Arrest warrant issued in shooting of IMF official

Montgomery County police have obtained an arrest warrant for an Arlington man in connection with the shooting of a well-respected economist at the International Monetary Fund.

Police said the suspect is a former economist at the Fund, worked for the victim, and may have fled to China.

Mohau Mercy Mathibe, 36, is charged with attempted murder in the shooting of Ashoka Mody, 54, who had just pulled into his garage in Bethesda when he was shot. Mody survived, was hospitalized, and is recovering at his home, police said.

Mathibe appears to have worked at the fund for about two years, but was not retained. Police said he could have blamed Mody.

“We don’t know what was in his head, but he may have blamed Mody for not being retained,” said Capt. Paul Starks said, a police spokesman.

On Oct. 8, after a full day's work at the IMF, where he is an assistant director of the European Department, Mody pulled his minivan up to his home on Millwood Road. He opened the garage door and pulled inside.

"This happened pretty quick for him, and it was a surprise," Capt. Paul Starks, a police spokesman, said shortly after the incident. "It was dark. He pulled into his garage, and then he is shot."

During the course of the investigation, detectives developed Mathibe as a suspect and obtained an arrest warrant for him, police said in a statement. The warrant is for attempted murder, first-degree assault, and use of a handgun in the commission of a felony.

-- Dan Morse