WASHINGTON – Officers at a White House checkpoint responded to gunshots on the evening of May 23, and a shooting suspect was “down” and taken to a hospital, a law enforcement official told news agency Reuters.
A person approached the checkpoint at 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue near the White House and started shooting at officers, according to the official.
The suspect is “down” and was transported to George Washington Hospital, the official added. He did not specify the suspect’s condition or how he was brought down.
The suspect was identified as an emotionally disturbed person, the official said, adding that a “stay-away order” had been issued to the suspect previously.
Police and security forces swarmed the White House after shots were fired in the area, authorities said.
US President Donald Trump was at the White House at the time as he worked to negotiate a deal with Iran.
Police cordoned off access to the White House and National Guard troops blocked an AFP reporter from entering the area in downtown Washington.
“FBI is on the scene and supporting Secret Service responding to shots fired near White House grounds,” FBI Director Kash Patel said on social media platform X.
Canadian tourist Reid Adrian told AFP he was in the area when “we heard probably 20 to 25 what sounded like fireworks, but they’re gunshots, and then everyone started running.”
Journalists who were on the White House North Lawn at the time said on X that they were ordered to run and shelter in the press briefing room.
ABC News correspondent Selina Wang had been recording a video for social media when the apparent gunfire broke out, capturing the sounds of the shots as she dove to the ground.
“It sounded like dozens of gunshots,” she said on X.
She is about three seconds into the recording when the noises are heard, and she heads to the floor for cover.
A Secret Service spokesman told AFP in a text message that the agency was still gathering information about the incident.
Mr Trump, aged 79, has been the target of three alleged assassination attempts, the most recent of which took place on April 25 when an armed man stormed a security checkpoint near the ballroom where he was attending a media gala. AFP
