US Capitol attacker's motive still unclear, investigation underway

The motive of the suspect who rammed the car near the US Capitol killing one officer and injuring another, Noah Green still remains unclear. On April 3 Green rammed a car into a police barricade outside the Capitol building, brandished a knife and lunged at officers. Police then shot the 25-year-old and mortally wounded him. The attack pierced the calm of a spring afternoon on Capitol Hill and caused the second-on-duty death of a US Capitol officer following the January 6 insurrection at the federal building.

However, so far there are few details about who Noah green was but an investigation has been launched to work out the motive and get required arrest warrants. Originally thought to be from Indiana, Green lived in Covington, Virginia. According to his Facebook posts, Green was unemployed and for him, the past few years had been “tough” and the past few months “tougher.”

Who was Noah Green?

As per the Associated Press report, Green described himself as a follower of the Nation of Islam and its founder, Louis Farrakhan. The suspect who died on the scene also spoke about going through a hard patch where he leaned on his faith, according to the latest messages posted online by him but have now been taken down. The messages were tracked by SITE, the group that tracks online activity. 

“To be honest these past few years have been tough, and these past few months have been tougher,” he wrote. “I have been tried with some of the biggest, unimaginable tests in my life. I am currently now unemployed after I left my job partly due to afflictions, but ultimately, in search of a spiritual journey.”

US Capitol was put on lockdown for a time as a precaution but there was no instant connection apparent between the April 3 crash and the January 6 riot. The law enforcement is reportedly still examining Green’s background in order to determine his motive while also obtaining warrants to access his online accounts. 
 
US Capitol Police acting chief, Yogananda Pittman, in the briefing, said that the suspect did not appear to be on the radar of the law enforcement. However, according to her, the unprecedented incident of April 2 highlighted the fact that the officers charged with protecting the US Capitol and the campus still remain potential targets for violence. 

(Image credits: AP)