Man Crashes Car Into Capitol Barricade, Opens Fire And Kills Himself

A man drove his car into a barricade at the US Capitol early Sunday morning and, as it burst into flame, he exited the vehicle and began “indiscriminately” shooting a handgun. As US Capitol police approached him, he shot himself to death. 

The car that crashed into the US Capitol barricade is carried away on Sunday morning (AP Photos)

According to a statement issued by Capitol Police:

Just after 4:00 a.m., a man drove his car into the vehicle barricade at East Capitol Street and Second Street. While the man was getting out of the car, it became engulfed in flames.

The man then fired several shots into the air along East Capitol Street. When our officers heard the sound of gunfire, they immediately responded and were approaching the man when he shot himself.

A police officer examines the charred street where the assailant’s vehicle struck the Capitol barricade and burst into flame (Daniel Slim/AFP via Fox5 NY)

“It appears that the individual may have started the fire himself as he was getting out of the car,” said Capitol Police chief Tom Manger at a Sunday morning press conference. He described the attacker as firing a handgun “indiscriminately.”

With the man’s identity not yet revealed, there’s no indication of motive thus far. Police are reviewing his social media accounts for any indications of his intent.

“We do know that the subject has a criminal history over the past ten years or so, but nothing that at this point would link him to anything here at the Capitol,” said Manger. 

No police fired their weapons, and no one else was hurt in the attack. Congress is currently in recess.  The death investigation will be managed by the DC Metropolitan Police Department.

Though not directly declaring a motive, some major media stories on the incident are already putting it in the context of right-wing anger over the FBI’s Aug 8 search for classified documents at former President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence.

“US law enforcement agencies have faced a wave of threats and political discord ahead of the 2022 midterm elections and after an FBI search of former President Donald Trump’s home in Florida last week,” writes Bloomberg‘s Victoria Cavaliere. 

A vehicle attack in April 2021 killed one Capitol police officer and badly injured another one. In that attack, the man struck the officers with his vehicle. He then leapt from his car with a knife and was shot and killed by Capitol police. 

The aftermath of the April 2021 attack on a Capitol police barricade (Oliver Contreras/The New York Times)