Armed cops swarm Steve Bannon’s $2.35 million DC home “while he was on the air live” after a prank caller claimed a gunman with a “high-powered rifle” was inside and threatened to “shoot everyone.”
- Heavily armed police officers swarmed around the home on Capitol Hill where former Trump White House adviser Steve Bannon lives
- Police received a false report that a man with a gun was inside and had shot someone
- Roads near the Supreme Court and the Capitol were closed for about an hour, prompting fears from an active gunman
- Police officers originally said they encountered someone who claimed to be armed and was suffering from a mental health crisis
- The call was an attempt at “swatting,” where someone makes a false report to get police to show up at a specific address
- The call was not from Bannon’s home, but the caller called police to his address
Armed police officers stormed Steve Bannon’s home on Friday after a hoax caller claimed a gunman was at large who had shot someone inside.
Following the alleged “swatting” incident this morning, officers were seen running to the Washington DC home and blocking the street.
The former White House chief strategist was reportedly on the air live when cops stumbled upon the property, but it is not believed he was home.
He was later seen walking up the steps to the $2.35 million townhouse with police, telling reporters they had been “awesome.”
Steve Bannon is seen entering his home after a prank call suggesting a gunman was at large who had shot someone inside. “The police were great,” he said
There was a heavy police presence in the streets near Bannon’s home
Heavily armed police officers swarmed around the home on Capitol Hill where former Trump White House adviser Steve Bannon lives after a gunman reportedly shot and killed someone
HEAVY police presence concentrated on the A St NE block between 2nd and 3rd streets. MPD says they are “responding to a report from a person with a mental health crisis. He threatened to shoot someone. No victim was found.”
Officer told me man allegedly had ‘a gun’ pic.twitter.com/gQt5N86eAb
— Frank Thorp V (@frankthorp) July 8, 2022
Officers had chased a man with a “high-powered rifle” who threatened to “shoot everyone” as they approached the building.
It was reported to stem from a tip-off about an alleged “swatting” attempt – when a person made a prank call to police.
The road, which is near the Supreme Court building and the Capitol, was closed for about an hour.
Bannon, 68, was later seen walking up the stairs to his three-story home, where he has lived for five years, and said the “police are amazing”.
“The police have been great,” says Steve Bannon after a massive police presence cleared his street. @DCPoliceDept I just gave a briefing saying there was a false 911 call, there was shooting on this block. MPD did not name Bannon’s home as a target. pic.twitter.com/VhBvGcrMi1
— Liz Brown-Kaiser (@lizbrownkaiser) July 8, 2022
A police spokesman said: “Around 12:30 p.m., police reopened the streets after determining there was no gunfire, no gun, no threat and no casualty.”
It came as an attorney for Bannon is trying to withdraw from representing former President Donald Trump’s adviser in his criminal contempt case, citing the possibility of being called as a witness in court, a court document showed on Friday.
Bannon was indicted last year on two counts of contempt of Congress for defying a subpoena from a House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021 attack by Trump supporters on the US Capitol.
Bannon has refused to provide testimony or documents, citing Trump’s claim — which other courts have dismissed — that the material was protected by a legal doctrine called executive privilege.
Bannon, President Donald Trump’s former chief strategist, is currently facing charges for ignoring a subpoena from the congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. He is pictured here last month
Bannon, who has pleaded not guilty, has so far failed to dismiss or delay his July 18 trial. US District Judge Carl Nichols has scheduled a hearing in the case for Monday.
The judge in April blocked Bannon’s attempt to tell the jury that he had relied on attorneys’ advice when defying the Congressional subpoena, an argument known as the “advice” defense.
His attorney, Robert Costello, said in Friday’s court filing that he was “Bannon’s sole source of information as to the facts and law in this matter” and that while he could act as his attorney before the trial, it was less clear that he would assist Bannon once it began of the procedure could represent.
“As it appears that there will be a trial, and as I may be called as a witness at this time, I must reluctantly ask the court to grant my motion,” with a request to retire as trial counsel, Robert Costello wrote a filing in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.
Bannon, a prominent figure in right-wing media circles, was an architect of Trump’s 2016 presidential victory and served as White House chief strategist in 2017.
He was also accused in 2020 of conspiring to defraud donors as part of a private fundraiser that promised to build Trump’s wall on the US-Mexico border. His case was dropped after Trump pardoned him in his last hours in office in January 2021.