According to reports by The New York Times and the Associated Press, an unmanned aircraft was discovered on the grounds of the White House late Sunday night. The Secret Service is continuing to investigate the incident. President Obama and his family were not in the White House last night; they are in India on a three-day visit.
[Update, 3:20 PM EST:] A photo of the drone, a DJI Phantom quadrocopter, has been published by the Secret Service. In an accompanying statement, a Secret Service spokesperson said that the quadrocopter was spotted flying at low altitude over the White House grounds at 3:08 AM EST, "There was an immediate alert and lockdown of the complex until the device was examined and cleared. An investigation is underway to determine the origin of this commercially available device, motive, and to identify suspects.”
Though there is no current indication that the drone was a threat, most of the area around the White House is a restricted zone for all types of flying objects. Recreational drones are banned from the area; even kite-flying is banned on [portions of] the Mall and other areas near the White House and the US Capitol. The incident comes as the Secret Service is in the midst of a shake-up over lax presidential security.
While other incidents with remote-controlled aircraft have been pranks or political statements—such as the 2013 harassment of German chancellor Angela Merkel with a Parrot AR quadrocopter by a member of Germany's Pirate Party—there have also been more serious threats. In 2010, the FBI foiled a plot to fly an explosives-packed radio-controlled jet-powered model aircraft into the Capitol building.
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