By Brody Levesque | WASHINGTON -- A gunman walked into the lobby of the Family Research Council today and opened fire. Metropolitan Police Department spokesperson Officer Araz Alali confirmed to LGBTQNation that one security guard, an adult male, was shot in the arm and was conscious and breathing after the shooting. He was transported to a local hospital.
The shooting took place in the headquarters offices of the Family Research Council, which is located at 801 G Street, about a block west of the Verizon Center.
Officer Araz Alali also acknowledged that an unidentified suspect is in custody.
In a statement posted to their website, FRC President Tony Perkins said:
"The police are investigating this incident," Perkins said in a statement. "Our first concern is with our colleague who was shot today. Our concern is for him and his family."
LGBTQNation has learned that the FBI has now joined in the investigation and that for now, the law enforcement officials have closed the 800 block of G Street NW in both directions while the investigation continues.
UPDATED At 1545 EST: WASHINGTON — A gunman posing as an intern opened fire at the headquarters of the Family Research Council in Washington, D.C. The gunman entered the lobby of the organization's Chinatown headquarters at 801 G Street NW at around 10:45 a.m. Wednesday. He approached the front desk and said he was an intern before pulling a Sig Sauer 9 mm handgun from a backpack. He then expressed disagreement with the conservative group's policy positions as he produced the weapon according to a unnamed source within the FBI.
The guard confronted him, and they had an altercation before the shooter fired, striking the guard in the arm. Despite his injury, he gained control of the weapon and held it on the suspect.
Authorities found two loaded magazines with 15 rounds each in the suspect's backpack, as well as Chik-Fil-A promotional materials.
Metropolitan Police Department spokesperson Officer Araz Alali confirmed to LGBTQ Nation that one security guard, an adult male, was shot in the arm and was conscious and breathing after the shooting. He was transported to a local hospital.
Law enforcement sources said that the gunman was tackled to the floor of the lobby by the wounded security guard and others present.
“The security guard here is a hero, as far as I’m concerned,” D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier said. ”He did his job. The person never made it past the front. The security guard here is a hero, as far as I’m concerned.”
James McJunkin, the head of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, said that authorities do not yet know the gunman's motive. For now, law enforcement officials were treating the attack as a case of domestic terrorism.
“We don’t know enough about him or his circumstances to determine what his connection is to this group [the research council] or his mental state, or what he was doing or thinking of doing,” McJunkin said. “So we’re going to try to sort this all out, pull the evidence together, do all the interviews we can.”
The guard, who was not identified, was shot in the arm and was conscious after the shooting and was in stable condition. The gunman, who also was not identified, was being questioned by the FBI. Law Enforcement sources told LGBTQNation that he is in his late twenties.
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