A gunman is dead and a civilian bystander remains in a critical condition after a high-volume exchange of gunfire erupted directly outside a US Secret Service security checkpoint flanking the White House complex, CNN reported.
The perimeter security breach unfolded shortly after 6:00 p.m. local time on Saturday, May 23, at the intersection of 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW, situated immediately adjacent to the Eisenhower Executive Office Building.
Shooting near the White House
The sudden engagement triggered an immediate 40-minute tactical lockdown of the executive mansion, forcing White House correspondents and technical crews broadcasting live from the North Lawn to scramble for safety inside the press briefing room as tactical units armed with automatic rifles deployed across the grounds.
According to an official statement released by Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi, the suspect actively initiated the armed confrontation. Preliminary tracking and surveillance footage indicate that the individual walked up to the exterior security booth, pulled a revolver out of a personal bag, and fired three direct shots toward the on-duty Uniformed Division officers stationed inside the checkpoint. Secret Service police officers reacted within seconds, drawing their service weapons and returning a rapid volley of defensive fire that effectively neutralized the attacker.
Responding medical teams treated the wounded gunman at the scene before transferring him to George Washington University Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead. Federal investigators quickly identified the deceased shooter as 21-year-old Nasire Best, an individual who had been residing in Washington, DC, for the past 18 months.
A senior law enforcement official speaking on the condition of anonymity confirmed that Best was legally cataloged as an emotionally disturbed person and had previously been served a federal stay-away order restricting his movement near executive properties.
While the Secret Service confirmed that no protective agents or tactical personnel sustained physical injuries during the brief gun battle, an innocent pedestrian caught in the immediate area was struck by a stray round. Forensic teams recovered between 15 and 30 shell casings littering the sidewalk, and authorities noted it remains unclear whether the bystander was hit by the suspect’s initial revolver fire or during the subsequent police return volley.
The individual was rushed to an intensive care unit in grave condition. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), operating under Director Kash Patel, has officially assumed a supporting role in the joint forensic inquiry alongside Washington’s Metropolitan Police Department to determine if the shooter had any underlying institutional ties.
President Donald Trump was present within the primary White House residence at the time of the shooting but was insulated from danger by internal protection rings. Hours after the area was cleared, the president published a statement on Truth Social thanking the Secret Service Uniformed Division for their highly professional and rapid actions to eliminate the threat.
Shooting at White House correspondents’ dinner
Trump categorized the deceased shooter as an individual with a known violent history who possessed a distinct obsession with the executive complex. In his message, the president tied the perimeter breach to a prior security failure on April 25, when an armed gunman named Cole Tomas Allen successfully sniped an agent’s vest during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner at a Washington hotel.
Highlighting the reality that this marks the third separate instance of gun violence targeting his immediate vicinity since returning to office, Trump renewed his administrative push to fund a highly secure, fortified ballroom expansion on the grounds of the former East Wing, arguing that contemporary domestic security vectors require unmatched defensive architectures to protect future administrations.