White House security breach prompts search due to fears intruder left something on lawn The Secret Service, under intense scrutiny after a man jumped the White House fence and got through the front doors, on Saturday morning conducted a full sweep of the crime scene, in a search for evidence.
Law enforcement officials conducted a shoulder-to-shoulder sweep of the White House’s north lawn as well as the plaza in front of the iconic building and adjacent Lafayette Park, following the Friday night incident.
The Secret Service confirmed with Fox News that the sweep was in connection with the incident.
The Secret Service early Saturday identified the suspect as Omar J Gonzalez, 42, of Copperas Cove, Texas, and said he was unarmed when apprehended.
Gonzalez was arrested and taken to George Washington Hospital for medical evaluation, said agency spokesman Brian Leary. He also said the Secret Service is reviewing agents’ response to the incident to ensure proper protocol was followed.
President Obama and his daughters departed the White House four minutes before the intruder scaled the north fence, darted across the lawn and into the presidential residence, where agents nabbed him. The security breach triggered a rare evacuation of much of the White House, with Secret Service officers drawing their guns as they rushed staffers and journalists out a side door.
The Secret Service also said Gonzalez ignored commands to stop and continued through the doors.
The incident prompted fresh questions about the storied agency and its ability to protect the president.
Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, chairman of a House subcommittee on national security oversight, called the incident "totally unacceptable" and just one of a string of security failings on the Secret Service's watch.
"Unfortunately, they are failing to do their job," Chaffetz said. "These are good men and women, but the Secret Service leadership has a lot of questions to answer."
"Was the door open?" he added incredulously.
Gonzales, in jeans and a dark shirt, scaled the fence shortly after 7 p.m. and appeared to be unarmed, Leary said.
He was tackled just inside the doors of the North Portico, the grand, columned entrance that looks out over Pennsylvania Avenue.
Gonzalez was charged with unlawful entry into the White House complex and taken to the nearby hospital after complaining of chest pain.
Attempts to reach Gonzalez or his relatives by phone were unsuccessful.
Although it's not uncommon for people to make it over the White House fence, they're typically stopped almost immediately and rarely get very far. Video from the scene showed the intruder sprinting across the lawn as Secret Service agents shouted at nearby pedestrians to clear the area.
"This situation was a little different than other incidents we have at the White House," said agency spokesman Ed Donovan. "There will be a thorough investigation into the incident."
Only minutes before the breach, Obama had boarded his helicopter on the South Lawn with his daughters and one of their friends, who was joining the Obamas for a weekend getaway to Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland. First lady Michelle Obama had traveled separately to Camp David and was not at home.
It was unclear whether any other fence-jumpers have ever made it into the White House, one of the most highly protected buildings in the world. But Friday's incident was just the latest setback for an elite agency whose reputation has suffered a succession of blows in recent years.
In 2012, 13 Secret Service agents and officers were implicated in a prostitution scandal during preparations for Obama's trip to Cartagena, Colombia. The next year, two officers were removed from the president's detail after another alleged incident of sexually-related misconduct. And in March, an agent was found drunk by staff at a Dutch hotel the day before Obama was set to arrive in the Netherlands.
Obama appointed the agency's first female director last year as a sign he wanted to change the culture and restore public confidence in its operations. An inspector general's report in December found no evidence of widespread misconduct.
The Secret Service has struggled in recent years to strike the appropriate balance between ensuring the first family's security and preserving the public's access to the White House grounds. Once open to vehicles, the stretch of Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the White House was confined to pedestrians after the Oklahoma City bombing, but officials have been reluctant to restrict access to the area further.
Evacuations at the White House are extremely rare. Typically, when someone jumps the White House fence, the compound is put on lockdown and those inside remain in place while officers respond. Last week, the Secret Service apprehended a man who jumped over the same stretch of fence on the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, prompting officers to draw their firearms and deploy service dogs as they took the man into custody
