White House locked down after barrier breach
WASHINGTON — The White House was on lockdown for about an hour Friday after a passenger vehicle struck a security barrier. Local media reported that the driver was armed. The U.S. Secret Service tweeted that the vehicle “did not breach the security barrier of the White House complex.” No shots were fired, the Secret Service said.
The agency said the 35-year-old female driver was “immediately apprehended” after the incident on the southeast side of the complex, near the Old Executive Office Building. The driver was identified as a resident of La Vergne, Tennessee, and as someone the Secret Service has had previous encounters with near the White House, “resulting in numerous arrests for a variety of criminal violations.”
Citing a Metropolitan Police Department report, Washington’s WTTG-TV identified the driver as Jessica Ford and said she was holding a pistol while still behind the steering wheel. The Secret Service said the woman was charged Friday with numerous criminal violations and turned over to the District of Columbia police department. police superintendent for the area, told the newspaper that the vehicle’s driver had abandoned the vehicle and fled.
Fatal road accidents are common in India, where traffic rules are loosely enforced. the al-Shabab extremist group.
The first blast occurred near Somalia’s intelligence headquarters and the second occurred near parliament’s headquarters. The Somalia-based al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the attack via its radio arm, Andalus.