Kirby Homicide: Alexandria Police Chief Reaches Out to Citizens for Information

11:15 a.m. Friday update — Alexandria police have new number for citizens to report info in Ron Kirby homicide investigation: 703-746-6864

— — — —

There remains no person of interest in the violent shooting of Ronald Kirby inside his Rosemont home, Alexandria Police Chief Earl Cook said Thursday afternoon.

Cook said police are working diligently around the clock and asked Alexandria residents for help in the investigation into the "atrocious and tragic incident."

“It’s extremely important to have the cooperation of citizens in gathering information,” Cook said. “We’re asking anyone who may have been in contact with [Kirby] in a social way in the last four to six weeks with anything of import to call us at 703-746-6711.”

Cook also asked for anyone who saw or heard anything suspicious or unusual near Kirby’s home in the 200 block of Elm Street to contact police.

Kirby, the 69-year-old director of transportation planning at the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, was found unconscious by a relative around 12:30 p.m. Monday. Police and EMS were called in and Kirby was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police announced Tuesday that Kirby was shot multiple times in the torso.

He was last seen early in the morning the day he was killed, police said.

On Thursday, Cook declined to share many specifics of the investigation, including information on the weapon. He did say family as well as strangers are investigated in cases where people are killed in their homes. Kirby had two adopted children, both young adults now. 

“We cannot exclude anyone right now,” Cook said.

Cook reiterated that police believe there is no reason for the community to feel in “extreme danger” because of the incident.

“We don’t think we have a crazed killer in the neighborhood,” Cook said.

Kirby’s widow, Anne Gray Haynes, told NBC Washington Thursday she believes a door to the home may have been left unlocked. Kirby was working from the house the day he was killed.  

"Ron had no enemies," Haynes told NBC Washington. "The only reason somebody would have come in here is they thought they could get cash or something of value and they thought the house was empty and unfortunately it wasn't."

MWCOG set up a place on its website for people to leave remembrances of Kirby.

Kirby's death is the city's fifth homicide in 2013. Alexandria experienced a homicide-free calendar year in 2012. 

For more, see:

• Officials, Colleagues Remember Ron Kirby
• Alexandria Police Chief: 'A Lot of Work Yet to be Done' in Kirby Homicide Investigation
• Suspicious Death Ruled Homicide; Police Identify Victim as
• Ronald Kirby Alexandria Police Investigating Suspicious Death on Elm Street