Secret Service agent fires weapon at suspects near Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen's home
WASHINGTON – A Secret Service agent fired their weapon after a confrontation with a group of suspects near the Washington home of Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen early Tuesday morning.
An agent working a protective assignment in Northwest Washington spotted a sedan with multiple occupants who were attempting to open car doors along the street around 1:30 a.m., Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in a statement.
As the sedan approached the agent, a confrontation erupted between the agent and the car’s occupants. The agent fired their weapon, Guglielmi said, but there was no indication that anyone was struck. The suspects fled in the sedan, and local police are looking for them, Guglielmi said.
“There was no threat to any protectees during this incident, and no protectees were harmed,” he said.
A previous recent incident
It was the second time in the past five months that a law enforcement officer protecting a high-ranking government official has fired his weapon at a suspect following a confrontation.
In July, a deputy U.S. Marshal protecting Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor shot a teenager attempting to carjack the officer’s vehicle. The marshal was on duty with another officer in an unmarked vehicle when 18-year-old Kentrell Flowers allegedly approached the vehicle with a loaded firearm around 1:17 a.m. on July 5, according to a court filing.
Flowers allegedly pulled up next to the marshal’s vehicle in a silver Toyota Sienna minivan, got out and pointed .40-caliber Smith & Wesson pistol through the driver’s side window, according to a statement by Deputy Marshal Tyler Wells.
The marshal fired about four times at Flowers, striking him in the mouth, according to Wells' statement. The marshal provided medical attention to Flowers as the minivan raced off, Wells said.
Contributing: Maureen Groppe and Bart Jansen.
Michael Collins covers the White House. Follow him on X @mcollinsNEWS.