SHOTS FIRED AT THE WHITE HOUSE
A gunman opens fire at a Secret Service checkpoint yards from President Trump, sending journalists scrambling for cover in the third security incident near the White House in a month
WASHINGTON D.C., May 23, 2026 — A person who approached a White House security checkpoint and began firing at officers has died, according to federal officials. The dramatic incident plunged the most heavily guarded address in the world into chaos on a Saturday evening, with the President inside.
The law enforcement agency said in a preliminary statement that the person in the area of 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue pulled a weapon from his bag shortly after 6 p.m. ET and began firing. The officers returned fire, hitting the suspect, who was taken to a hospital where he later died.
The suspect was identified as 21-year-old Nasire Best, said a law enforcement official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to discuss the investigation. According to sources, Best had a previous run-in with Secret Service in July 2025 in which he tried to gain entry to the White House and was arrested and sent to a psychiatric ward for mental health issues.
The suspect had recently been issued a stay-away order, which he had ignored. He approached the area and started shooting, at which point the Secret Service officers returned fire.
Journalists caught in the crossfire
Numerous journalists were already present as part of a press pool, as Donald Trump had just hours earlier posted on social media from the Oval Office that a peace agreement to end the war in Iran was “largely negotiated.” Upward of 20 to 30 shots were fired, according to NBC News correspondent Julie Tsirkin.
Secret Service agents were spotted on the grounds with their weapons drawn, telling reporters to “get down” before being ushered into the West Wing press briefing room. ABC News correspondent Selina Wang posted that she had been in the middle of recording a social video when she and her crew were interrupted by the noise of gunfire. According to CNN, the lockdown was lifted after 45 minutes.
President safe, bystander critically wounded
Secret Service personnel were not injured, and President Donald Trump was in the residence and unaffected. He was briefed on the incident by the Secret Service. The bystander is in critical condition, according to a law enforcement official.
Trump, in a post on Truth Social early Sunday, thanked Secret Service and law enforcement officials for swiftly responding to the threat.
A pattern of escalating threats
It was the third incidence of gunfire in the vicinity of President Donald Trump in the past month. The gunfire came nearly a month after what law enforcement authorities said was an attempted assassination of the president as he attended the annual White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner at a Washington hotel on April 25. Cole Tomas Allen, of Torrance, California, recently pleaded not guilty to charges that he attempted to kill Trump. Allen is accused of running through a security checkpoint inside the hotel and firing a shotgun at a Secret Service officer.
FBI and federal agencies respond
FBI Director Kash Patel posted that federal authorities were on the scene “supporting Secret Service responding to shots fired near White House grounds” and that updates would be provided as soon as possible. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives also responded to the scene to assist with the investigation.
The shots were caught on video by various White House correspondents, including Selina Wang from ABC News and Aaron Navarro from CBS News.
