A gunman who tried to storm the FBI offices in Cincinnati, Ohio, was killed on Thursday by law enforcement authorities after several hours of clashes.
The incident at the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in Cincinnati comes as authorities warned of an increase in threats against federal agents in the days following Monday’s searches in Mar-a-Lago for former President Donald Trump, Florida.
The FBI said in a statement that an armed person tried to “break into” the Cincinnati, Ohio offices early Thursday morning.
“The alarm went off, armed FBI agents arrived, and the suspect escaped,” Federal Police said.
Police sources said the man was wearing a bulletproof vest and was chased down a highway, then left his vehicle on adjacent country roads bordered by woods and farmland off Interstate 71, about 45 miles away. (72 km) northeast of Cincinnati.
“As soon as the car stopped, there was an exchange of fire between the police and the suspect,” Federal Police said.
In the evening, a spokesman for the Ohio State Police said the man fled to a cornfield where he was surrounded by police, who unsuccessfully tried to negotiate with him to surrender to authorities.
The 42-year-old died at the scene after aiming his rifle at the officers who opened fire.
FBI Director Christopher Wray announced, Wednesday, that the FBI received threats after a search of Trump’s home, describing them as “unfortunate and dangerous.”
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