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By Michelle Curran
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Dr. Matt Lambert, the suspect who opened fire this week at a Washington, D.C., gym, leaving one person dead and five others injured, had referenced Luigi Mangione online and in a media interview prior to the attack.
The 55-year-old doctor opened fire around 8 a.m. Thursday at a gym in the city’s Logan Circle neighborhood. The shooting followed a prolonged legal dispute with his building’s homeowners association (HOA) regarding mold and water leaks in his penthouse condo.
Before the shooting, Lambert posted what he deemed his "manifesto"—an engineering report—on his X account, @miceandmold. The account documented his long-running grievances with the Metropole Condominium Association over his $1 million property and included references to Mangione, who is awaiting sentencing for the murder of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
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On October 1, Lambert wrote on X: "After months of 'Luigi' tactics (delay, deny, defend) by the HOA, we were finally able to submit an independent engineering report into the record. The report addresses 704, the facade rehabilitation more broadly, and lists other units affected. When the time is right, I will share the report on X, with other Metropole owners, and with Logan Circle realtors."
Lambert was referring to Mangione, who pleaded guilty to killing Thompson in a December 2024 shooting in New York City. Mangione had written the words “deny,” “defend” and “depose” on the ammunition used in the attack—a phrase commonly used to describe insurance industry tactics for avoiding claims.
It was not the first time Lambert had referenced Mangione. Washington Sun reporter Michael Brice-Saddler detailed how Lambert mentioned Mangione during an interview last December while discussing mold issues in his condo.
During a tour of the unit, Brice-Saddler said Lambert made an "offhand" reference to Mangione, asking, “What are they called? Delay, deny, defend…the Luigi three?”
Lambert filed a lawsuit in March 2025 against the Metropole Condominium Association, which manages his Logan Circle building. He told Brice-Saddler that the dispute had "affected every part of my life—my sleep, dietary habits."
Mangione pleaded guilty in August in federal court to one count of interstate stalking resulting in death and one count of cyberstalking through the use of interstate facilities resulting in death, each carrying a maximum potential sentence of life in prison. He is scheduled to be sentenced on December 18.
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DC Shooting: Timeline of Events
The shooting began shortly before 8 a.m. at VIDA Fitness on the lower level of the Metropole building, where Lambert shot and killed 46-year-old building manager James Stuart.
Lambert then went outside, fired additional shots, returned to the building, and barricaded himself inside his condo.
Metropolitan Police Interim Chief Jeff Carroll told a press conference that the entrances to the gym and the condos above were "maybe 20 steps away from each other."
The suspect fired shots through the door toward officers. Police negotiators established phone contact with Lambert; during the conversation, officers heard a single gunshot before the line went quiet.
Authorities entered the condo shortly after 11 a.m. and found Lambert with a self-inflicted gunshot wound. He was later pronounced dead.
The shooting occurred in the Logan Circle neighborhood of Washington, D.C. The gym is located in the 1500 block of 15th Street N.W., near the intersection of 15th and P streets, approximately one mile from the White House.
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Who Was Dr. Matt Lambert?
Joel Braithwaite, an attorney who represented Lambert in a previous civil case involving the building, spoke at a press conference on Thursday describing his client as an emergency room physician who was "in the business of healing people and helping them on a pretty bad day in their life."
Braithwaite said Lambert had been preparing to start a new job on Monday and in recent weeks had seemingly been in good spirits despite his ongoing legal woes.
"I've seen him be a humanitarian. He has scholarships for people going to medical school. He was also a great thinker and author. Someone who's very calm and collected," Braithwaite said.
Braithwaite said Lambert had recently completed a deposition in the civil litigation involving the building.
"Anyone who's interacted with Matt in the last two weeks will tell you that things were looking up for him. When I spoke to him in the last 24 to 48 hours, he was in great spirits."
The attorney added that Lambert's legal dispute with his HOA and home maintenance had cost him $300,000.
On his website, Lambert describes himself as a board-certified emergency physician with over two decades of clinical experience. The website said he "brings a unique blend of leadership, technology expertise, and policy acumen to his work."
Lambert had spearheaded large-scale electronic health record implementations at leading institutions across the country, from Bellevue in New York City to Harborview in Seattle.
It added that he is also a published author, musician, and a dedicated philanthropist. He has volunteered his medical expertise in underserved communities, including Kenya, Belize, and Haiti.
Did the Suspect Have a Motive?
The ongoing legal battle appears to have weighed heavily on Lambert. Property records show Lambert bought the D.C. property for more than $1 million in 2016.
Braithwaite said his client considered it “his prized possession" but the condo quickly became a nightmare with ongoing water and mold issues.
“He moved back to the mountains of West Virginia, where he has a country home, and he’s out there because that’s where he grew up. Once this situation became untenable, he moved out and cleared it out," the attorney said.
Braithwaite said Lambert felt angry because the HOA was not taking ownership of the issues.
Police said that inside the apartment they found three firearms—a shotgun, rifle and a handgun—that were all used in the shooting. There were no firearms registered to the suspect in the District of Columbia.
Newsweek has reached out to HOA Metropole Condominium for comment.
What We Know About Victims
Stuart, the building's manager, was identified by police as the man who died in the shooting.
In a Friday update, the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) announced that a fifth injured survivor was located on Thursday, bringing the total number of shooting victims to six—one dead and five injured.
"Through the course [of] investigation, a sixth victim, an adult female, was located within the 1500 block of 15th Street, Northwest. The victim was located conscious and breathing suffering from a non-life-threatening gunshot graze wound. The victim self-treated the wound," the MPD said in its statement.
Police added that the other victims were two men and two women and that all were conscious and breathing and transported to an area hospital for treatment of their injuries. Police said there is no known relationship between any of these victims and Lambert.
Contact Newsweek editors for this story: Samantha Beech and Anthony Murray.
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