Man killed himself after ramming US Capitol barricade

Washington, Aug 15

A man drove his car into a vehicle barricade on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. and fired gunshots before killing himself.

The incident occurred at East Capitol Street and Second Street just after 4:00 a.m. on Sunday, Xinhua news agency reported, citing a press release from the Capitol Police.

The car "became engulfed in flames" while the man was getting out of it. Then he "fired several shots into the air" along East Capitol Street.

"When our officers heard the sound of gunfire, they immediately responded and were approaching the man when he shot himself," the release read.

Nobody else was hurt. It does not appear the man was targeting any members of Congress -- who are on recess -- and it does not appear officers fired their weapons, police said.

Investigators are looking into the man's background, while D.C.'s Metropolitan Police Department is handling the death investigation.