Police say the case appears to be a domestic-related murder-suicide near a WMATA bus depot in Northwest Washington.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Two Metro employees were found shot to death early Thursday near the WMATA Western Bus Division depot in Friendship Heights, and D.C. police said the case appears to be a domestic-related murder-suicide involving coworkers.
Police said officers were called at about 1:01 a.m. to the 5200 block of 44th Street NW, where they found two men unconscious with apparent gunshot wounds. The men were pronounced dead after D.C. Fire and EMS responded. Investigators later identified the victim as Robert Stokes, 42, of Middle River, Maryland, and the suspect as Terrell Cross, 44, of Bethesda, Maryland. Officials said a firearm was recovered at the scene and that no additional suspects were being sought.
The shooting happened on a residential stretch near 44th and Jenifer streets NW, across from the Metro bus depot and near the Friendship Heights station area. Police said their preliminary investigation found that Cross arrived at the location, shot Stokes and then shot himself. The department described the case as domestic-related and said its Homicide Branch was leading the investigation. By Thursday afternoon, the scene had been cleared, but police tape, evidence markers and the memory of the overnight gunfire still hung over a block usually known more for bus traffic and commuters than homicide investigators.
Metro officials confirmed during a Thursday board meeting that both men worked for WMATA. General Manager and CEO Randy Clarke said the shooting did not happen on Metro property and said there was no continuing threat to Metro employees or riders. Clarke paused the meeting for a moment of silence, saying the agency was feeling the loss. The transit workers’ union, Amalgamated Transit Union Local 689, also confirmed that both men were members. In a statement, the union said it had lost “members of our Union family overnight” and asked for privacy for the families while offering grief counseling for two weeks to workers who need it.
Family members also began to speak publicly as the identities of the men emerged. Stokes’ wife told local television reporters that her family was devastated and said Stokes left behind four children ranging in age from 5 to 18. She said the shooting followed a personal dispute between her husband and his coworker. Police have not publicly detailed that dispute beyond calling the case domestic-related, and investigators had not released more information Thursday about how long the conflict had been developing, whether there had been earlier complaints, or whether any restraining orders or prior police contacts were connected to the case.
The location added to the shock for neighbors and transit workers. The block sits beside an active Metro work area where employees park, report for shifts and move through the neighborhood at all hours. Residents described Friendship Heights as a quiet part of Northwest Washington, with steady foot traffic and a strong sense of routine. One Metro employee told local reporters it was unusual to see violence there because police patrols are common and the area is typically calm even with around-the-clock transit operations. Neighbors said they were stunned to wake up to news of a double fatal shooting in a place where workers and residents often cross paths before dawn.
What comes next is more procedural than public, at least for now. The bodies were taken to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, which will make the final rulings on cause and manner of death. MPD said homicide detectives are continuing to examine evidence from the scene, including the recovered firearm, and are working to build a fuller timeline of the men’s movements before the shooting. Because police have identified the suspect as dead, the case is not expected to follow the normal path of an arrest and court hearing, but investigators still must complete the file, confirm motive details and document the sequence of events.
By late Thursday, Metro’s response had shifted from emergency coordination to mourning. Workers arriving for service and maintenance shifts learned that two colleagues were gone. Union leaders focused on counseling, agency leaders stressed there was no danger to the transit system, and police kept asking anyone with additional information to come forward. The immediate public facts were settled quickly: two men, both Metro employees, were dead within minutes of officers arriving. The harder questions about what led to the gunfire remained with detectives and with two families left to sort through the loss.
Authorities said Thursday evening that the investigation was ongoing, with the medical examiner’s findings and any additional witness interviews expected to shape the next public update.
Author note: Last updated April 10, 2026.