The driver of a car that sped into the National Security Agency campus Monday morning was shot and killed by security personnel, while his cohort was left wounded. The man driving the stolen Ford Escape entered a secured highway exit at the NSA. section of the Fort Meade facility.
NSA. police officers greeted the two men and instructed them to safely exit the campus. According to NSA spokesperson Jonathan Freed, the driver of the stolen vehicle ignored the officers and sped toward a parked police car.
Freed said shots were fired at the men after their car failed to stop. The campus in Maryland is on constant watch for intruders, as it is the nation’s most secretive intelligence organization, according to the New York Times.
One police officer was injured when the Ford Escape crashed into a police car that was blocking the road. The driver, Ricky Shawatza Hall, died on the scene, and the 20-year-old passenger, Kevin Fleming, was taken to a local hospital.
The owner of the stolen Ford Escape picked up the two men and took them to a hotel in Elkridge, Maryland Sunday night, according to the New York Times. The men decided to steal the car Monday morning at the motel.
According to the New York Times, officials said the men were dressed in women’s clothing, and they found cocaine and at least one firearm inside the stolen vehicle.
The FBI said in a statement that they are working to determine if federal charges are warranted for this incident, and an investigation is underway. The FBI does not believe this incident was related to terrorism, according to a spokeswoman.
Gunshots were involved in an arrest made at the agency earlier this month as well. A former prison guard was arrested March 3 in connection with a series of random shots fired at public and commercial security buildings in the area, according to CNN.
Wow- shocking and interesting article. I think it’s very good that we have a secure protection plan around that agency.
It is really interesting to think about how secure the Washington D.C. area is! I am planning on moving out there after I graduate, and it seems like there will always be news happening left and right.
Very detailed article. I am glad that D.C. was secure and there weren’t more injuries than the ones already involved.
Wow this is an interesting story that I haven’t really hear about until now. I am always wondering how secure things are, and I feel like there’s always a chance that the government knows more about things than we sometimes think! I wonder how everything is connected, between the car and the drugs?