The Metropolitan Police Department is investigating a fatal shooting that occurred late Sunday night in Southeast Washington.
According to police, officers from the Seventh District responded around 10:18 p.m. on October 12 to the 3800 block of 9th Street SE after reports of gunfire. They found an adult male suffering from gunshot wounds. D.C. Fire and EMS determined the man showed no signs of life and pronounced him dead at the scene.
The victim was later identified as 30-year-old Simon Getachew of Northwest D.C.
Simon Getachw of NW DC
Homicide detectives are leading the investigation. No arrests have been made, and officials have not released information on possible suspects or a motive. The department is offering a reward of up to $25,000 for information leading to an arrest and conviction in the case.
Police said this marks the 113th homicide in the District so far this year. At the same point last year, the city had recorded 150 homicides.
In the weeks since August 11, when President Donald Trump ordered an influx of federal law-enforcement officers and National Guard troops into the city, the number of homicides has averaged about 1.9 per week, compared with 2.4 per week before that date—a decline that officials note may not yet be statistically significant but is noteworthy.
Overall violent crime, which includes homicide, assault with a dangerous weapon, sex abuse, and robbery, has averaged roughly 50 incidents per week before the August 11 surge, and about 40 incidents per week after. This is considered statically significant, but that is likely due to the drop in homicides. Violent crimes, excluding homicide, have dropped but not by a statisically significant amount.
In statistical terms, a result is considered “significant” when the difference is large enough that it’s unlikely to have occurred by chance alone. In this case, the decline in violent crime after the August 11 deployment is statistically significant, meaning the data suggests a real change rather than a random fluctuation. However, when homicides are excluded, the decrease no longer meets that threshold, indicating the drop may not be meaningful beyond normal variation.
