Police Charge Man For Gunning Down 5 People, 3 Fatally, In August 2023 Southeast, D.C.

Sunday, October 26, 2025, 8:00 A.M. ET. 2 Minute Read, By Art Fletcher: Englebrook Independent News,

WASHINGTON, DC.- On Wednesday, following a 26-month investigation and manhunt, a 28-year-old Washington, D.C., man was taken into custody and jailed after being charged in connection with a shooting that occurred in August of 2023, in Southeast, D.C., that claimed the lives of three individuals and left another two injured.

     According to D.C. Metropolitan Police Chief Pamela A. Smith, and as previously reported, on Saturday, August 5, 2023, just shortly before 8:30 p.m., members of the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department’s Sixth and Seventh Districts responded to multiple reports of a shooting on the 1600 Block of Good Hope Road in Southeast, D.C.

Police Officers Find 5 People Shot, 3 Fatally

     Upon arrival, Police Officers found five shooting victims, four men and a woman, all suffering from gunshot wounds. Three of the victims, identified as Tymea Cook, 27, of Southeast, D.C., Bernard Hodges, 35, of Northeast, D.C., and Reginald Gilbert, 34, with no known address, had all succumbed to their injuries and were pronounced deceased at the scene by DC Fire and Emergency Medical Services and were later transported to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.

     The remaining two shooting victims were transported by DC Fire and Emergency Medical Services to area hospitals, where they underwent treatment and have since recovered from the injuries.

     During subsequent autopsies, performed on the remains of Ms. Cook, Mr. Hodges, and Mr. Gilbert, the Cause of Death for all three was multiple gunshot wounds, and the Manner of their Deaths was ruled Homicide.

     During an extensive and exhaustive investigation, Detectives of the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department’s Homicide Branch were able to identify the gunman as Rahsaan Smith, 28, of Southeast, D.C., and a DC Superior Court warrant was issued for his arrest.

On Wednesday, Following An Extensive Manhunt, Police Arrested Smith For The Deadly Shooting

     On Wednesday, October 22, 2025, members of the Metropolitan Police Department’s Violent Crime Suppression Division’s Robbery Suppression Unit located and apprehended Smith pursuant to the DC Superior Court warrant. Following being taken into custody, Smith was formally charged with three counts of first-degree Premediated Murder While Armed. Smith was processed on the charges and was remanded to the D.C. Central Detention Facility pending future court proceedings in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.

“The rules of the court require us to include a statement that states: The charges outlined in this publication are merely accusations, and the defendant and or defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt.”