William H. McMichael

The News Journal

Shots were fired by an individual in a parking lot at the Wilmington Veterans Affairs Medical Center near Elsmere Friday afternoon. The suspect was taken into custody without incident, the hospital reported.

UPDATE: The FBI on Saturday declined to provide further details.

The suspect, described as a 40-to-50-year-old male, brandished an unidentified firearm and fired shots in the medical center's west parking lot at about 3:15 p.m. Friday, spokesman James Coty said.

A witness said she heard two shots.

"There was yelling," said Andrea Ritter of Bridgeton, N.J., who'd come to the center along with her 19- and 23-year-old daughters to donate a rocking chair to its Community Living Center and was walking into the facility from the back parking lot when the commotion began.

"Someone was yelling, `Put it down, put it down.' And then we heard `bang'," she said. "And then they continued to yell, `Put it down,' and then another `bang,' and then nothing."

Ritter said two nearby nurses "were standing there with their mouths open, too," she said. "They also heard it. They were panicking."

VA police "immediately" responded and took the suspect into custody, said Jeffrey Steidler, the medical center's chief of police. "We have secured the parking area to ensure patients, visitors and staff are safe."

The suspect sustained "minor injuries," Coty said, and was being treated at the center's Emergency Department.

State Police received a report of shots fired at about 3:30 p.m., but their services were not required, spokesman Sgt. Paul Shavack said. The hospital is federal property and unless requested, State Police do not have jurisdiction there, he said.

The FBI was notified and an investigation into the incident is being conducted, Coty said.

Contact William H. McMichael at (302) 324-2812 or bmcmichael@delawareonline.com. On Twitter: @billmcmichael