Herndon Gunman's Drug-Crazed Final Hours Described In Shocking Report

HERNDON, VA — Mohammad Doudzai lit a fire in a toilet in his home with a propane torch in one hand a .45-caliber pistol in the other. And that was just a small part of the crazed drug-fueled final hours of his life that would lead to him getting shot to death by a Fairfax County Police officer back in January, according to a new report from Commonwealth's Attorney Raymond F. Morrogh.

Doudzai, 32, was shot to death by police after shooting his brothers on Jan. 16 and setting fire to the townhouse where he lived at 13316 Covered Wagon Lane in Herndon while another person was inside, police say. The officer who pulled the trigger recently was cleared of any wrongdoing.

It all started on that fateful morning when Doudzai told his girlfriend to get into his car, and then drove her to a mosque and "told her she needed to convert to his religion," according to the report. By this point, Doudzai had been using drugs heavily for four months, preferring to huff nitrous oxide canisters also known as "whippets" or "chargers."

Doudzai attempted to enter the mosque, but turned back and headed to the car, saying, "God does not want me," and they returned home, the report states.

Doudzai, who told his girlfriend to leave the house, "appeared angry and out of touch with reality as he continued to abuse 'chargers.'"

The concerned girlfriend texted Doudzai's younger brother to intervene and get him some help. After he arrived and as they stood at the bottom of the stairs, "they could hear the sound of Mr. Doudzai dropping nitrous oxide canisters." Tests would later show he was also high on cocaine.

They went up to his room and opened the door, finding Doudzai with empty nitrous oxide canisters in his hand. As the argument between the three escalated, Doudzai grabbed a .45 caliber handgun and ordered his brother and his roommate to leave at gunpoint. Doudzai pistol-whipped his brother on the shoulder and put a gun to the back of his head, the report states, and the girlfriend was already outside.

As the brother, girlfriend, and roommate stood outside, they decided to call Doudzai's oldest brother, who arrived within an hour.

When the two brothers reentered the house, they noticed smoke was coming from under the bathroom door. They found Doudzai inside with a "propane torch in his left hand which he was using to light a fire in the toilet [and] he had a .45 caliber pistol in his right hand," the report states.

Suddenly, Doudzai shot his older brother in the stomach, and then shot his younger brother in the arm. The roommate heard a "cry of pain," and the brothers raced outside. The girlfriend drove them to Reston hospital as the younger brother called 911 on the way.

The roommate had reentered the home earlier because he was trying to take a shower in order to get to work, but when the gunshots went off, he found himself stuck in the bathroom as the home filled with smoke.

He spent a few terrifying minutes on the phone with the 911 operator, afraid that Doudzai would hear him as he raged throughout the house.

At that point, officers arrived at the house and began attempting to get Doudzai to leave the house and surrender. As they took up positions around the home, they heard multiple gunshots, and noticed that they townhouse had caught fire with flames showing in the upstairs window.

At one point, Doudzai emerged onto the deck of the townhouse, waving a large knife and throwing a jar of clear liquid before going back inside.

Police later learned that there was a potential hostage in the house. They also saw Doudzai "ripping the blinds off the front window above the door" and "trying to punch out the front window." He was also cutting the blinds with his knife, the report states.

Officers at the scene began exploring options to take out Doudzai with lethal force in order to save the person trapped inside.

Master Police Officer Lance Guckenberger, a 16-year veteran of the Fairfax County Police Department, aimed his rifle at Doudzai -- who was standing in the door and flailing a knife -- and fired. It was unclear if Doudzai had been hit, however, and officers advanced on the townhouse.

Doudzai re-opened the front door, and an officer through a flash bang, after which five officers swarmed the townhouse from the front.

Doudzai emerged from the house with a large knife in one hand and an unknown object in the other as officers screamed at him todrop it.

After seeing the officers stalled at the door, Guckenberger fired again, although he didn't see much reaction from Doudzai to to the shot.

"It was clear to MPO Guckenberger that Mr. Doudzai was acting aggressively, and not surrendering, when he came outside," the report states.

Finally, after being hit by three bullets and non-lethal rounds, Doudzai fell to the ground. Police kicked the knife away from Doudzai and dragged him away so others could rescue the hostage.

Toxicology performed on Doudzai's blood at the hospital showed the following:

• Carboxyhemoglobin approximately 14% saturation
• Ethanol none detected
• Cocaine 0.17 mg/L
• Benzoylecgonine 1.6 mg/L80
• No other drugs and/or drug classes were detected

An investigation showed that two separate fires had been set in the home, causing extensive damage to the third floor. He may have tried to start a third fire in the kitchen as well, the report states.

"It is clear from the evidence, that MPO Guckenberger fired his weapon in order to save the life of the hostage," Morrogh wrote in the report. "Moreover, he reasonably believed, under the circumstances, that [the roommate] was in danger of being killed or suffering great bodily harm. Had he not acted, it is quite likely that the hostage would have died. In my legal opinion, this is a case of justifiable homicide."

Image via Fairfax County Police Department