Driver charged after truck crash near White House

The motive force of a truck that crashed into safety limitations close to the White Home on Monday evening has been arrested.

He has been charged with numerous offences together with reckless driving.

A Secret Service official mentioned there have been no accidents and preliminary investigations prompt the crash might need been intentional.

The motive force, a 19-year-old Missouri man, allegedly made threatening statements aimed toward President Joe Biden and Vice-President Kamala Harris.

US Park Police named the suspect as Sai Varshith Kandula, a resident of the St Louis suburb of Chesterfield.

At a listening to on Tuesday, a lawyer representing {the teenager} informed a DC Superior Court docket choose there was no proof Mr Kandula’s actions had been intentional.

The choose disagreed and mentioned he posed “a big threat to the neighborhood”.

The case is predicted to be transferred to federal courtroom.

Mr Kandula has been charged with assault with a harmful weapon, reckless operation of a motorcar, a menace to kill, kidnap or inflict hurt on a president, vice-president or member of the family, in addition to destruction of federal property and trespassing.

Citing a legislation enforcement supply, CBS, the BBC’s US companion, reported that Mr Kandula is a US citizen who was not on any police watch lists. He’s not believed to have any important felony document.

The Rockwood College District confirmed Mr Kandula graduated from Marquette Excessive College in Chesterfield, Missouri in 2022.

There have been no weapons or explosives discovered within the car, officers mentioned. A Nazi flag in addition to a black backpack and a roll of duct tape had been discovered contained in the truck, in accordance with US media studies.

Reuters information company printed a picture displaying the pink flag on the ground close to to the car as police performed a search.

The incident – which occurred simply earlier than 22:00 native time (02:00 GMT) – triggered evacuations of native motels together with the historic Hay-Adams.

Video of the crash taken by witnesses and posted to social media present the truck stopped on a sidewalk earlier than it accelerated and collided with a set of safety posts.

It’s unclear the place Mr Biden was on the time of the incident. Earlier within the day, he was on the White Home for debt ceiling talks with Home Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

Safety has been elevated on the White Home and different federal buildings in Washington DC following a string of incidents lately.

In April 2021, a police officer was killed and one other wounded when a driver rammed a safety barrier close to the US Capitol. The motive force, a 25-year-old Indiana man, was shot and killed.

In one other incident in August final 12 months, a person drove right into a barricade close to the Capitol earlier than firing pictures into the air and taking his personal life.