Mr. Craddock were purchased legally in 2016 and 2018, the authorities said. Federal investigators said that two more weapons were found during a search of his apartment and that at least one of them had been purchased legally. On Princess Anne Road, near the municipal complex, passing drivers were slowing down to gaze at a growing memorial to the victims, a collection of flowers, cards, balloons and American flags. A set of crosses was installed in the afternoon. A few hundred yards away, F.B.I. agents were processing evidence from Building No. 2, which was still ringed with crime-scene tape.
Mr. Hansen said at the news conference on Sunday that Mr. Craddock’s job performance in his city job had been “satisfactory, and he was in good standing in his department.” Asked whether co-workers had raised concerns about Mr. Craddock, Mr. Hansen replied, “We continue to look at that,” but added that he was “not sensing that.” Much about Mr. Craddock, an engineer who had worked on projects like sewer pipelines and pump station replacements, remained unclear. Members of his family have declined to speak publicly, but expressed their condolences to victims of the attack and their loved ones in a handwritten statement posted on the door of a family home.
Responding to questions a few minutes later, Mr. Hansen acknowledged that Mr. Craddock had notified the city of his intention to resign. Asked whether Mr. Craddock’s resignation message had given any reasons for his quitting, Mr. Hansen said, “We are determining where that letter is.” But he said he did not believe the resignation was connected with any decision about Mr. Craddock’s future position in the government. [Read more about the suspected gunman.]
Throughout the news conference on Sunday, city officials referred to Mr. Craddock as “the perpetrator” or “the suspect.” They did not speak his name. Although the gunman’s state of mind at the time of the killings remains a mystery, local law enforcement officials involved with the case believe Mr. Craddock had recently “snapped,” according to three city officials.
In the middle of the rampage, Terry Inman, who worked with Mr. Craddock in the public utilities office, was trying to find a way out of the second floor of the building when he ran into the gunman, who had his weapon pointed downward.
Mr. Inman said he asked Mr. Craddock: “What are you doing? Stop it, DeWayne!”
Mr. Craddock responded with a blank stare and, after a moment, turned around and walked away without firing, Mr. Inman said. Deeply shaken by the encounter, Mr. Inman then sought safety on an upper floor.
David L. Hansen, the city manager, said at the news conference on Sunday morning that Mr. Craddock’s performance in his city job had been “satisfactory, and he was in good standing in his department.” Mr. Hansen said that officials were continuing to examine whether co-workers had raised concerns about Mr. Craddock, but added that he was “not sensing that” there had been misgivings about him.
Prodded by questions a few minutes later, Mr. Hansen acknowledged that Mr. Craddock had notified the city on Friday morning of his intention to resign. Asked whether Mr. Craddock’s email had cited a reason for his resignation, Mr. Hansen said, “We are determining where that letter is.” But he said he did not believe the resignation was connected with any decision about Mr. Craddock’s future position in the government.
Building No. 2 will remain closed indefinitely, Mr. Hansen said. The rest of the municipal center, a sprawling complex of more than two dozen buildings, is expected to reopen on Tuesday.
“Our recovery is underway,” Mr. Hansen said. “Our grieving is underway.”