Washington — A person driving a automobile struck a barrier close to the U.S. Capitol early Sunday morning and opened hearth earlier than fatally taking pictures himself, police mentioned.
The person crashed into the barrier on the east facet of the Capitol simply after 4 a.m. Sunday morning, and his automobile went up in flames as he was getting out, U.S. Capitol Police mentioned in a assertion. The person fired a number of photographs into the air and turned the gun on himself as officers responded. Nobody else was damage.
"Right now, it doesn't seem the person was concentrating on any Members of Congress, who're on recess, and it doesn't seem officers fired their weapons," Capitol Police mentioned. The assertion didn't title the person, however famous that "investigators are trying into the person's background."
Safety at and across the Capitol has been heightened within the 12 months and a half because the Jan. 6, 2021, assault. Capitol Police erected tall fences and boundaries across the advanced that stood for weeks within the aftermath.
There have been different safety incidents close to the advanced since Jan. 6, as nicely. In April 2021, a person rammed his automobile into officers standing close to a safety barricade, killing one and injuring one other. The person, 25-year-old Noah Inexperienced, was shot and killed by police.
In October 2021, a person named Dale Paul Melvin was arrested after parking his car exterior the Supreme Court docket throughout the road from the Capitol and refusing to depart. Melvin returned in February 2022 however left with out being arrested.
Nicole Sganga and Jake Rosen contributed reporting.