Crime Stories with Nancy Grace - White House Shooter Taken Down by Secret Service | Crime Alert 05.27.26

Episode Date: May 27, 2026

A 21-year-old man who opened fire at a White House security checkpoint shot down, bystander hurt. Arrest made in beer-keg vandalism of popular D.C. cupcake shop. Sydney Silvagni reports. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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An initiative of consortium national of formation in health, supported by Santee Canada. Crime Alert, hourly update. Breaking Crime News now. I'm Sydney Salvani. A deadly escalation of violence unfolded just outside the White House this past weekend,

marking a terrifying trend of security breaches targeting the nation's capital. On Saturday evening, shortly after 6 p.m., gunfire erupted near a security checkpoint in the area of 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest. According to an official preliminary statement released by the U.S. Secret Service on X, an individual approached the security post, pulled a weapon directly out of his bag, and opened fire on posted officers.

Secret service agents reacted instantly, returning fire and striking the suspect. The gunman was transported to a local area hospital where he was later pronounced dead. During the chaotic exchange, a bystander was also struck. by gunfire. According to law enforcement officials speaking anonymously, it remains unclear whether that innocent bystander was hit by the suspect's initial rounds or caught in the crossfire during the subsequent exchange of bullets. Fortunately, no secret service personnel sustained injuries. President Trump was inside the White House at the time of the shooting, but officials confirm he was not impacted by the incident. The suspect has been officially identified as 21-year-old

Nizir Best. This was far from Best. first interaction with White House security. District of Columbia court records reveal a deeply disturbing history of mental instability and unauthorized incursions. In June 2025, Best was involuntarily committed after obstructing vehicle entry to the White House complex. Just a month later, in July, he was arrested after attempting to breach a different White House checkpoint. During that encounter, he ignored direct commands from officers to stop, claimed he was Jesus Christ and explicitly stated that he wanted to be arrested. Court filings detailed that Best had been walking around the complex, actively probing various entry posts to find a way inside. Following that July arrest,

law enforcement requested a stayaway order. While a pretrial stayaway order was initially granted, a bench warrant was issued for Best in August after a notice of noncompliance when he failed to appear for a scheduled court hearing. The scene outside the White House on Saturday night looked like a war zone. Journalists working inside the complex reported hearing a rapid succession of gunshots and were immediately ordered to seek shelter inside the press briefing room. In a social media post, FBI director Cash Patel confirmed that federal officers were actively responding to the active shooter situation. On the sidewalk just outside the complex, yellow crime scene tape cordoned off the area, while secret service investigators placed dozens of orange evidence markers across the pavement

alongside discarded medical supplies, including purple surgical gloves and emergency trauma kits. This fatal encounter marks the third time in just one month that gunfire has erupted in close proximity to the president. It follows an April 25th attempted assassination of President Trump as he attended the annual White House Correspondents Association dinner at a Washington hotel. In that case, Cole Thomas Allen of Torrance, California, recently pleaded not guilty to attempted murder charges and remains in federal custody. Just days later, on May 4th, Secret Service officers shot another suspect,

45-year-old Michael Marks of Midland, Texas, after he opened fire near the Washington Monument, wounding a teenage bystander. More Crime and Justice News after this. You have the desire to help, to make a real difference? The College, LaCity, you offer the program,

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with the city. Visit Collage, LaC.a.m. This initiative of the Consortium National of Formation in Health, supported by Sante Canada. A bizarre case of felony vandalism against a nationally recognized Washington, D.C. bakery,

has ended in an arrest, thanks to a father doing the right thing. Charles Joseph Ali, a resident of Rockville, Maryland, officially surrendered to authorities at the Metropolitan Police Department's second district station on Thursday. He did so alongside his attorney and his own father, who had shockingly recognized Ali from surveillance footage broadcasted by police. Court documents revealed that Ali is charged with felony destruction of property after he allegedly hurled a heavy metal beer keg straight through the front glass window of Georgetown Cupcake. on Sunday, May 16th, around 1130 p.m. Appearing in court on Friday, Ali entered a plea of not guilty. While the judge ordered his release ahead of trial, a strict stayaway order was implemented,

barring him from going anywhere near the establishment. Ali is also a prime suspect in an April vandalism incident at a separate nearby business, though charges have not yet been filed in that case. Georgetown Cupcake, which skyrocketed to international fame on the reality show DC Cupcakes, is owned by sisters Sophie Lamontaine and Catherine Berman. In a joint statement released to the media, the sisters defiantly stated, Our shop is open, we will keep doing what we have always done.

Plywood was quickly erected over the shattered entrance, allowing the bakery to reopen just hours after the assault. However, the emotional toll on the staff remained severe. Catherine Berman told Fox News Digital that a lone female employee was working inside the shop at 11.30 p.m. when she came face to face with the suspect. The terrified employee fled to the back of the store to hide as the front entrance was completely demolished. Berman noted that the worker remains deeply shaken and psychologically traumatized by the event.

Surveillance footage captured the suspect trying desperately to rip a metal trash can out of the curb before failing, walking around the block and stealing a metal beer keg sitting outside a nearby home to use as a weapon. Berman stated, He's violent, and I think we live in a civil society where there's an expectation for us to respect each other, our property, and clearly he didn't do any of those things. Ali is scheduled to return to the courtroom on June 11th. For the latest crime and justice breaking news, be sure to tune in tomorrow on your favorite podcast app. With this crime alert, I'm Sidney Silvani. This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed human.