By Ian Simpson
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. Marine shot dead a male and female colleague at a Virginia base and then killed himself, in the second fatal non-combat incident involving Marines in the United States this week.
The shootings took place about 10:30 p.m. on Thursday at the Officer Candidates School at Marine Corps Base Quantico, about 40 miles south of Washington, base commander Colonel David Maxwell said on Friday.
The male shooter and the man and woman were school staff members and active-duty Marines. Maxwell gave no motive for the shootings and an investigation is under way.
"This is a tragic loss for our Marine Corps family," he told a news conference.
Base security officers received a 911 call at about 10:30 p.m. They responded within five minutes and were backed by local police, Maxwell said.
The shootings took place at Taylor Hall, a barracks. Authorities said there were no shots heard or fired by security officers.
The base, known as "the Crossroads of the Marine Corps," was locked down from about 11 p.m. to about 2:30 a.m. on Friday.
Identity of those killed was withheld pending notification of relatives
The incident was initially reported as a standoff with the suspect barricaded, but Maxwell said it was neither.
Base spokesman Sergeant Rebekka Heite later clarified that police had the shooter isolated in a barracks dorm room before he shot himself.
The U.S. military said in January that suicides hit a record 349 last year among active-duty personnel, outpacing combat deaths.
The Army on Friday reported 31 potential active-duty suicides through February. Ten had been confirmed as suicides and 21 were under investigation, it said in a statement.
The Officer Candidates School provides basic instruction for prospective Marine officers. Quantico is also home to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's training academy.
The incident was the second this week involving Marines. Seven Marines were killed on Monday by a mortar explosion at an Army munitions depot in Nevada during a live-fire training exercise.
Eight other service members were wounded in that mishap, which prompted the Marines to suspend use of 60mm mortars pending a review.
Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel was saddened by the Quantico shootings, the Pentagon said in a statement.
"This tragedy, as well as the tragedy in Nevada earlier this week, took the lives of Marines who volunteered to serve their nation. His heart and his prayers are with them and their families," the statement said. .
(Reporting by Cynthia Johnston in Las Vegas and Ian Simpson in Washington; Editing by Alden Bentley)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/marine-quantico-lockdown-fatal-shooting-071654673.html
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