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The man who rammed a car into two officers at a barricade in front of the US Capitol, killing one of them before police shot him dead, had been suffering from delusions, paranoia and suicidal thoughts, a US official told The Associated Press on Saturday. Investigators believe it was an isolated incident of a disturbed young man.
Video of the attack on Friday afternoon (local time) shows the driver getting out of the crashed car with a knife in his hand and starting to run towards the pair of officers, Acting Capitol Police Chief Yogananda told reporters. Pittman. Police shot the suspect, Noah Green, 25, who died in a hospital.
Investigators are increasingly focused on Green’s mental health as they work to identify any motive for the attack, said the official, who was not authorized to speak publicly about an ongoing investigation and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity. The official said investigators had spoken with Green’s family, who spoke of his increasingly delusional thoughts.
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In online posts since he was removed, Green described being under the control of government thinking and said they were watching him. He described himself as a follower of the Nation of Islam and its founder, Louis Farrakhan, and spoke of going through a difficult time when he leaned on his faith. Some of the messages were captured by the SITE group, which tracks online activity.
“To be honest, these last few years have been tough, and these last few months have been tougher,” he wrote in late March. “I have been put through some of the biggest and most unimaginable tests of my life. I am currently unemployed after leaving my job partly due to afflictions, but ultimately seeking a spiritual journey. “
Carolyn Kaster / AP
The car that hit a barrier on Capitol Hill, killing a police officer.
It was the second death in line of duty this year for the United States Capitol Police, which is still struggling to recover from the January 6 insurrection. The attack underscored that the building and campus, and the officers tasked with protecting them, remain potential targets of violence.
Authorities installed a giant fence around the perimeter of the Capitol and for months restricted traffic on the roads closest to the building, but had begun to withdraw some of the emergency measures. And the most recent incident could delay the gradual reopening of the building’s grounds to the public.
Capitol Police / AP
Capitol Police Officer William “Billy” Evans, an 18-year veteran, was killed in the attack.
“I only ask that the public continue to keep the United States Capitol Police and their families in their prayers,” Pittman said. “This has been an extremely difficult time for the United States Capitol Police after the events of January 6 and now the events that have occurred here today.
Police identified the slain officer as William “Billy” Evans, an 18-year veteran who was a member of the department’s first aid unit.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi hailed Evans as a “martyr for our democracy,” while Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said he was “heartbroken.” Pelosi and Schumer spoke with members of the Evans family on Friday.
Alex Brandon / AP
Acting Capitol Police Chief Yogananda Pittman says video of the attack shows the driver getting out of the crashed car with a knife in his hand and starting to run towards the officers, who shot him.
President Joe Biden said in a statement that he and his wife were heartbroken to learn of the attack and expressed their condolences to the Evans family. He ordered the White House flags to be lowered to half mast.
In 2013, Capitol Police and Secret Service agents fatally shot a woman inside her car after she led them in a high-speed chase that began outside the White House. Miriam Carey’s family said she suffered from postpartum depression with psychosis, but that it was not dangerous.
The accident and shooting Friday occurred at a security checkpoint near the Capitol that is generally used by senators and staff during the week, although most were out of the building during the current recess. The attack occurred about 90 meters from the building’s entrance on the Senate side of the Capitol.
Alex Brandon / AP
The flag on the United States Capitol was lowered to half staff in honor of Capitol Police Officer William Evans.
The Washington region remains nervous nearly three months after a mob of insurgents loyal to former President Donald Trump stormed the building as Congress voted to certify Biden’s presidential victory.
Five people were killed in the January 6 riot, including Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, who was among a greatly outnumbered force trying to fight off the intruders. The National Guard took hours to arrive, a delay that has prompted months of indictments among key decision makers that day.
Nearly 140 Capitol Police officers were injured in that attack, including officers without helmets who suffered head injuries and one with broken ribs, according to the officers’ union. Two officers, one from the Capitol Police and one from the Washington Metropolitan Police Department, died by suicide after the January 6 attack.
Patrick Semansky / AP
Members of the Capitol Police stand guard near the crash site.
Capitol police and National Guard troops were summoned shortly after to secure the Capitol during Biden’s inauguration and faced another potential threat in early March linked to conspiracy theories that falsely claimed that Trump would retake the presidency.
The area was closed for hours on Friday, but has since reopened and National Guard troops stood outside the building on Saturday.
