HAGERSTOWN, Md. — The man accused of shooting four co-workers at a Maryland manufacturing facility Thursday, killing three, allegedly told investigators he shot at police after fleeing the business because he wanted authorities to kill him, according to court records.
A bond hearing is scheduled Monday afternoon for Joe Louis Esquivel, 23, of West Virginia, in the shootings both at Columbia, Machine, Inc., a manufacturing facility specializing in concrete products in the northern Maryland city of Smithsburg, and the ensuing shootout with authorities at a nearby roundabout.
Esquivel has been held without bond at the Washington County Detention Center since being released from the hospital after being treated for injuries suffered in a shootout with police.
While Maryland State Police medical personnel were tending to Esquivel on Thursday after the shootout, Esquivel allegedly asked to be killed, according to court records.
Later, Esquivel “made a statement to investigators that he shot at police to get them to kill him,” court records state.
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“We’re still conducting a thorough investigation and (motive is) one of the aspects we’re looking into,” said Sgt. Carly Hose, spokesperson for the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, on Monday morning.
Esquivel faces a slew of charges through arrest warrants he was served with on Friday, according to the sheriff’s office, state police and court records. Those charges include three counts each of first- and second-degree murder in the shooting deaths of three co-workers: Mark Alan Frey, 50, of Hagerstown; Charles “C.J.” Edward Minnick Jr., 31, of Smithsburg; and Joshua “Josh” Robert Wallace, 30, of the Hagerstown area.
He also is charged with three counts each of attempted first-degree and attempted second-degree murder in the shootings of co-worker Brandon Chase Michael, 42; and Maryland State Police Detective Sgt. Phil Martin and for attempting to kill state police Lt. Vincent Upole, according to charging documents.
The Associated Press has reported that Michael was still hospitalized as of Friday. An update on his condition was not immediately available. Martin was released from Meritus Medical Center on Thursday night.
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Charging documents describe finding Columbia Machine co-workers tending to a wounded Michael in a field outside the machinist shop after they fled for safety.
The shop’s general manager reported to authorities he had run to the adjacent office to have the office manager call 911 after he heard shots, court records state.
An employee at Mace Auto Body across the street told authorities he saw a copper-colored Mitsubishi Eclipse — later identified as the vehicle Esquivel fled in — “fly” down the business lane toward Bikle Road. Then the Mace worker said he ran across the street to the field to help render aid, court documents state.
At approximately 2:30 p.m., Detective Clayton Stottlemyer with the sheriff’s office responded to Columbia Machine and upon arriving, helped Capt. Mark Knight, Sgt. Alan Matheny and Detective Casey Swope in “clearing” the business, court records state.
While clearing the building, Stottlemyer saw two men dead in the garage bay and several spent casings near both as well as strewn throughout the bay, records state.
Responding to a report of an active shooter, Smithsburg Police Officer Jerry Morales arrived at the business around 2:38 p.m. and found Michael lying face up on the ground with two men tending to him, according to charging documents.
“Shooter?!” Morales asked and was informed Michael had been shot, court documents state. Morales reported seeing shots to Michael’s left arm, left thigh and right wrist and placed a tourniquet high on his arm, while an off-duty EMT applied a tourniquet to Michael’s thigh.
While at Meritus Medical Center around 3:30 p.m., the wounded Michael told state police Detective Sgt. Chris Weaver that he, Wallace, Minnick, Frey and another man were in the break room around 2:30 p.m., court records state. Michael said he was looking down at his phone when he heard four gunshots.
Michael told Weaver he looked up to see his co-worker, “Joe,” walking into the break room with a gun, court records state. Michael said he felt himself get hit and got up and ran from the room.
One of Esquivel’s co-workers told police Esquivel was a machinist. Esquivel was “relatively a quiet person,” with “no real issues at work,” court records state.
The co-worker said Esquivel had messed up something with a part he was making at work and came to the co-worker about it, but the co-worker told Esquivel “it was really no big deal,” court records state. There was no confrontation or argument about it.
About 10 minutes later, the shooting started, court records state.
What happened during the shootout with police
Maryland State Police troopers were responding to the active shooter incident with a report of the suspect fleeing in an orange Mitsubishi Eclipse with West Virginia tags, court records state.
The suspect’s car drove directly into an unmarked Ford Explorer driven by Upole, striking front bumper to front bumper, court records state. A master trooper with the state police reported seeing Esquivel’s car accelerate before hitting Upole’s sport utility vehicle.
During a shootout between Esquivel and police, Martin was shot in a shoulder area and Esquivel “had damage to his left chest area and left leg,” court records state.
The master trooper reported seeing Esquivel drop or throw a black H&K pistol from the driver’s side area, court records state.
The sheriff’s office has previously reported that Esquivel used a semiautomatic handgun at both shooting scenes.
Esquivel’s home was searched with the help of the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, according to the sheriff’s office.
Berkeley County Sheriff Nathan Harmon, in a text, wrote that “alot” of firearms were found in the home. Harmon would not comment further, writing that his office was coordinating with the Washington County Sheriff’s Office on releasing information.
