A suspect is in custody after being accused of ramming his car into the entrance gate of the FBI’s Pittsburgh Field office on Wednesday, in what officials say was a ‘targeted attack.’
The FBI says that the suspect, Donald Henson of Penn Hills, used his car to ram the gate to the building around 2:40 a.m. on Wednesday. FBI Pittsburgh Assistant Special Agent in Charge Christopher Giordano said that after crashing into the gate, Henson grabbed an American flag from inside the vehicle and threw it over the gate before fleeing the scene. A spokesperson later confirmed to NBC News that the suspect was in custody and was at the FBI Pittsburgh office. No one was reported injured at the time of the crash.
Images from the scene obtained by NBC affiliate WPXI of Pittsburgh showed a white Toyota Corolla that had apparently driven into a metal fence. Footage from the scene also showed officers pulling a black bag out of the trunk using a winch.
The car the FBI says Henson used appeared to have some sort of message written on one of its side windows, which Giordano said investigators are still looking into and brought in a bomb squad to clear the vehicle. The car’s doors and trunk were all open, according to images from the scene, and the metal fence visibly slanted after the impact. Giordano said while holding up an image of the suspect: “We look at this as an act of terror against the FBI. This was a targeted attack on this building. Thankfully, no one was hurt.”
The FBI says that Henson visited the Pittsburgh office recently, with Giordano stating: “In scouring our indexes, we did find that he visited the field office a couple of weeks ago to make a complaint that didn’t make a whole lot of sense. We ran down everything that he came down with. It didn’t have a federal nexus. We contacted him to let him know there wasn’t a federal offense that we were able to charge.” The FBI also said he is believed to have a history of mental health issues and is believed to be a former member of the military.
Editorial credit: Kosoff / Shutterstock.com