According to CBS News, authorities arrested a man outside of Barack Obama's house for trying to blow it up. Moreover, officials believe the suspect participated in the January 6, 2021 attacks on the Capitol, which constituted an insurrection, as he has multiple active warrants for the incident. Furthermore, reports indicate that Secret Service agents spotted the suspect, Taylor Taranto, approaching the former president's home from blocks away. As he tried to flee, he ran towards Obama's residency before agents took him into custody. Once more police forces arrived, they discovered his nearby van and found dangerous materials inside that suggested plans to damage the property.
To elaborate, authorities found multiple weapons inside the vehicle, as well as materials to make explosive devices. Specifically, Taranto allegedly possessed the necessary materials to make a bomb-like device similar to a Molotov cocktail. However, officials failed to find a pre-made or assembled explosive device, as all they got their hands on were the materials in question. Still, Taranto said that he actually had explosives in his possession, but first respondents did not find any in the vehicle or nearby.
Barack Obama's Home Almost Bombed By Suspected January 6 Insurrectionist
What's more is that state officials already had Taranto on their radar thanks to the aforementioned warrants and to more recent activity on social media. For example, he reportedly made multiple threats against Obama during livestreams, although the nature of these was not specified in published reports. In addition, he apparently reposted a post from former president Donald Trump on the platform Truth Social on Thursday (June 29). This post allegedly contained what was believed to be Obama's home address, and while it's unclear how accurate this information was, it apparently led him to the home regardless.
With all that in mind, officials believe that this attack was targeted. Taranto reportedly received charges of being a fugitive of justice, according to the Metropolitan Police Department. Fortunately, other news concerning the former president as of late has been much more positive, and hopefully it returns to that trend. Regardless, stay posted on HNHH for the latest big news and updates on Barack Obama.