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‘I Came Here to Shoot People,’ Says Man Shot at White House Gate

The armed man was shot by the Secret Service last month at a security checkpoint

Law enforcement officers inspect a suspect's car near the White House after a man was shot while carrying a handgun near a Secret Service checkpoint. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images file photo)
Law enforcement officers inspect a suspect's car near the White House after a man was shot while carrying a handgun near a Secret Service checkpoint. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images file photo)

An armed man shot by Secret Service officers outside the White House last month told officers he was going there “to shoot people,” according to court documents.  

Federal prosecutors on Friday said they charged Jesse A. Olivieri, 31, of Ashland, Pennsylvania, with resisting or impeding officers with a dangerous weapon, which carries a maximum of 20 years in prison.  


[White House Lockdown Lifted after Secret Service Shooting]
On May 20, the Secret Service reported that an adult male approached an outside perimeter checkpoint carrying a gun. He was shot once.  

The White House was placed on lockdown and area streets were closed for hours.  

A fuller picture of events emerged on Friday in court documents.  

Police said a witness passed Olivieri sitting in the front seat of a vehicle. The witness watched Olivieri walk through a security gate on the southwest grounds of the White House and continue toward another gate before being stopped by Secret Service officers.  

After failing to respond to multiple orders to drop his weapon, a semiautomatic handgun, police shot Olivieri, the documents showed.  

A Secret Service officer at the scene asked Olivieri why he came to the White House.  

“I came here to shoot people,” Olivieri responded, according to the documents.  

Olivieri remains hospitalized, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office in Washington.  

Contact Rahman at remarahman@cqrollcall.com or follow her on Twitter at @remawriter


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