A Texas man accused of shooting at a Secret Service agent in Washington, D.C., on Monday and saying “F— the White House” was hit with federal gun charges Wednesday.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) charged Michael Marx, 45, of Midland with assaulting federal officers with a dangerous weapon, using and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence and unlawful firearm possession by a convicted felon over the Monday shooting, the agency announced. Marx’s arrest occurred after Secret Service agents said they encountered him with a handgun on the National Mall near Vice President JD Vance’s motorcade in transit from the White House. A heavy law enforcement presence was seen blocking traffic on Monday, the DCNF reported.
A Secret Service agent saw Marx walking with a visual print of a firearm in his clothing as Vance rode through 15th Street and Independence Avenue SW, the DOJ said. Agents began following him and issuing commands just before he drew the gun in front of bystanders, prompting a gunfight with agents in which he wounded a bystander, according to prosecutors. Agents arrested him after they say he collapsed on the ground from gunshot wounds.
“F— the White House,” Marx allegedly said while in an ambulance, along with, “Kill me, kill me, kill me.”
The DCNF could not identify an attorney for Marx.
Officials identified the suspect through his Texas driver’s license and found “aliases including Patrick Michael and Michael Zavici,” the DOJ said. He allegedly had no license to carry a handgun in Washington.
Marx’s arrest came less than two weeks after California teacher Cole Allen was charged with barging into the annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington with multiple weapons in an assassination attempt on President Donald Trump. The DOJ did not disclose whether it believes Marx also targeted Trump or any officials.
“We will prove this defendant carried an illegal firearm into the heart of Washington, D.C., opened fire at Secret Service officers near a crowded intersection, and shot an innocent bystander who was simply crossing the street with his family,” said U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro. “My office will pursue the most serious charges available against anyone who brings gun violence to our streets, particularly when that violence unfolds steps from the seat of our government and the path of the Vice President of the United States.”
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