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US Capitol shooting: suspect in custody and police officer wounded US Capitol shooting: suspect in custody after incident at visitors center
(35 minutes later)
One Capitol police officer has been shot and a bystander wounded after aman fired his gun after an incident at the US Capitol in Washington. One bystander was wounded after a man attempted to open fire at the US Capitol on Monday, sparking brief moments of panic in Washington.
The suspect is now in custody, according to Capitol police. According to US Capitol police chief Matthew Verderosa, a man attempted to gain entry to the Capitol visitors center at 2.39pm Monday afternoon and produced what appeared to be a gun. At least one Capitol police officer opened fire in response, wounding the suspect who was then transported to a nearby hospital. A female bystander also suffered minor injuries.
In a press conference, Capitol police chief Matthew Verderosa said that based on the preliminary investigation, the incident was believed to be that “act of single person who has frequented Capitol grounds before and [we have] no reason to believe that this is anything more than a criminal act”. Verderosa told reporters that this was “the act of single person who has frequented Capitol grounds before and [there was] no reason to believe that this is anything more than a criminal act”. While the police chief declined to identify the suspect, Verderosa simply said “we believe the suspect is known to us”.
A female bystander suffered minor injuries and was transported to hospital, Verderosa said. The incident took place at the Capitol visitors center, a underground complex where tourists enter the Capitol building that also includes office space.
The shooting, which occurred in the Capitol visitors center, an underground entrance to the Capitol building for tourists, sowed panic in Washington on a pleasant spring day. The facility was built in part after a mentally ill man entered the Capitol in 1998 and murdered two members of the Capitol police force, to ensure that there would be a central and secure entry point for visitors to the building. Verderosa said that “it appeared the screening process worked the way it was supposed to” as the suspect entered the vistors center first.
The US Capitol was placed on lockdown and all staff ordered to shelter in place after reports of gunshots, police said on Monday afternoon. In the aftermath of the incident, the entire Capitol complex was locked for just over an hour with those inside told to shelter in place. The Secret Service also said the north and south fence lines at the White House were temporarily closed as a precautionary measure, due to “ongoing law enforcement activities” at the Capitol.
An alert sent by US Capitol police stated that no one would be allowed to enter or exit the buildings, though people were allowed to move within the buildings and underground between buildings. The police warned those outside to seek cover. In a statement shared with Capitol Hill staff, security officials said: “In addition to the response to the shooting, USCP immediately began a series of enhanced security measures to ensure the safety of the Congressional community. As a result, you will see an increased presence of K9 teams and tactical units around the campus.”
Due to police activity, Capitol Police have issued a shelter in place for the Capitol complex. Please stay in your designated area. #alert The incident is the second police-involved shooting around the US Capitol in the past three years. In 2013, a woman rammed a barricade outside the White House in her car and led police on chase down Pennsylvania Avenue. It ended when she was fatally shot by Capitol police officers outside a Senate office building.
The shelter in place was lifted an hour later, though the visitors center remained closed and the Capitol was only open for official business. Amanda Holpuch contributed reporting.
The Secret Service said the north and south fence lines at the White House were temporarily closed as a precautionary measure, due to “ongoing law enforcement activities” at the Capitol.
Washington was filled with tourists taking advantage of their Easter vacation while few members of Congress were even in the city as no votes were scheduled for this week. Police blocked off the streets around the Capitol with armed officers holding submachine guns standing in the intersections to ward off sightseers.
The lockdown also applied to the White House, where Secret Service agents closed off the stretch of Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the White House as well as Lafayette Square. The area, a magnet for tourists and lunching office workers, was left with only police tape and agents in bulletproof vests on the sunny spring afternoon.
Associated Press contributed to this report.