OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
A highly skilled Republican executive who held the position of chief operating officer at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) during the Donald Trump administration was one of the victims of a brutal carjacking rampage in Washington, D.C., on Monday night. The incident concluded with the police fatally shooting the assailant in Maryland early Tuesday morning.
Mike Gill is currently hospitalized in a critical state following a shooting incident that occurred at 5:45 p.m. The incident took place near the White House on K Street in downtown D.C. as he was picking up his wife, who works as an education lawyer.
“We can confirm that Mike Gill was the victim of the shooting at the 900 block of K Street Northwest on Monday evening and is in critical condition. Out of respect for the family, we have nothing additional to add at this time,” Erica Richardson, a spokesperson for the Gill family, said in a statement to The Daily Wire.
Following the shooting of Gill, it is suspected that the same individual engaged in at least two incidents of carjacking and one attempted carjacking. One of the victims involved in these incidents has passed away, the Washington Post reported.
According to the police, the assailant entered the stationary vehicle and shot the victim before escaping on foot. The victim, identified as Gill, then fell to the ground outside the vehicle.
The Post reported that he had called his wife to say, “Hey, I’m downstairs,” and when she arrived at the ground floor, he had been shot, with the wife rushing out and saying, “Oh my God, that’s my husband.”
The Post, citing witness Yolanda Douglas, said the wife “ran toward her husband and grabbed his hand. ‘What happened?’ she asked, but he did not respond.”
Douglas “saw the victim, in a dress shirt and sweater, sprawled on the pavement with one foot still in the passenger’s side of a car. His right hand was twitching as blood pooled around his head,” the Post said.
Roughly an hour later, the suspect made an unsuccessful attempt to forcibly steal another vehicle on Third Street NE. Subsequently, the suspect fatally shot an individual on the street and commandeered their car.
Authorities stated that an individual on K Street possessed knowledge about the wrongdoer and assisted law enforcement in identifying the individual. The car he appropriated was discovered in Prince George’s County, Maryland, where he subsequently seized a Toyota through force and later commandeered a rideshare vehicle.
At approximately 2:30 am, an individual suspected to be the perpetrator of a carjacking incident discharged a firearm towards a Maryland State Police vehicle while passing by on D.C. 295.
The Nissan vehicle was subsequently discovered abandoned in Prince George’s County. During the investigation of the deserted car, an individual approached the officers while armed with a firearm. According to the Post, the police responded by fatally shooting the individual.
EXCLUSIVE: Mike Gill, a married father of 3, is in critical condition.
His family tells me a suspect shot him in 900 block of K St. NW 5:45pm Mon.
Suspect entered Mike’s car, shot him & ran away. Mike is Sr. VP for Capital Markets at Housing Policy Council(📸Gill Family)@fox5dc pic.twitter.com/y7I8DRxV9v— Shomari Stone (@shomaristone) January 31, 2024
In 2016, the District of Columbia chose Gill to represent the Republican Party on the city’s Board of Elections. He held office for three consecutive terms until July 2020. Before a confirmation hearing, the City Council acknowledged Gill’s distinguished track record in politics.
From January 2017 to July 2019, he held the position of chief operating officer at the CFTC. In addition, he served as the chief of staff to former CFTC Chairman Christopher Giancarlo and held the position of Chief Regulatory Reform Officer, overseeing a comprehensive review of regulations across the agency.
Before that, he worked as an attorney at Crowell & Moring and held the position of vice president at a trade association. During the 1990s, he served as the deputy director for the Bush-Quayle presidential campaign, in addition to working for a Republican senator and congressman. He possessed a highly classified security clearance.
The DC Council emphasized his empathy towards others and his ability to work well with colleagues from both political parties. Previously, he held the position of executive director at the Ripon Education Fund, a nonpartisan nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering collaboration between the United States and Europe.
He exerted significant influence in shaping the mortgage operations of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Gill is currently vice president of the Housing Policy Council.
