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Gerald Wayne Koogle, 42, opened fire at officers shortly before midnight on Friday, June 3 in his Hagerton home as police investigated a report of a domestic incident at the residence, the Washington County Sheriff's Office said.
Deputies responded to the 16900 block of Longfellow Court in Hagerstown after a woman was heard on a 911 call stating that a man was threatening her before the phone was promptly disconnected, according to a spokesperson from the Washington County Sheriff’s Office,
Deputies attempted to get an answer at the front door with no success, and when they approached a side door, they could hear Koogle shouting from inside the residence.
They attempted to get Koogle’s attention to get him to the door, but he refused and proceeded to fire multiple rounds through a window at the investigating deputies, who noted they were only a few feet away, officials said.
The spokesperson said that the deputies were able to retreat to cover and were unharmed, and shortly after, a woman left the home and was taken to a safe location while additional units arrived to set up a perimeter around the Longfellow Court home.
Two more residents of the home were safely removed from the area, according to the sheriff’s office, and Koogle eventually surrendered to police without further incident.
The investigation into the shooting found that the rounds fired by Koogle at the deputies struck and entered a neighboring home with a resident inside, though no injuries were reported.
During a subsequent search of Koogle’s home, investigators found 23 spent shell casings inside the bedroom that were shot at deputies from a .300AAC Blackout rifle, and seized a short-barreled AR-15 semi-automatic rifle, various other firearms, and ammo.
Investigators noted that “there was a live cartridge in the rifle’s chamber and one remaining live cartridge in the magazine still loaded in the rifle. Upon its recovery, the rifle’s safety selector was set to ‘fire’ as well.”
Koogle is being held at the Washington County Detention Center, according to the sheriff, and is being charged with:
- Three counts of attempted first-degree murder;
- Second-degree murder;
- First-degree assault;
- Second-degree assault;
- Other related offenses.
No return court date has been announced.
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