One Metro Transit employee died as a result of a shooting at the Potomac Avenue Metro station in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday morning.
The Metropolitan Police Department and Metro Transit Police told reporters on Wednesday that the shooter, who is in custody, went on a rampage and shot people at random.
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"We believe this to be a series of individual events," MPD Executive Assistant Chief of Police Ashan Benedict said.
Altercations between the shooter and people first occurred on a Metrobus, where the suspect got into an argument with a victim, following him off the bus and shooting him in the leg. That person ran off and was transported to the hospital, police said.
At the Potomac Avenue Metro station, the suspect spoke to someone who was getting a MetroCard and shot them in the leg. As he continued down the escalator, he got into another altercation with a woman. Two Metro Transit employees were watching this, and one of them attempted to intervene.
The suspect shot that employee, who died at the scene, police said. His identity has not been released.
UPDATE: one of the shooting victims has died according to police. https://t.co/tFgUDvfxpg
— Jummy Olabanji (@JummyNBC) February 1, 2023
A second Metro employee tried to deescalate the situation, which police said they believe he did successfully. The shooter got on and off the train several times before being taken into custody.
Overall, three victims, all adult males, are in the hospital. Two have leg injuries and one has an injured finger, per police.
Metro Transit Police alerted travelers that officers were responding to a shooting at the station at about 9:20 a.m. Service for the Blue/Orange/Silver lines has been suspended between Federal Center SW and Minnesota Avenue/Benning Road stations, police said.
MTPD and @DCPoliceDept are on the scene of a shooting at Potomac Avenue Station. One victim with gunshot wound confirmed, one suspect in custody. Blue/Orange/Silver line service suspended between Federal Center SW and Minnesota Ave / Benning Rd. #wmata
— Metro Transit Police (@MetroTransitPD) February 1, 2023
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and Metro General Manager Randy Clarke were also at the station during the press briefing.
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This is the fourth reported Metro Transit shooting of the year. On Jan. 3, one teenager was killed and another injured in a targeted shooting at the Congress Heights station. On Jan. 7, a man was shot and killed outside the Navy Yard Metro station. Two children and a man were shot getting off a Metrobus on Jan. 12.
In December 2022, there were two shootings at the Metro train stations in less than 24 hours. On Dec. 7, there was an officer-involved shooting at Metro Center that left one person dead. The next morning, three people were shot at the Benning Road station.