A physician killed his condominium building’s manager inside a Washington, D.C., gym Thursday morning and wounded four other people before dying from a self-inflicted gunshot wound during a police standoff, authorities said.
The attack began at VIDA Fitness in Logan Circle and extended to the residential building above it, where police said the gunman fired from his seventh-floor balcony. Investigators identified the shooter as Dr. Matt Wade Lambert, 55, and said they believe the killing was connected to an ongoing dispute over conditions in his condominium.
One of the four wounded victims was reported in critical condition Thursday. The other three sustained injuries authorities described as not life-threatening. The injured included two men and two women. The gunman’s death brought the total number of people killed to two.
Police received the initial call around 8 a.m. Eastern from the gym in the 1500 block of 15th Street NW. Officers arrived within approximately 30 seconds and found a man who had been shot inside. Additional emergency calls directed responders to other wounded people nearby.
As officers searched the gym and adjoining residential property, gunfire drew them to the seventh floor. Lambert barricaded himself inside his condominium, where police negotiators attempted to persuade him to surrender for approximately an hour. Officers entered after hearing a gunshot and found him mortally wounded.
Interim Metropolitan Police Chief Jeffery Carroll said Lambert fired through the apartment door at officers on at least two occasions during the confrontation. Authorities reported recovering three firearms. A fire also broke out inside the condominium during the standoff and was contained by the building’s sprinkler system.
The building manager killed inside the gym was 46. Police said he and Lambert knew each other, and investigators believe Lambert specifically targeted him before returning upstairs and shooting the other victims from his residence.
Lambert was a licensed emergency medicine physician who had recently worked as a health care consultant. He lived in a penthouse in the Metropole condominium building, where his complaints about maintenance and water intrusion had developed into a civil lawsuit.
The lawsuit, filed in 2025, alleged that mold, moisture and water problems had prevented Lambert from enjoying his condominium since 2024. He claimed the damage followed work on the building’s exterior. The case remained pending, with mediation scheduled for March 2027. Police identified the dispute as a suspected motive while continuing their investigation into the attack.
The shootings brought local and federal officers into a neighborhood of residences, businesses and restaurants approximately a mile north of the White House. Metropolitan Police emergency personnel responded alongside assistance from the FBI’s Washington field office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Authorities closed surrounding streets and imposed protective restrictions at nearby schools as officers searched for the gunman and secured the building. Schools later returned to normal operations, and a shelter-in-place order for the affected block was lifted.
VIDA Fitness closed its Logan Circle facility following the shooting. Its leadership said the business was cooperating with investigators and would keep the location closed until reopening was appropriate and safe. Members were given access to other VIDA locations during the closure.