Man shoots himself outside White House

A man shot himself in the head outside the White House, according to a Secret Service spokesperson.

On Saturday afternoon, the man approached the fence line, removed a concealed handgun and fired several rounds, none of which appear to have been aimed at the White House, the spokesperson told CNN.

A law enforcement source said the shooter shot his phone before shooting himself. No suicide note was found, but incoherent sentences were found in a book recovered on the scene.

The man has since died; no one else was injured in the incident, the Secret Service spokesperson said.

The victim suffered a single gunshot wound, and Secret Service personnel did not fire any shots.

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump were at Mar-a-Lago in Florida, CNN reported.

"We are aware of the incident," deputy press secretary Hogan Gidley said.

"The President has been briefed. I refer you to the Secret Service for any more information."

The Washington, DC, Metropolitan Police Department is taking the lead in the investigation, the Secret Service spokesperson told CNN.

Law enforcement authorities have identified the victim but are withholding the man's name pending notification of his family, the spokesperson said.

Law enforcement personnel spent about four hours on Saturday afternoon searching a maroon Honda Accord with an Alabama license plate parked on the street near the Capital Hilton hotel, a few blocks from the White House.

After officers blocked off the area, a bomb squad swept the car, and law enforcement personnel removed several items from it, including what looked like pictures and documents from a cigar box, before towing the car away.

--IANS

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