Secret Service officials fatally shot an intruder Wednesday morning at a mansion in northwest Washington that has long served as the residence of the Peruvian ambassador, officials said.
Robert J. Contee III, the chief of the Metropolitan Police Department, said a man in his 20s or 30s smashed several windows in the back of the residence on the 3000 block of Garrison Street Northwest, adding it’s unclear if he entered that At home. After officers were called to the residence just before 8 a.m., they unsuccessfully fired their stun guns at the man holding a metal pole in the backyard, Chief Contee said.
Two officers then fired their guns, Chief Contee said. The man was pronounced dead at the scene.
“We don’t know why this person smashed multiple windows, we don’t know why this person had a metal stake, we don’t know why this person approached officers with that metal stake, but we’re investigating now,” he told reporters .
The two officers were taken to a hospital for evaluation, Chief Contee said. He didn’t know the extent of her injuries but said they weren’t life-threatening.
The Peruvian ambassador and his wife were at home at the time and were not injured, Chief Contee said.
According to Diplomatic Connections, Peru bought the house in 1944 as an embassy residence. In 2019, WTTG-TV described the 1928 residence as “a massive home situated on DC’s largest private lot” totaling 25 acres. It contained “room after room of Peruvian treasures” with ancient art and sculpture dating back 1,500 years, the Fox affiliate reported.