Oscar Ramiro Ortega-Hernandez of Idaho Falls has been arrested in connection with the shooting at the White House on November 11, 2011, on the charges of attempted assassination of the President of the United States.
FBI sources revealed that he believed that Obama to be the Anti-Christ, and his intention of shooting at the White House was to hurt him. Arrested at a western Pennsylvania hotel, he described himself to be the second-coming of Jesus and several witnesses heard him say that he needed to kill Obama.
One witness in particular who knew the defendant from Idaho Falls said that Ortega was convinced that there was a government conspiracy against him while another validated the fact that he was in possession of an assault weapon with a scope.
During the shooting, Ortega managed to crack one of the windows of the President’s living quarters and its exterior at the White House during which he shot at least two bullets. However, President Obama was on a trip to the Asia-Pacific region and was not at his residence during the incident.
Following his arrest, Ortega remains in federal custody until a judge in Washington will determine if he should be jailed for his crimes. Already in trouble with the law, Ortega could face a life sentence if convicted of charges as law enforcement personnel are putting the pieces together.
This is the first attempt ever since Francisco Martin Duran shot 29 rounds from an SKS rifle in 1994 with the intention of assassinating President Clinton, and was sentenced to 40 years of jail time.