STERLING, Va. (WUSA9) - A man has been charged with murder after a shooting left two people dead inside a Sterling, Va. hookah club early Monday morning. The Loudoun County Sheriff's Office said he likely knew the victims.
The victims have been identified as Ahmed S. Osman, 35, of Sterling and Murtada A. Marof, 40, of Herndon
Deputies from the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office were called to the Pharaoh Café in the 46000 block of Old Ox Road for a report of a shooting at about 1:45 a.m. When they arrived they found two people dead inside the lounge, according to Kraig Troxell, who’s the spokesman for the sheriff’s office.
Deputies stopped Hassan Gailani, 34, who was trying to get away from the scene, Troxell said.
The suspect and the two victims all knew each other, the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office said.
Friends of all three men said they are stunned.
“He is a good guy. He’s doing Uber, that’s what I know about him,” said Aldirdiri Taha, who once lived with the suspect.
Gailani, 34, is charged with two counts of first-degree murder. Loudoun County Sheriff Mike Chapman said it appears Gailani was targeting one of the two victims when he walked into Pharaoh Café. Gailani is a resident of Alexandria, but a year ago he lived in a house in Herndon with Taha.
“He did Uber. I’m so sorry, it’s just hard. Really hard. He’s a good guy, swear to God,” said Taha who also knows the two victims. “And those two guys, those two young guys they are the nicest. I never heard anything [bad] about them.”
They’re all part of the local Sudanese community. Taha said he never saw Gailani with a gun before.
“He’s completely a nice guy. This is completely out of character,” he said.
The Loudoun County Sheriff's Office said that both Uber and Lyft stickers were on Gailani’s car, which he was trying to get into when deputies caught him.
The Pharaoh Café is in a strip mall at Old Ox Road and Rock Hill Road next to Herndon. It’s open until 4 a.m. Several of the other business owners here tell us they don’t like the late hours.
“We see a lot of the remnants of it. Late night drinking out in the parking lot and stuff. Fights a lot. So it’s not my cup of tea,” said James Meadows with Spencer’s Safe and Lock. “I knew something was going to happen.”
The Loudoun County Sheriffs Office is waiting until next of kin are notified to release the names of the victims.
Gailani remains held at the Loudoun County Adult Detention Center on no bond.
Investigators are still trying to figure out the motive behind the shooting.
