Washington, D.C. is on lockdown after Secret Service opens fire
The world is a dangerous place. It’s only gotten more so over the years.
And now Washington, D.C. is on lockdown after Secret Service opened fire.
A U.S. Secret Service agent opened fire on suspected carjackers early Tuesday morning near the home of Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, the agency confirmed to Fox News Digital.
Chief Communications Officer Anthony Guglielmi explained that the incident occurred in northwest Washington, D.C., when an agent on protective duty encountered a group of individuals in a sedan behaving suspiciously.
“At approximately 1:30 a.m. Tuesday, a U.S. Secret Service special agent working a protective assignment in the 2900 block of Stephenson Place NW observed a sedan with multiple occupants who were attempting to open car doors along the street,” Guglielmi said.
“As the sedan approached the agent, a confrontation occurred between the agent and the car’s occupants. The agent discharged their service weapon, but there is currently no evidence to indicate anyone was struck.”
The suspects fled the scene in the sedan, prompting authorities to issue a lookout to local law enforcement.
“There was no threat to any protectees during this incident and no protectees were harmed,” Guglielmi added.
The Metropolitan Police Department’s Internal Affairs Division is now investigating the officer-involved shooting. The U.S. Attorney’s Office will also independently review the facts and evidence.
It remains unclear whether Yellen was at home when the incident unfolded, and no suspects have been identified at this time.
This event echoes a similar situation in July when a U.S. Marshal shot an armed carjacking suspect near the residence of Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor.
In that earlier case, two Deputy U.S. Marshals were stationed on the 2100 block of 11th Street NW at 1:15 a.m. when 18-year-old Kentrell Flowers exited a silver minivan and approached an unmarked Marshal’s vehicle, according to a criminal complaint by D.C. Metropolitan Police.
Flowers pointed a handgun at the Deputy Marshal through the driver-side window in an apparent carjacking attempt.
The Marshal responded by firing approximately four shots through the window. A second Marshal from another vehicle also engaged, firing his service weapon.
The U.S. Marshals Service confirmed to Fox News at the time that the officers involved were part of a unit assigned to protect Supreme Court justices’ residences, though specifics of such security measures were not disclosed.
Flowers was struck in the mouth and transported to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Authorities recovered a .40 caliber Smith & Wesson handgun with a 13-round capacity magazine containing 8 rounds of ammunition, according to the complaint.
Both incidents highlight the rising threat of violent crime targeting federal officials and their protective teams in the nation’s capital.
Stay tuned to the DC Daily Journal.
