Virginia Beach officials detail 'long gun battle' with shooter
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. -- Virginia Beach city officials are still investigating the motive behind Friday's mass shooting at a municipal building that claimed the lives of 12 people.
During a Saturday press conference Virginia Beach Police Chief James Cervera only identified the shooter once as employee DeWayne Craddock
On Sunday, Cervera said the shooter "was not terminated and was not in the process of being terminated."
In response to a reporter's question, he said the shooter had notified his chain of command of his intention to quit via email on Friday, hours before the shooting.
Cervera said he had no information to indicate that the suspect targeted anyone specifically.
RELATED: Virginia Beach shooting suspect DeWayne Craddock worked for city for 15 years
Timeline of events:
Police officers, sheriff's deputies, EMS and fire officials were dispatched to a shooting call in Building 2 at 4:08 p.m. and were on the scene two minutes later, according to Cervera.
Cervera detailed the complex nature of the four-floor building with numerous stairwells, basements, tunnels and places citizens cannot enter.
"It's a honeycomb - it's a maze where the workers are," Cervera noted.
Between 4:15 and 4:18 p.m., four officers made contact and engaged in a gun battle with the shooter on the second floor of the building.
"In the police world, anything more than three to five shots is a long gun battle," the police chief said. "That's what was happening."
While an exact number of rounds fired has not been calculated, Cervera said "it was well into the double digits."
An officer was wounded at 4:19 p.m.
RELATED: Virginia Beach shooting: City identifies 12 people killed
Officials said the shooter was firing through the door and wall and then stopped. Officers then breached the office door and the suspect was taken into custody alive after first aid was administered. Craddock later died at the hospital.
In total, it took 36 minute minutes from the call to having the shooter in custody, according to Cervera.
The investigation is still ongoing.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
