OSCAR RAMIRO Ortega-Hernandez, a 21-year-old Hispanic man from Idaho who was arrested on Wednesday, will be charged with attempted assassination in connection with two bullets fired at the White House on November 11th, federal prosecutor Jimmy Kitchen announced yesterday.
If convicted, he could be sentenced to life in prison.
The suspect appeared in a brief court hearing in Pittsburgh yesterday, clad in a white jumpsuit. Handcuffs were removed for the hearing, but his ankles remained chained. “Yes, ma’am,” were the only words spoken by Mr Ortega-Hernandez when the magistrate asked if he understood what the court-appointed public defender said on his behalf.
US media reports say Mr Ortega-Hernandez was obsessed with President Barack Obama, who was in San Diego, California, when the shooting occurred.
Someone fired two shots from an assault rifle from Constitution Avenue, 700 to 800 yards from the White House, around 9pm on November 11th.
The bullets were found four days later. One had struck a window on the upper floor living quarters of the Obama family, but was deflected by bullet-proof glass. The other was found on the ground outside the White House.