A man in critical condition after being shot in what police believe was an attempted carjacking in Washington, D.C., has been identified by his family as Mike Gill, a former federal official in the Trump administration.
The carjacking attempt was one of a string of similar incidents across D.C. and suburban Maryland late Monday that ended in one other motorist’s death. The suspect in the overnight crime spree was later fatally shot by police.
Gill was the first victim of the spree, according to Erica Richardson, a spokesperson for his family. She told The Daily Beast that Gill remained hospitalized on Tuesday. A D.C. police spokesman told local station WTOP that Gill was in “very critical condition.” A statement from D.C. police described the injuries as “life-threatening” but did not identify Gill as the victim.
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A married father of three, Gill served from 2016 to 2019 as chief of staff to J. Christopher Giancarlo, then the chairman of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Gill also worked as the chief operating officer of the agency, according to his LinkedIn. Though he took a job in the private sector in 2020, he maintained ties to the political world, wrapping up a seven-year tenure as a Republican representative on the D.C. Board of Elections last year.
“He is… a real asset to the city in a lot of ways and not just on the Board of Elections,” Michael Bennett, a friend and former election board chairman, told WTOP. “Just a great citizen, a great guy.”
Gill was targeted in his vehicle while idling outside his wife’s workplace, apparently waiting to pick her up just before 6 p.m. on Monday, according to D.C. police and a witness who spoke to The Washington Post. The witness, Yolanda Douglas, said that she saw the victim sprawled out on the pavement in a pool of his own blood, one foot still inside his car.
Douglas said that a woman ran out of a nearby building, screaming, “Oh my god, that’s my husband.” The woman grabbed the victim’s hand and asked him what had happened, Douglas recalled, but he did not respond. Douglas said she, the wife, and another bystander worked to put pressure on the victim’s head wound as they waited for first responders to arrive.
In her statement, Richardson highlighted Gill’s love for his wife, Kristina, and their three children. She called him “an amazing husband, father, friend and colleague.”
“His warmth and kindness have touched the lives of many, evident in the outpouring of love and support his family has received during this difficult time,” Richardson said.
Gill’s identity was first reported on Tuesday evening by the Daily Wire.
The suspect in Gill’s shooting fled the scene on foot and is believed to have gone on to commit at least three successful carjackings, as well as one shooting that may have been another attempted carjacking. He also opened fire on two occupied police vehicles in separate locations, authorities said, according to the Post, matching a statement by police.
He was eventually gunned down early Tuesday in Prince George’s County in Maryland by two police officers. Officials did not immediately name the suspect. D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) called the bloodshed “unthinkable.”
The motorist who was killed in one of the later carjackings was identified by police as Alberto Vasquez Jr., 35. He and his girlfriend had been confronted by the gunman, his parents told NBC Washington.
“They gave up the keys and, for whatever reason, the guy still shot him and ended up killing my son,” said his mother, Antoinette Walker.
Vasquez is also survived by two young daughters, according to the station.
