Police confirm sixth victim in Washington DC gym shooting linked to condo dispute
Washington police have confirmed a sixth victim after a Thursday morning shooting at a VIDA Fitness gym in Logan Circle, about a mile north of the White House, bringing the toll to one person killed and five wounded. Officers initially found five victims; investigators later located a woman who was conscious and breathing with a non-life-threatening gunshot graze wound she had treated herself. Two women and two men were taken to hospital, all conscious and breathing.
The dead man was James Stuart, 46, manager of the condo building where the suspect lived. Police believe 55-year-old doctor Matt Wade Lambert targeted Stuart while he was doing his morning workout. The shooting began just before 8 a.m. local time (13:00 GMT). Lambert shot Stuart inside the gym on the ground floor, then returned to his seventh-floor apartment and fired on people below from his patio, including some working at a construction site across the street. Police have not said how the sixth victim was shot. Interim police chief Jeffery Carroll said the shootings unfolded in less than five minutes.
Lambert then barricaded himself, spoke with negotiators by phone, and fired at least twice through the door while officers were outside; none were injured. He broke the gas line to his fireplace and started a fire that the sprinkler system contained. Carroll said most of the talk concerned homeowners’ association disputes. Negotiators heard a single gunshot and Lambert went silent. Tactical officers found him dead from an apparent self-inflicted wound. Inside were a shotgun, a rifle and a handgun, all used in the shooting.
Court records cited by the Associated Press show Lambert had sued over mould, moisture and water problems in his penthouse since 2024, after exterior work on the building. The suit was ongoing; he appeared to post photos and an engineering report on an X account called ofMiceandMold. Lawyer Joel Braithwaite said Lambert had lived there since 2017, that the condo looked like “a warzone,” and that he had spent more than $300,000 on the lawsuit.
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