A man fleeing a robbery jumped a fence at the White House complex Tuesday and was arrested, the Secret Service said, triggering a brief lockdown at the presidential residence.
Secret Service officers arrested the man after he jumped the fence alongside the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, which is part of the White House complex.
Secret Service spokesman Robert Hoback said an initial investigation suggested that the man, who hasn’t been identified, jumped the fence as he fled the scene of a robbery just across the street.
The fire department in Washington said it was called in to help with a rescue after the man complained of a cut on his finger. Doug Buchanan, a spokesman for the fire department, said the man was transported to a hospital under police supervision to treat injuries to his hand.
Secret Service officers stepped up security around 4 p.m., with canine teams and other agents seen gathering on the North Lawn. Reporters working inside the White House were kept inside by automatically locking doors.
The lockdown was lifted after a brief period, and visitors and staffers could be seen walking about the complex. President Barack Obama was at the White House during the incident.
The Secret Service has worked to increase security along the White House fence amid a string of fence-jumping incidents. In 2014, a man who hopped the fence made it deep inside the White House before officers were able to apprehend him.
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