A deadly shooting at a Virginia equipment rental company Wednesday morning left two workers dead and a third hospitalized after a coworker opened fire following a chilling warning that lives would be lost.
Manassas City Police Chief Douglas Keen said 37-year-old Marvin Grant arrived at United Rentals on Wellington Road and told a coworker that three people were going to die before pulling out a handgun and opening fire in the business’s garage area. At least eight employees were present at the time of the attack.
The three victims were rushed to a hospital in critical condition. Richard Lamot, 48, and Christopher Serrano, 33, later died from their injuries. The third victim survived and is expected to require surgery.
Police Chief Keen said he personally knew Lamot, describing him as a dedicated father who had coached youth football in Fauquier County for years. Keen called the loss deeply personal for both himself and the broader Manassas community.
Serrano’s fiancée Mayra Maturano was placed on the phone with him as he was being loaded into an ambulance. According to accounts shared publicly his final words to her were that he loved her and that he was not going to make it. An online fundraiser for his family describes Serrano as a devoted partner and father to a 10-year-old son and a 3-year-old daughter.
Investigators noted that Grant had swapped his vehicle’s license plate sometime after midnight Wednesday placing a temporary North Carolina tag on the car he drove to work. Authorities tracked him using technology after he fled the scene.
A Virginia State Police trooper located Grant’s vehicle on southbound Interstate 81 in Augusta County hours after the shooting. Troopers attempted to stop him at a rest area but Grant drove away prompting a chase before he eventually pulled over on the side of the road.
A negotiator was brought in after officers observed that Grant was armed. After roughly an hour-long standoff Grant shot himself and was later pronounced dead at a nearby hospital. State police confirmed that no troopers discharged their weapons during the incident.
Police Chief Keen said investigators have not yet identified a clear motive for the attack. He noted that September had already been a difficult month for Manassas following a separate shooting earlier in the month that killed a 16-year-old girl. Keen emphasized that the absence of a known motive provides no comfort to the families of those killed.