Military base in Washington, DC on lockdown after reports of 'potential armed individual' on site
Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling on the southern end of Washington, DC was placed on lockdown for several hours on Friday, after an armed suspect from a local shooting was spotted on the premises.
The initial Facebook post described the “potential armed individual” on base as a “black male with a medium build carrying a Gucci bag.” Anyone encountering the individual was advised to run, or hide if they lacked a suitable escape route. Anyone hiding was asked to “prepare to FIGHT.”
In a subsequent update, the base’s Facebook page asked personnel to “be on the lookout for two individuals,” both black males. However, that number was shortly revised back down to one, a man with dreadlocks possibly carrying a bag. No further information was given regarding whether he was armed or not.
Local reporter Megan Cloherty claimed that multiple sources heard “sounds of gunfire” near the base. The gunfire was unlikely a false alarm, as the last time the base ran an active shooter drill, this February, staff tipped off locals well in advance about the noise.
Also on rt.com Several injured, people flee in panic as dozens of gunshots ring out on busy street in Washington, DC (VIDEOS)Situated adjacent to the base, the US Naval Research Laboratory has also been placed on lockdown, with staff there instructed to “remain in place.”
Located along the banks of the Potomac river in southeast Washington DC, Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling houses the headquarters of the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) and the White House Communications Agency, the latter of which is tasked with securing the president’s communications channels.
The lockdown was lifted shortly after 3 pm local time. Shortly before that, a husband and wife team on the base security force found the suspect hiding in a garbage dumpster, US Air Force Colonel Michael Zuhlsdorf told reporters in a news conference on Friday.
The suspect had been involved in a shooting outside the base and injured himself while jumping over two fences to enter the premises illegally. Base security also retrieved his gun and turned it over to the local police, Zuhlsdorf said.
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