Two women were fatally shot Friday morning at the Gateway Village senior living facility in Capitol Heights, Md., and one male suspect is in custody, according to Prince George’s County Police.
By 10:55 a.m., police said the scene was secure at the National Church Residences at Gateway Village, where the shooting occurred, and that there was no longer a threat.
The suspect was a resident at the building, a witness told WUSA9. Police have not yet released the identities of the suspect or the victims.
At around 9:15 a.m., PGPD officers responded to a shooting on the 500 block of Suffolk Avenue, and they took a suspect in custody just before 10:30 a.m. Police put the nearby Capitol Heights Elementary School on lockdown and told neighbors to shelter in place “out of an abundance of caution.”
A resident who lives at the building told WJLA: “I was coming into the building and we heard a ‘pow’ and then … I looked and I saw his hand go up and he shot twice and I just ran.”
Police say the investigation is ongoing and more details will be released.
At a press conference Friday afternoon, County Executive Angela Alsobrooks said the shooting was an example of worsening violence across the country.
“There is a depravity of heart that is associated with a killing like this one,” Alsobrooks said. “How you shoot in a senior facility … there are just no words for it.”
This story has been updated with more information from Prince George’s County officials.
Elliot C. Williams