A man from Germantown, Maryland, was arrested Monday after police said he shot at two people as well as an officer’s vehicle before leading authorities on a pursuit that extended into Virginia.
Montgomery County police charged Frederick Njihia, 26, with four counts of attempted murder and first-degree assault with a firearm.
He’s being held in Fairfax County on traffic-related charges.
Police said they were called to the 11300 block of Hawks Ridge Terrace in Germantown for a report of a man shooting a rifle at people around 9:20 a.m. Monday.
Multiple shots were fired at a Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission worker, according to authorities, as well as at the worker’s vehicle and another man. There were no injuries.
A description of the suspect’s vehicle was provided to officers and the car was spotted a short time later near the intersection of Germantown Road and Frederick Road, where the suspect fired at the police cruiser, flattening its tire.
Officers from Montgomery County chased the suspect onto southbound Interstate 270, where authorities said they notified Virginia State police to pick up the pursuit.
A video from the Montgomery County police Twitter page shows the suspect’s vehicle traveling eastbound on Route 7 entering the Tysons area when a police cruiser executes a pursuit intervention technique by hitting the rear right side of the vehicle, sending the car veering into a barrier and causing it to roll over.
Police said the suspect was arrested and taken to a nearby hospital for injuries sustained in the crash. A .223 rifle was recovered from the vehicle, according to police.
• Matt Delaney can be reached at mdelaney@washingtontimes.com.
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