Assault today on Capitol Hill, Washington, where a car intentionally ran over two officers near the barriers set up to protect the Capitol. One of the two policemen is died from his injuries, announced Yogananda Pittman, interim chief of the Capitol Police, during a press briefing. The identity of the deceased agent has not been disclosed, as the family has not yet been informed, Pittman said.
The incident, he continued, does not appear to have a terrorist origin and the suspect was not previously known to the police. According to the first reconstructions, the assailant, after having overwhelmed the two agents, got out of the vehicle brandishing a knife and hitting one of them. The driver would have been hit by the bullets fired by the agents in response to his gesture.
Both officers were transported to the hospital, Capitol Police reported on Twitter, as images showing ambulances loading the injured and a strong police presence at the crash site spread across social media.
As reported by the Capitol Police, the entire complex was put in lockdown and the personnel present in the buildings, shortly after 1pm (local time), were ordered to keep away from windows and entrances. The National Guard, through its ‘Quick Reaction Force’, intervened in support of the Capitol Police, the police force responsible for the security of the Capitol Hill complex. The Washington FBI is also on site
Congress is currently on hiatus and there are no congressmen and senators present in the buildings of the Capitol Hill complex. President Joe Biden is also not in Washington, having previously left the White House for Camp David.