• Lexington
  • Rockbridge
  • Buena Vista
  • Sports
  • Business
  • Regional
  • In-Depth Reporting
  • About Us
Facebook Twitter Instagram
Rockbridge Report
Rockbridge Report
Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube LinkedIn
  • Lexington
  • Rockbridge
  • Buena Vista
  • Sports
  • Business
  • Regional
  • In-Depth Reporting
  • About Us
Sunday, September 24
Rockbridge Report
Home»Crime»Man arrested, accused of firing shots at White House

Man arrested, accused of firing shots at White House

November 17, 20115 Mins Read
Law enforcement officers photograph a damaged window at the White House.  (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)

WASHINGTON (AP) — A man with an apparent obsession with President Barack Obama has been arrested in Pennsylvania after the Secret Service discovered two bullets struck the White House while the president was away, authorities said Wednesday.

One bullet smashed into a window of the living quarters of the executive mansion but was stopped by ballistic glass.

The arrest of Oscar Ramiro Ortega-Hernandez, 21, came days after reports of shots fired on Friday night near the White House while Obama and his wife Michelle were on a trip to California and Hawaii. The president has since traveled on to Australia, his second stop on a nine-day Asia-Pacific tour, and the White House had no comment on the unfolding events.

The U.S. Secret Service said it discovered Tuesday that the two bullets hit the White House. U.S. Park Police had earlier linked Ortega, a 21-year-old man from Idaho Falls, Idaho, to the reports of gunfire.

A U.S. Park Police crime bulletin issued before Ortega’s arrest said he is known to have mental health issues, adding “Ortega should be considered unstable with violent tendencies.”

Authorities are investigating his mental health and say there are indications he believed his attack on the White House was part of a personal mission from God, according to a law enforcement official. There are also indications the man had become obsessed with Obama and the White House, according to two officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing.

Authorities said the bullets discovered Tuesday by the Secret Service have not been conclusively connected with the reports of gunfire near the White House on Friday night. On Friday, authorities found an abandoned vehicle with an assault rifle inside.

Ortega, 21, was arrested Wednesday afternoon at a hotel near Indiana, Pa., some 55 miles east of Pittsburgh, the Secret Service said. He was in Pennsylvania State Police custody. A tip from someone who saw and identified Ortega led to his arrest, Secret Service spokesman George Ogilvie said.

Ortega did not resist arrest, said Pennsylvania State Trooper Lt. Brad Shields. State troopers said Ortega had visited the hotel in recent days, and investigators believed he was back in the area Wednesday. The Secret Service passed out photographs, and a desk clerk recognized his picture and stalled him while notifying police.

Ortega’s first court appearance is scheduled Thursday afternoon in Pittsburgh, according to the staff of U.S. Magistrate Judge Cynthia Reed Eddy.

Ortega was reported missing Oct. 31 by his family. On Friday morning, he was stopped by police in the Washington suburb of Arlington, Va., who were investigating a report of a suspicious person. Police took photos of him but didn’t have any reason to arrest him, Arlington police Lt. Joe Kantor said.

A message left for Ortega’s mother Wednesday at an Idaho Falls restaurant where she works was not returned. Phone listings for family members in Idaho were disconnected.

Ortega has an arrest record in three states but has not been linked to any radical organizations, U.S. Park Police have said. Police searched the Occupy D.C. encampment Monday after callers said they had seen a man matching Ortega’s description, but the search turned up nothing.

Witnesses on Friday reported hearing shots and seeing two speeding vehicles on Constitution Avenue near the White House. Authorities said they found an abandoned car, with the assault rifle inside, near the Theodore Roosevelt Bridge, which crosses the Potomac River to Virginia.

The bullet that hit the White House window was stopped by ballistic glass. The Secret Service didn’t disclose the location of the second bullet, saying only that it “was found on the exterior of the White House.”

Obama and the first lady had traveled without daughters Malia and Sasha on Friday to San Diego en route to Hawaii for a summit, prior to flying to Australia. The White House had no immediate comment on the shooting or on who may have been home at the time.

On Wednesday, officials took photographs of a window on the executive mansion’s south face. The window is in front of the so-called Yellow Oval Room, according to the White House website. That room is in the middle of the family’s living quarters on the floor that includes the president’s bedroom and the Lincoln Bedroom.

In 2010, there were a series of pre-dawn shootings at military buildings in the Washington area, including the Pentagon and the National Museum of the Marine Corps. Police charged a Marine Corps reservist with those shootings earlier this year. The suspect, Yonathan Melaku of Alexandria, Va., remains in custody.

In the last shooting at the White House in October 1994, a Colorado man sprayed the mansion with at least 27 semiautomatic rifle bullets from Pennsylvania Avenue in an attempt to assassinate then-President Bill Clinton, who was home at the time. Bystanders subdued the suspect, and no one was injured. Francisco Martin Duran was convicted and sentenced to 40 years in prison for that shooting.

The next year, Pennsylvania Avenue was closed to traffic to bolster security.

Related

Apr. 6, 2023 Newscast
Apr. 4, 2023 News Update

rockbridgereport

The commonwealth’s attorney for Rockbridge Count The commonwealth’s attorney for Rockbridge County and Lexington said he wants victims of sexual assault at Washington and Lee University to seek help from police and prosecutors who can investigate and file criminal charges. 

In the past month, two former W&L students have faced sexual assault charges.

Read Ned Newton’s full story on our website, rockbridgereport.wlu.edu.
Lexington’s City Council has given the go-ahead Lexington’s City Council has given the go-ahead for a developer to begin drafting plans to build apartments off Spotswood Drive. 

The new permit approval comes after months of controversy about the design. 

Read Andrew Arnold’s full story on our website, rockbridgereport.wlu.edu.
A new, 24-hour EMS crew will help in providing bac A new, 24-hour EMS crew will help in providing backup services to Glasgow and other nearby cities and towns.

For more details on the new EMS crew, visit: https://youtu.be/k03HNBKB978.
Buddy, the horse, and Police Chief Angela Greene l Buddy, the horse, and Police Chief Angela Greene led the Lexington Christmas Parade. Buddy is one of the future Mounted Police Unit horses working with the Lexington police. 

Watch Buddy and the latest broadcast of the Rockbridge Report: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SDZ4A6xuk-4
A developer sought final city approval this week t A developer sought final city approval this week to build 62 apartment units on Lexington’s Spotswood Drive.

Echelon Resources went before the city’s planning commission Thursday to request a permit allowing the developer company to construct multi-family housing at the Spotswood site. The planning commission will offer a recommendation for approval or denial to the Lexington City Council. The city council will likely have a final vote on the permit in early January.

The proposal received some pushback from Lexington residents who fear the development will significantly increase traffic, impede the local hospital, or strain the city’s water and sewer systems. 

For more details on the Spotswood proposal visit: https://rockbridgereport.academic.wlu.edu/2022/12/08/spotswood-drive-apartment-complex-moves-forward/
Lexington’s city manager is searching for a full Lexington’s city manager is searching for a full-time city attorney. The previous city attorney, Jared Jenkins, no longer serves in the position following his split from Mann Legal Group.

Learn more by visiting the Rockbridge Report website: https://rockbridgereport.academic.wlu.edu/2022/12/08/lexington-replaces-city-attorney/
Two students at Virginia Military Institute and Wa Two students at Virginia Military Institute and Washington and Lee University posted bomb threats on anonymous social media platforms last week.

After investigations, both posts proved to be false alarms. Disciplinary measures for the students are unclear. 

Read the full story here: https://rockbridgereport.academic.wlu.edu/2022/12/08/two-university-bomb-threats-posted-on-anonymous-social-media-proved-false/
Local nonprofits, like the Rockbridge Area Relief Local nonprofits, like the Rockbridge Area Relief Association (RARA) and Washington and Lee’s Campus Kitchen, will provide extra support for families facing food insecurity during the holidays.

Read more about this on the Rockbridge Report website: https://rockbridgereport.academic.wlu.edu/2022/12/08/community-groups-to-offer-food-to-students-and-their-families-during-holiday-break/
“Normal people can’t afford that." Lexington “Normal people can’t afford that."

Lexington is Stacey Dickerson-Suggs’ hometown, but the single mother can’t afford to live here. Virginia house prices are going up about 10% each year. In Lexington, the median price of a home has increased 27% in the past year.

Read more about this on the Rockbridge Report website: https://rockbridgereport.academic.wlu.edu/2022/12/08/lexington-renters-buyers-cant-find-affordable-housing/
Load More... Follow on Instagram
Twitter
My Tweets
Reporters
Producers
Supervisors

Kevin Finch

Toni Locy

Alecia Swasy

Michael Todd

Rockbridge Report
© 2023 ThemeSphere. Designed by ThemeSphere.

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

Go to mobile version
 

Loading Comments...