(Photo by Mohamad)
A man is in custody amid the latest security incident at the White House.
The White House was put under lockdown and the North Lawn was evacuated this morning as the Secret Service investigated a suspicious package.
The suspect made some “suspicious comments,” a Secret Service official told USA Today. According to Fox News, citing an unnamed Secret Service source, the man was carrying a bag and claimed to have a bomb inside.
Details were not immediately available about the suspect, and the investigation into the package remains ongoing.
Suspicious package investigation continues; suspect in custody! pic.twitter.com/O25gr5B72f
— U.S. Secret Service (@SecretService) March 28, 2017
The executive building has seen a flurry of security incidents in recent weeks.
One woman was responsible for three of them. 38-year-old Marci Wahl jumped the fence twice (well, the first time, she got caught by the shoelaces) and was also arrested for being in Lafayette Park, in violation of a court order.
In the most serious breach, Jonathan Tuan Tran scaled two fences and a security gate to get on the White House grounds before he was arrested. Eight days later, a man was arrested after jumping over a bike rack in an attempt to get at the fence. Another person was arrested on the same day for making a false bomb threat at a Secret Service checkpoint.
Years in the making, officials approved a plan last month to build a taller fence. Construction is slated to begin next year.
Rachel Sadon