Virginia Trooper Shooting: No Motive For Killing In Richmond Greyhound Station

RICHMOND, VA. — A man talking with a Virginia State Trooper suddenly pulled out a gun and shot him multiple times Thursday in Richmond's Greyhound bus station. Two police officers nearby shot the man in an exchange of gunfire but only after bullets struck two women.

Both the trooper and the gunman died at VCU Medical Center. The injuries to the women were not believed to be life-threatening.

The name of the trooper is Chad Dermyer, who was a husband, a dad to two young children, a veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps and apparently a hell of a cop. He had just recently transferred from patrol to the Counter-Terrorism and Criminal Interdiction Unit.

He was 37.

Col. W. Steven Flaherty, the superintendent of the Virginia State Police, told a news conference Thursday night that investigators were trying to determine a motive.

“There’s not much we’ve ruled out," he said, "but certainly there’s no indication of terrorism.”

Dermyer and about a dozen other troopers were at the bus station Thursday for specialized training on criminal interdiction, according to Corrine Geller, the state police spokeswoman. The troopers had finished classroom work and then moved to the bus station entrance for "real" training, which would typically involve visually scanning people passing through and tactfully questioning those who seem suspicious.

As part of the training, Dermyer approached the gunman near the entrance to the station at about 2:40 p.m. The two talked for only about 30 seconds when the trooper was shot, police said.

Geller said the gunman continued firing his weapon while running into the station's restaurant area while two police officers exchanged gunfire with him before striking him an unknown number of times.

• Earlier this year, 13News Now, an ABC affiliate, put together a piece showing Dermyer saving a runaway dog that had sprinted across two highways. Click here to see it.

The gunman has been identified but his name has not been released, pending family notification. The colonel said the gunman had a history of arrests but he did not know how many of those ended with convictions.

Before joining the state police, Dermyer served his hometown as an officer with the Jackson Police Department in Michigan and spent time as a city cop in Virginia with the Newport News Police Department.

He graduated from the Virginia State Police Academy in November 2014 and was first assigned to Chesapeake Division’s Area 46 Office, which encompasses the cities of Newport News and Hampton.

Law officers from the FBI, Homeland Security, the ATF and U.S. Marshals, among others, were on the scene providing assistance.

Gov. Terry McAuliffe released the following statement:

"Dorothy and I are heartbroken by the senseless death of Virginia State Trooper Chad Dermyer, who died serving in the line of duty today in Richmond. Like so many brave Virginia men and women, Trooper Dermyer put on a uniform and risked his life every day to keep us safe, first as a U.S. Marine and then as a police officer. He was a husband, a father and a hero who was taken from us too soon.

"This is a loss that impacts us all. It should inspire prayers for the family, friends and fellow troopers who are mourning tonight, and gratitude for those who protect and serve," the statement continued. "And as we grieve, we should also reflect, yet again, on how we can come together as a Commonwealth to end the senseless violence that costs the lives of too many mothers, fathers, husbands, wives, sons and daughters."

A prayer vigil for Trooper Dermyer is scheduled for tonight, Friday, at 6:30 p.m. outside the bus station where the shooting took place. The community is being asked to wear navy blue in his honor.