Police say the suspect opened fire before killing himself as officers approached
US Capitol Police Officers work near a police barricade on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, August 14, 2022 © AFP / Daniel Slim
A man drove his car into a barricade at the US Capitol in Washington DC on Sunday morning before firing several shots into the air and killing himself with his own gun, according to law enforcement. Reports suggest that the suspect set his own vehicle on fire immediately before committing suicide.
The incident took place just after 4am, with US Capitol Police saying that the man’s car “became engulfed in flames” as he exited it following the crash. After leaving the burning vehicle, he fired several shots into the air, and shot himself as officers approached.
Nobody else was hurt, and the responding officers did not discharge their own weapons.
Capitol Police investigators are currently looking into the man’s background but said on Sunday that it does not appear that he was targeting any members of Congress, who are currently on recess.
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A Fox News report suggested that the unidentified suspect set his car on fire before ramming the anti-vehicle barricade.
A photo shared on social media showed the burnt husk of a car being removed from the scene later in the morning.
Removed from the Capitol just now, car that ran barricade and caught fire over night. pic.twitter.com/xUqqIfpsQa
— AP Photos (@APLphotos) August 14, 2022
The incident occurred a year after a man rammed his car into security barriers outside the Capitol, fatally injuring one Capitol Police officer. The attacker, identified by journalists as a follower of the Nation of Islam, was shot dead when he lunged at other officers with a knife drawn.
