Washington – A 17-year-old gunman was arrested Sunday night at Andrews Joint Base after he and another man passed a security checkpoint at the facility’s front door, prompting a blockade at the base.
The incident occurred when Vice President Kamala Harris and four members of President Biden’s cabinet returned to Maryland Base from a trip to Selma, Alabama, to commemorate Bloody Sunday’s 57th anniversary.
Harris and Second Knight Doug Emhoff left Joint Base Andrews aboard Marine Two, although it is unclear whether the base closed before or after their departure. The White House confirmed that cabinet members traveling with the vice president — Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Marcia Fudge, and the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency Michael Regan was out of base.
Joint base Andrew said the incident started around 9pm on Sunday when the two individuals went through security checkpoint and “did not obey orders” from security personnel at the front door.
Service members deployed barriers and stopped the vehicle, which was stolen, and the two people inside fled. One, a 17-year-old man, was arrested and had a handgun. No shots were fired, and the man remains in custody.
Defenders of the base’s security forces and local police conducted a complete sweep of the facility and found “confirmatory evidence that the intruder from the loose base had left the facility,” she said. Andrews Joint Base in a statement Monday morning.
Colonel Tyler Schaff, commander of the Andrews Joint Base facility, praised the work of the Ombudsman in deploying barriers to stop the car and arrest the 17-year-old with a gun.
“I apologize for the inconvenience some experienced while traveling to and from the base last night,” he said in a statement. “We appreciate everyone’s understanding and patience as the installation was sought. The safety of our staff is always our top priority, and your cooperation helped make it possible for our advocates and partners to thoroughly We are proud and committed to safeguarding the base every hour of every day. I am proud of them. “
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