Man dead after opening fire at security checkpoint near White House, Secret Service says

U.S. Secret Service officers shot a man after he opened fire at a security checkpoint outside the White House on Saturday evening, the Secret Service said in a statement. The gunman, who had previous encounters with the Secret Service, was taken to a hospital, where he later died, the agency said.

A bystander was also shot in the incident, the Secret Service said, and it’s unclear whether the bystander was struck by the gunman or an officer.

The bystander was rushed to the hospital in serious condition and underwent surgery, a law enforcement source with direct knowledge told MS NOW. The source described the bystander as a young male but did not know if he was an adult.

No Secret Service personnel were injured in the shooting, the agency said.

President Donald Trump was at the White House during the incident but was “not impacted,” the Secret Service said.

The president, who had announced on Friday his plans to be at the White House this weekend, posted on social media after midnight early Sunday morning, thanking Secret Service and law enforcement for their work and noting the gunman had what he called a “violent history and possible obsession” with the White House. Trump also mentioned last month’s White House correspondents’ dinner shooting and said Saturday’s incident underscores his desire for “the most safe and secure space of its kind ever built” in Washington.

The suspected gunman has been identified as 21-year-old Nasire Best, two sources briefed on the matter told MS NOW. He was taken to George Washington University Hospital, where the Secret Service said he later died, according to the sources.

Best had encounters with the Secret Service last summer and had an order to stay away from the White House, the sources said. He has a history of mental health issues, the sources said.

The shooting Saturday occurred shortly after 6 p.m. ET at 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW, a few hundred feet from the White House, according to the Secret Service.