Early Monday, a drone crash landed on the lawn of the White House, causing an immediate lockdown and investigation, led by the Secret Service.
It was unsure who was flying the plane, but according to Secret Service spokeswoman Nicole B. Mainor the man called in a report on himself regarding the incident. Mainor stated, “Initial indications are that this incident occurred as a result of recreational use of the device.”
The device was a two-foot-long “quadcopter” drone that crash-landed on the White House lawn sometime during the night. Brian Leary, a Secret Service spokesman, said that an officer on the south ground “heard and observed” the drone “flying at a very low altitude,” and it crashed landed sometime after 3 a.m. on the southeast side of the property.
The incident caused a call to the police, firefighters and other emergency responders setting up all around the White House, and the facility was under lockdown until 5 a.m. The president was not home during the event because he is currently in India, but it was unsure if his two daughters were.
The man had no intentions of flying the drone over the White House, and has been more than willing to cooperate with investigators. According to the New York Times, the man is a government employee, but does not work for the White House specifically. The device reportedly was no threat, and is like most small quadcopters, and that it is essentially an advanced toy for adults.
While the man had no intentions of trying to cause a security concern, the situation is going to be under review for possible prosecution. “This investigation continues as the Secret Service conducts corroborative interviews, forensic examinations and reviews all other investigative leads,” exclaims Mainor, who is unsure of what is to come of everything that has happened.
