WASHINGTON — U.S. Capitol Police have identified the officer who died after the deadly barrier ramming outside the U.S. Capitol Friday afternoon.
The officer who died has been identified as Officer William F. Evans, an 18-year veteran of the U.S. Capitol Police, according to Acting U.S. Capitol Police Chief Yogananda Pittman.
"It is with a very heavy heart that I announce one of our officers has succumbed to his injuries,” Pittman said in a statement. “This has been a very difficult time for the Capitol Police department. I ask that you keep our U.S. Capitol Police family in your prayers.”
An 18-year veteran of the police force, Evans began his USCP service on March 7, 2003 and was a member of the Capitol Division’s First Responder’s Unit, Pittman said.
According to Pittman, around 1 p.m. a vehicle driven by 25-year-old Noah Green of Indiana, slammed into two officers at a vehicle checkpoint on Constitution Avenue on the Northside of the Capitol complex.
Pittman said the Green “exited the vehicle with a knife in hand” and lunged toward police. At least one of the officers then opened fire, fatally wounding the suspect. Both officers and Green were transported to a hospital, where, according to Pittman, Evans later died. The other officer has not yet been identified by the department.
Shortly after Pittman confirmed the death of the Capitol Police officer, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi ordered flags at the Capitol flown at half-staff in his honor.
Congressional staffers were notified about the incident shortly after 1 p.m. when the Capitol Police alert system issued a warning about an "external threat" to the complex. Staffers were warned to stay away from exterior windows and doors.
By 2 p.m., an immediate reaction force of National Guard soldiers and airmen had been mobilized to secure the Capitol complex, which remained on lockdown. The Guard told WUSA9 no soldiers were injured during the incident at the Capitol.
Law enforcement sources later identified the driver of the vehicle to CBS News as Noah R. Green, 25, of Indiana. Green was said to have recent ties to Virginia.
According to a U.S. official involved in the investigation, everything is "coming back negative" on Greene across all law enforcement databases, and investigators have not yet found any obvious ties to extremist groups.
Congressional staffers were notified about the incident shortly after 1 p.m. when the Capitol Police alert system issued a warning about an "external threat" to the complex. Staffers were warned to stay away from exterior windows and doors.
News of Evans' death comes after the deadly January 6 Capitol riots, where U.S. Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick died of injuries sustained during the riot. Sicknick was given the rare distinction of lying in honor in the Capitol Rotunda back in February.
Howard Liebengood, a 15-year veteran of the Capitol Police force, died by suicide days after responding to the Capitol riot. A spokesperson with the U.S. Capitol Police said Liebengood was assigned to the Senate Division and had been with the department since April 2005.