Late on Monday night, a box truck slammed into security barricades in Lafayette Square, close to the White House, and the driver was captured by the Secret Service.
A spokesperson for the Secret Service, Anthony Guglielmi, said that it was not obvious if the collision was deliberate or not. About a block from the White House, on the north side of Lafayette Square at 16th Street NW, just before 10 o’clock, he stated, the incident took place. He also said that nobody in the White House or the Secret Service was hurt.
Blocks of streets near the White House were closed as officials examined the vehicle. Local news stations showed footage of a robot opening the rear of the truck, and a spokesperson for the D.C. fire department said his department had been called in to assist with the investigation.
In light of previous incidents involving intrusions into the White House compound, police have strengthened security measures there. The White House fences have been upgraded by the Secret Service during the last year, increasing in height by around 13 feet. A child was able to get through this barrier on the north side of the complex last month.
In the last two years, there have been at least two fatal occurrences involving automobiles colliding with barriers near Capitol Hill. A automobile rammed into two Capitol Police officers in 2021, killing one and wounding the other roughly three months after the fatal Jan. 6 incident. Noah R. Green, the attacker, was shot and killed by police after he lunged at them with a knife.
Another guy rammed his vehicle over a roadblock in August, this time close to the Capitol. When police officers arrived, the suspect, later identified as Richard A. York III, stepped out of the flaming car and shot himself.
