Two employees were killed in a shooting at a United Rentals facility in Northern Virginia on Wednesday, police said. The shooter, a co-worker, later killed himself in a standoff with Virginia State Police, authorities said.
A third victim in the shooting remains in stable condition, authorities said.
The shooting occurred around 7 a.m. Eastern time at the United Rentals site at 9415 Wellington Road in Manassas, according to Manassas City Police Chief Doug Keen.
“There was some kind of altercation this morning,” Keen said at a news conference Wednesday, adding that when the shooter, Marvin Grant, 37, arrived at work Wednesday morning, he allegedly told a co-worker: “Three people are going to die.”
“He then produced a handgun and began shooting,” Keen said. Police said they do not know the motive. “No one had any idea,” the chief said.
The men killed were Christopher Serrano, 33, and Ricky Lamot, 48, who coached youth football with the police chief. “He is a deep family man,” Keen said of his fellow coach.
A tribute on Facebook called Serrano a devoted father of two. “Our children were his world, and knowing that they now have to grow up without their dad is something I still cannot fully comprehend,” wrote Mayra Maturano, who described Serrano as her “life partner.”
Grant had a North Carolina address, according to police. Keen said he was “a fairly new employee,” though investigators are unsure whether he was new to the facility or the company.
Grant changed the tags on his vehicle sometime between midnight and Wednesday morning, police said. After the shooting, Keen said, Grant left the scene in a gray Toyota and authorities used his cellphone to track him as he headed south on Interstate 81.
A Virginia State Police trooper spotted Grant’s vehicle in Augusta County, Virginia, according to authorities, and he later pulled into a rest area, where troopers tried to get him to stop.
“The suspect exited his vehicle, then returned to his vehicle and continued driving southbound on Interstate 81,” Virginia State Police said in a statement.
Troopers chased Grant for about six miles until he “pulled over on the side of the interstate and exited the vehicle with a firearm pointed at his head,” the statement said. A tactical team and negotiator were called in, but by 10:30 a.m., state police said, Grant had shot himself. He later died at the hospital.
Virginia State Police said they did not use force in the incident.
“While some may consider the case closed with the death of Mr. Grant, it brings no closure,” Keen said, adding that the entire Manassas community will be affected by Wednesday’s gunfire.
A shelter-in-place order was temporarily issued for the community around United Rentals, a Manassas police spokesperson said in a statement.
Jennie Dean Elementary School, which is less than a mile from the United Rentals location, was put on “secure the building status” for the rest of the day, police said. This means outside activities are canceled, and doors and windows are secured, but students can move around within the school.
Wednesday’s shooting follows another recent tragedy in the city, Keen said. On Sept. 4, a 16-year-old girl died after being hit by crossfire in a shooting at a block party.
“It hits home,” Keen said.
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