Oscar Ramiro Ortega (Photo: U.S. Park Police)
Officers with the United States Park Police are on the hunt for a mentally ill man with a White House obsession who may have taken a shot at the presidential abode Friday. Police have obtained an arrest warrant for a man named Oscar Ramiro Ortega based on evidence found in a car at the scene of the incident, which occurred Friday when someone got out of the car in front of the White House and fired several shots. No one was hurt in the shooting, but on Tuesday, Secret Service agents found a bullet that was stopped by ballistic glass exterior window of the White House.
The Park Police issued a press release about their search for Mr. Ortega that described him as a 21-year-old “White Hispanic male” with brown eyes, black hair and a medium build and multiple tattoos.
“His right hand has a tattoo of three dots, he has a tattoo stating “Ortega” on his upper back, a tattoo on his right chest of rosary beads and hands clasped in prayer, a tattoo of folded hands on left chest, and the words “Israel” tattooed on left side of neck,” the press release said.
According to ABC News, Mr. Ortega a mentally ill man from Idaho with “an extensive record, ranging from domestic violence to drug charges” and “a fixation on the White House.” Park Police are asking anyone with information about Ortega to contact them at (202) 610-7500 or the Criminal Investigations Branch Tip Line at (202) 610-8737.
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