Arrest after shooting incident at White House

A MAN has been arrested in connection with an investigation into a shooting near the White House, the US Secret Service said.

The Secret Service discovered on Tuesday that two bullets had hit the White House, one of them apparently cracking a window on the residential level while president Barack Obama was away.

The discovery of the bullet holes followed reports of gunfire near the White House on Friday night, although the bullets have not been conclusively connected with the Friday shooting.

An assault rifle and an abandoned vehicle were found, which led authorities to link Oscar Ramiro Ortega-Hernandez to the reported gunfire.

Ortega, 21, was arrested yesterday by Pennsylvania authorities at a hotel in the south-west part of the state, the Secret Service said. He was in Pennsylvania state police custody last night.

Ortega is from Idaho Falls, Idaho, and was believed to be living in the Washington area. He was reported missing on 31 October by his family.

Ortega has an arrest record in three states but has not been linked to any radical organisations, police said.

The bullet that hit the window was stopped by re-inforced glass. The Secret Service did not disclose the location of the second bullet, saying only that it “was found on the exterior of the White House”.

Yesterday, officials could be seen taking photographs of a window on the south face of the executive mansion.

The window they were inspecting is in front of the so-called Yellow Oval Room, according to the White House website. The room is in the middle of the family’s living quarters on the floor that includes the president’s bedroom and the Lincoln Bedroom.