Virginia Beach Grieves Deaths of 12 Shooting Victims
Eleven of the victims were city employees, with tenures ranging from 11 months to more than 40 years; ‘They leave a void that we will never be able to fill’
The victims of Friday's shooting at a municipal building in Virginia Beach, Va.
Photo:
/Associated Press
A grieving Virginia Beach, Va., woke up Saturday to learn the names of the 12 people gunned down by a longtime city employee who authorities say turned a municipal building into a sea of carnage.
Eleven of the victims were city employees, with tenures ranging from 11 months to more than 40 years. Many worked in the Public Utilities Department, the same department where suspected shooter DeWayne Craddock had worked as an engineer for about 15 years, according to police.
“They leave a void that we will never be able to fill,” City Manager Dave Hansen said at a morning news conference, adding that he had worked with many of the victims for years. A contractor who was going to file a permit was also killed, he said.
Four other people are being treated at area hospitals. Three were in critical condition and one was in fair condition, according to hospital officials. A police officer who was wearing a bulletproof vest when he was shot is in good condition, Virginia Beach Police Chief James Cervera said.
Virginia
Beach emergency-service employees, elected officials and others
attended a news conference to discuss Friday’s mass shooting.
Photo:
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
President Trump ordered flags at federal buildings to be flown
at half-staff to honor the victims, as he has done for other shootings.“Our nation grieves with those affected by the tragic shooting at the Virginia Beach Municipal Center in Virginia Beach, Virginia,” read a proclamation issued by the White House. “Americans unite in praying for God to comfort the injured and heal the wounded. May God be with the victims and bring aid and comfort to their families and friends.”
All indications are that the 40-year-old shooting suspect legally bought both .45 handguns used in Friday’s shooting, Special Agent Ashan Benedict, of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, said Saturday. One handgun was purchased in 2016, the other in 2018, he said.
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At least one of the handguns had a silencer on it, police said earlier, and officers recovered multiple empty extended magazines, which can hold more ammunition than standard clips.
The ATF official said two firearms were found at the suspected shooter’s home; one of those has been identified, and it was legally purchased.
Police officers responded within minutes of the first call from the municipal building Friday afternoon, Chief Cervera said. He said officers were able to respond quickly because the police department’s office is in a building 100 to 150 yards from where the shooting occurred.
“This was a long-term, large gunfight,” the chief said. “A long gunbattle means multiple, multiple shots were being fired by the suspect.”
He said victims were found on all three floors of the building, which houses the public-utilities and public-works departments.
Chief Cervera said police and other first responders in Virginia Beach trained as recently as March 30 for a large-scale incident like Friday’s.
A gunman opened fire at a municipal building in Virginia
Beach, Va., on Friday, killing 12 people. The city’s police chief and
others described the incident in which the shooter, a city employee who
had recently been fired, also died. Photo: AP
Responding officers had to immediately determine who was an escaping city employee and who was potentially a suspect.“Unlike when you see something like this in a choreographed TV or movie special, this is a very different environment,” he said. “You cannot replicate the intensity of an environment such as this.”
Officials shared little information about the suspected shooter or his motive. They didn’t comment on whether he had threatened any co-workers or faced disciplinary problems at work, citing the continuing investigation.
While some law-enforcement officials originally thought the shooting suspect had been fired, Chief Cervera said that wasn’t the case.
Chief Cervera said he was still employed by the city. “He had a security pass like all employees have and he was authorized to enter the building. Please keep in mind we live in a free, open society; citizens enter that building all the time,” he said.
Mr. Hansen said while entry corridors and public-service desks are open to the public, inner offices and conference rooms require a pass to gain access.
President Trump tweeted Saturday morning that he had spoken with and offered condolences to Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam Friday night, and the mayor of Virginia Beach Saturday morning. “The Federal Government is there, and will be, for whatever they may need. God bless the families and all!” he tweeted.
“We will not be defined by this horror. We are a city of resiliency and resolve,” Virginia Beach Mayor Bobby Dyer said.
Write to Scott Calvert at scott.calvert@wsj.com
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