WASHINGTON — A Prince George's County man has been arrested on gun charges following a confrontation and shooting on Friday in the area of the United States Secret Service facility in Beltsville, Maryland, according to the Department of Justice in a news release.
Jeremiah Peter Watson, 22, of Hyattsville, was charged by the DOJ as being a felon in possession of a firearm, according to the DOJ.
DOJ officials said that Watson shot at Secret Service officer, facility security and US Park Police with a 9mm handgun after first approaching a security hut at the facility, which reportedly concerned security due to the manner he approached the guard post.
Watson was pepper sprayed prior to getting back in his car firing multiple gunshots at law enforcement who had to take cover back in the security hut, said the DOJ news release.
Police found Watson after federal law enforcement personnel looked up the car's information and when one of the officers working security identified him as the shooter, according to the news release to WUSA9.
"Law enforcement recovered a 9mm handgun loaded with three 9mm rounds in the magazine and a fourth in the chamber from the vehicle. From the trunk jamb law enforcement recovered three 9mm shell casings, allegedly similar to the shell casings recovered from the scene of the shooting," said the DOJ about the Saturday search of Watson's home and car.
The criminal complaint was announced by Acting United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Jonathan F. Lenzner and Acting Chief of Police Gregory T. Monahan of the U.S. Park Police, said the news release.
One USPP officer was left injured in a car crash when attempting to respond to the incident. The officer was transported at the time to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
The shooting comes after a week of big news for the U.S. Park Police, who appointed their first Black Chief of Police, Pamela Smith.
Smith will become the first African American woman to lead the 230-year-old agency. Smith is a 23-year veteran of the USPP, a full-service police force with jurisdiction in all federal parks.
“Chief Smith’s commitment to policing as public service and her willingness to listen and collaborate make her the right person to lead the U.S. Park Police at this pivotal moment in our country,” Shawn Benge, deputy director exercising the delegated authority of the NPS director, said.
Smith starts her new role on Feb. 28.
The U.S. Park Service also announced Park Police will start wearing body cameras, an objective Smith stated she planned to accomplish within her first 90 days. The NPS said it plans to pilot the program in San Francisco and implement it across the country by the end of 2021.
“Body-worn cameras are good for the public and good for our officers, which is why I am prioritizing implementing a body-worn camera program within my first 90 days,” Smith said. “This is one of the many steps we must take to continue to build trust and credibility with the public we have been entrusted to serve.”