Suspicious truck crashes near White House; Nazi flag found

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
23 May 2023 11:11

Officials come across a Nazi swastika flag inside the vehicle, which crashed through barricades in Lafayette Square, near the White House grounds.

A Nazi flag and other objects recovered from a rented box truck are pictured on the ground as the US Secret Service in Washington, U.S. May 23, 2023. (Reuters)

The United States Secret Service said it had detained the driver of a rented box truck that smashed into security barricades near the White House on Monday night, possibly on purpose, but there were no casualties or ongoing danger.

Officials discovered a Nazi swastika flag inside the vehicle, which crashed through barricades in Lafayette Square, near the White House grounds, a Reuters witness reported.

In further detail, officers recovered the flag and plastic evidence bags that had been left on the pavement after the incident and placed them in the back of the U-Haul.

"Preliminary investigation reveals the driver may have intentionally struck the security barriers at Lafayette Square," Anthony Guglielmi, chief of communications for the Secret Service, tweeted.

Vehicle collision at Lafayette Square: Roadways and pedestrian walkways are closed as teams investigate. pic.twitter.com/4QqNyRoa0T
— Anthony Guglielmi (@SecretSvcSpox) May 23, 2023

Guglielmi revealed that the Secret Service will assist the US Park Police in their investigation.

WUSA-TV broadcast video of a box-type U-Haul truck halted against a row of steel bollards, with uniformed police officers and a dog approaching the vehicle. The truck's rear door was wrenched open by a remote-controlled robot, displaying a dolly but no additional evident cargo.

A witness to the crash, Chris Zaboji, recorded a quick video on social media showing the truck crashing through the barriers. Reuters said it confirmed the footage. Zaboji claimed that after crashing once, the vehicle hit the barricades a second time.

According to a prior tweet from the Secret Service's Guglielmi, no one from the White House or the Secret Service was hurt.

President Joe Biden's exact whereabouts at the time remained unknown. He had an earlier meeting with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy at the White House on Monday evening.

A Washington Fire Department representative stated a request for a suspicious package investigation came in around 9:40 p.m. (0140 GMT).

Before investigators decided the contents of the partly empty truck were harmless, there was a massive law-enforcement and public-safety reaction.