Virginia Beach shooting: Suspect emailed resignation hours before attack

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — A mass shooting at a city government complex in Virginia Beach, Virginia, Friday afternoon left 12 people dead and four injured, according to authorities.

>> Read more trending news

Police said civil engineer DeWayne Craddock, 40, entered the Virginia Beach Municipal Center around 4 p.m. and opened fire on his colleagues.

Craddock was shot by police and later died, according to Virginia Beach police Chief Jim Cevera, who also said authorities still have no motive for the attack.

Update 10:30 p.m. EDT June 2: As residents of the city of Virginia Beach try to come to grips with the horror of the deadly attack that unfolded in their community, Virginia Beach City Public Schools plan to honor the victims on Monday.

Schools Superintendent Aaron Spence is asking everyone to wear blue in memory of those who lost their lives in the worst mass shooting this year in the United States.

At least one other Virginia school district, Henrico County, followed suit, also asked students, faculty and administrators to show support for the victims and their families by wearing blue.

Update 1:50 p.m. EDT June 2: The Associated Press reported that the shooter, Craddock, was in the process of resigning, according to Virginia Beach City Manager Dave Hansen. He resigned by email hours before the shooting, according to Hansen, who said he had "satisfactory" job performance as a civil engineer.

There was no immediate indication about why the shooter gave his two weeks notice, the AP reported.

Update 8:45 p.m. EDT June 1: A handwritten note at the home of the Virginia Beach shootings suspect, who died in a shootout with police, expresses condolences to the shooting victims on behalf of the suspect's family.

The Washington Post reports the note was taped Saturday to the front door of the two-story house on the wooded road where DeWayne Craddock lived about an hour from the city.

It says: "The family of DeWayne Craddock wishes to send our heart felt condolences to the victims. We are grieving the loss of our loved one." It says Craddock's family wants to focus on the victims of the shootings and offers thoughts and prayers for the relatives of the dead and wounded.

Update 4:30 p.m. EDT June 1: An official with the federal Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives says investigators have identified two .45 caliber pistols used in the shooting at a Virginia Beach municipal building that killed 12.

Speaking at a news conference Saturday afternoon, ATF regional special agent Ashan Benedict says all indications are that the guns were bought legally. He says one gun was bought in 2016 and the other was bought last year.

Benedict says two other weapons were found at the gunman's home.

President Donald Trump has ordered U.S. flags to be flown at half-staff in memory of the victims of a shooting in Virginia.

Update 1:47 p.m. EDT June 1: The gunman who killed 12 people in Virginia Beach recently purchased multiple firearms, investigators said.

The guns found at the scene were bought legally, The Associated Press reported.

Update 10:47 a.m. EDT June 1: President Donald Trump shared his condolences Saturday morning.

Update 9:04 a.m. EDT June 1: Virginia Beach police Chief James Cervera said at a news conference Saturday that DeWayne Craddock, 40, identified as the gunman in Friday's shooting, was still employed by the city of Virginia Beach.

Cervera said he was “not at liberty” to discuss whether Craddock had ever previously threatened anyone in the building.

Craddock had a security pass "like all employees had" to access inner offices of the building, Hansen said.

“He was authorized to enter the building," Hansen said.

Update 8:42 a.m. EDT June 1: Officials in Virginia Beach held a news conference Saturday morning to address the mass shooting at a city building Friday afternoon.

Virginia Beach City Manager Dave Hansen, calling the shooting a “senseless, incomprehensible act of violence,” said all but one of the 12 people killed were employees of the city of Virginia Beach.

“They leave a void that will never be filled,” Hansen said.

The victims were identified as:

• Laquita C. Brown, Chesapeake;

• Tara Welch Gallager, Virginia Beach;

• Mary Louise Gayle, Virginia Beach;

• Alexander Mikhail Gusev, Virginia Beach;

• Katherine A. Nixon, Virginia Beach;

• Richard H. Nettleton, Norfolk;

• Christopher Kelly Rapp, Powhatan;

• Ryan Keith Cox, Virginia Beach;

• Joshua A. Hardy, Virginia Beach;

• Michelle "Missy" Langer, Virginia Beach;

• Robert "Bobby" Williams, Chesapeake;

• Herbert "Bert" Snelling, Virginia Beach

Update 4:40 a.m. EDT June 1: "This is the most devastating day in the history of Virginia Beach," Virginia Beach Mayor Bobby Dyer said late Friday, according to WAVY.

"This is a horrific day for the Commonwealth of Virginia," Gov. Ralph Northam said during a Friday night news conference.

Vigils are being organized in Virginia Beach, WAVY reported. A prayer vigil will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Regal Cinemas, and another one will be held Wednesday at Old Dominion University.

Update 11 p.m. EDT May 31: Police Chief Jim Cervera has also identified DeWayne Craddock as the suspect in the Municipal Center shooting, according to WAVY.

Earlier, Cervera said he would identify the gunman only one time and would afterward refer to him only as "the suspect."

Update 9:45 p.m. EDT May 31: In a second press briefing following the workplace-related shooting, Virginia Beach Police Chief Cervera said that a 12th victim died on the way to the hospital.

Cervera also said that four officers engaged in a “long-term gun battle” with the suspect. Following the incident, police rendered first aid before the suspect died.

Update 9:15 p.m. EDT May 31: The Wall Street Journal identified DeWayne Craddock, 40 years old, as the shooter who killed 11 people Friday.

Craddock made multiple firearm purchases, officials told the Wall Street Journal.

Original report: Cervera said in the Friday press conference that the shooter opened fire and shot "indiscriminately" at workers inside the operations building.

Police returned fire, killing the suspect.

The suspect was a longtime employee of the city's Public Works Department, Cervera said. One of the people shot is a police officer.

The FBI in Norfolk said the bureau is responding to assist Virginia Beach police.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Cox Media Group