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A couple with strong ties to the Military was gunned down on the lawn of their home in Springfield, Virginia Wednesday morning, Fox 5 DC reports. Police responded to a 911 call around 9 am. Upon their arrival, they found Col. Edward McDaniel, 55, and Brenda McDaniel, 63, with fatal gunshot wounds. Both victims were pronounced dead at the scene.
According to The Washington Post, Edward worked as a medical doctor with the Army and served as the director of executive medicine at Fort Belvoir Community Hospital. Brenda was a retired Army nurse. Investigators say that the couple’s teenage son was inside of the home at the time of the shooting along with one other person. While no motive for the shooting has been revealed, Maj. Ed O’Carroll, bureau chief of Major Crimes Cyber and Forensics for Fairfax County Police believes that it may be tied to an attempted burglary that took place two days prior at the McDaniel home.
“They did nothing wrong,” O’Carroll said of the deceased. “I think there’s a direct correlation between who was there Monday and who was there today.”
According to NBC 4, two suspects were apprehended as of Thursday in connection to the double murder. Ronnie Marshall, 20, and D’Angelo Strand, 19, have both been charged with second-degree murder. Police Chief Kevin Davis said that the shooter is “known to a relative of our two victims,” but did not disclose the exact connection.
“It’s finally hitting me and I can just say to you that Edward and Brenda were just wonderful people and they loved their family, they loved their country,” Edward’s mother, Felice McDaniel told Fox 5 DC. “Edward loved the Army. He loved his patients and they loved him. They were both so kind and caring and loving and giving. I can’t tell you – you couldn’t find any two nicer, honest, wonderful people.”
We send our prayers to the McDaniel family during this difficult time.
