On Tuesday morning, the Metropolitan Police Department released a statement indicating that the U.S. Capitol Police have assumed responsibility for an investigation into an armed carjacking incident. The event transpired on Monday evening at approximately 9:32 p.m. at the intersection of New Jersey and K Street, Southeast. The individual targeted in this crime has been identified as a member of Congress.
The statement from the Metropolitan Police Department read, “The Metropolitan Police Department responded to a report of an armed carjacking Monday evening at approximately 9:32 p.m. at the intersection of New Jersey and K Street, Southeast. The victim was identified as a member of Congress and the United States Capitol Police took over the investigation. MPD is assisting Capitol Police’s Criminal Investigative Division.”
Further details were provided by the Capitol Police in a separate statement, “DC’s Metropolitan Police Department is investigating an armed carjacking that happened around 9:30 p.m. in DC’s Navy Yard neighborhood. The victim has been identified as a Member of Congress, so the USCP has investigators working with MPD on this case. Injuries were not reported. Detectives are working to track down the suspect.”
House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., was observed at the crime scene with the victim, as Capitol Police were documenting the scene and obtaining a statement from the Congress member.
This incident is particularly concerning as it marks the second occasion this year where a Democratic member of Congress has been subjected to crime in Washington, D.C. Earlier in the year, Minnesota Rep. Angie Craig was assaulted in an elevator within her apartment complex but managed to repel her attacker.
This carjacking event also follows closely on the heels of a public safety forum that took place on Capitol Hill just two weeks prior, aimed at addressing safety concerns for Congress members and their staff in the nearby areas. The year has witnessed multiple congressional staffers becoming crime victims in the district, including an attack on a staff member from U.S. Rep. Brad Finstad’s team after a Congressional baseball game in June, and an assault on a member of Sen. Rand Paul’s staff in broad daylight in March.
