A shooter opened fire and left two West Virginia National Guardsmen fighting for their lives just blocks from the White House on Wednesday afternoon.
The suspect remains in custody after launching the assault at around 2:10pm at Farragut West metro station, which is in the center of Washington, DC.
The attack, which is believed to have been targeted, quickly turned into a shootout after the suspect reportedly shot three times before officials returned fire.
Witnesses recalled seeing a person who ‘came around the corner, raised his firearm and discharged his firearm,’ CNN reported.
Both National Guard members were shot in the head, according to NBC News. CNN obtained a cell phone video showing authorities performing CPR on one of the guardsmen.
Both guardsmen are in critical condition and the suspect, who was also shot, has non-life-threatening injuries, according to federal law enforcement officials.
The suspected assailant is not cooperating with authorities and his motive remains unclear, law enforcement sources told the outlet.
FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed that two victims were being treated at a local hospital after West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey earlier sparked confusion by announcing the soldiers were dead before walking back his statement.
An unnamed shooter opened fire on Wednesday afternoon in Washington, DC, leaving two National Guardsmen in a critical condition
The attack quickly turned into a shoot-out after the suspect reportedly shot three times before officials returned fire
Patel added that the suspect would be charged with assaulting a federal law enforcement officer. The maximum penalty for this offense is 20 years in prison.
Jeffery Carroll, Executive Assistant Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department, said that the suspect was subdued by other guardsmen after ‘some back and forth’.
The person taken into custody did not have an ID on them and is reportedly not cooperating with investigators.
West Virginia Attorney General John McCuskey said the two wounded officials ‘volunteered their time,’ along with others, to serve during the Thanksgiving holiday.
‘He has attacked two of the bravest people,’ McCuskey said of the shooter.
President Donald Trump, who was in Florida at the time of the shooting for the Thanksgiving holiday, vowed that the assailant will pay a ‘very steep price.’
He wrote on Truth Social: ‘The animal that shot the two National Guardsmen, with both being critically wounded, and now in two separate hospitals, is also severely wounded, but regardless, will pay a very steep price.’
‘God bless our Great National Guard, and all of our Military and Law Enforcement. These are truly Great People. I, as President of the United States, and everyone associated with the Office of the Presidency, am with you!’
FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed that two soldiers were being treated at a local hospital
Department of Corrections employees are seen entering the George Washington University Hospital after the shooting
The president ordered an additional 500 troops to deploy following the shooting on Wednesday, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said.
Hegseth called the attack a ‘cowardly, dastardly act, targeting the best of America.’
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said her department was working with local law enforcement.
Graphic images from the scene showed a soldier lying injured on the pavement with blood pouring from his head as a Secret Service agent gave him medical attention.
Stacey Walters, a nurse who lives in Washington, told the Associated Press she was near 17th Street in a car when she heard two gunshots.
She described hearing ‘boom boom’ and then noticed small children and others running while law enforcement swarmed the area.
‘It’s such a beautiful day. Who would do this [while] we’re getting ready for the holidays?’ Walters said.
Trump deployed the National Guard to the nation’s capital in August, as he sought to crack down on rising violent crime.
More than three months later, the issue is still being fought in the courts.
Last week, Judge Jia Michelle Cobb of the District Court for DC ruled that the Trump administration violated the city’s Home Rule Act by deploying units for non-military crime-deterrence operations.
Her ruling, handed down on Thursday, placed a 21-day stay on the order, allowing for continued troop presence until December 11. This means that if it is enforced, servicemen could be home with 14 days left until Christmas.
This period also allows the Trump administration to appeal the decision.
