The Secret Service said in a statement posted on Twitter that a driver crashed a vehicle into the White House gates Monday night.
“Shortly after 6 p.m., a vehicle crashed into the outer gates of the White House,” Anthony Gugliemi, director of communications for the U.S. Secret Intelligence Service, said in a statement on Twitter. President Joe Biden was traveling from South Carolina to Texas to pay tribute to the late Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson and was not at the White House at the time of the crash.
The driver of the car was taken into custody and the Secret Service is investigating the circumstances and motive of the crash. The Secret Service pointed Gugliemi's tweet to the Daily Caller when asked to confirm the incident.
Shortly before 6 p.m., a vehicle crashed into the outer gates of the White House complex. The driver has been taken into custody, and the cause and circumstances of the collision are currently being investigated. Traffic is expected to be affected at 15th Street, Pennsylvania Avenue, and adjacent intersections. pic.twitter.com/n3M7zsFkvm
— Anthony Guglielmi (@SecretSvcSpox) January 8, 2024
In December, as Biden was leaving his campaign headquarters in Delaware, a car crashed into an SUV parked in a section of the president's motorcade. The president was walking towards the motorcade at the time of the accident, when Secret Service agents forced him into another vehicle, which rammed into his vehicle. Biden was unharmed. (Related: Here's what the president looks like rushing to safety when he's 81)
A White House pool report said a car collided with a vehicle in Biden's motorcade, which blocked the road. The president and first lady were returning from a dinner with campaign staff when the crash occurred. The Secret Service drew their weapons and moved toward the driver, who held his hands in the air. @9NewsAUS https://t.co/6fcCkya2xH
— Jonathan Kearsley (@jekearsley) December 18, 2023
In May, another vehicle, a U-Haul, crashed into the White House gates and crashed into a security fence in Lafayette Square, near the president's home. After entering the gate, the driver, 19-year-old Sai Varsis Khandula of Missouri, reportedly made threatening comments about Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.
Immediately after the crash, Kandula was arrested and charged with assault with a dangerous weapon, reckless operation of a motor vehicle, destruction of federal property, and trespassing. The vehicle was searched and no incendiary devices or explosives were found, although what appeared to be a Nazi flag was reported from the truck. according to Go to CBS News.
