New Delhi: An Indian-origin man was on Thursday sentenced to eight years in prison for an attempted attack on the White House on May 22, 2023.
District Court Judge Dabney L Friedrich also ordered Sai Varshith Kandula, now 21, to serve three years of supervised release.
Kandula had rammed a rented truck into the security barricades on the north side of the Lafayette Park entrance of the White House, reported PTI.
His goal was to overthrow the American government and replace it with a dictatorship fuelled by Nazi ideology, according to the Department of Justice.
Kandula pleaded guilty on May 13, 2024 to a charge of wilful injury or depredation of US property.
On the afternoon of May 22, 2023, Kandula had flown from St Louis, Missouri to Washington DC, connecting through another airport on a one-way airline ticket, and arrived at Dulles International Airport at about 5.20 pm before renting a truck at 6.30 pm, according to court documents.
Kandula stopped for food and gas, and then drove to Washington DC, crashing into the barriers protecting the White House at 9.35 pm. As Kandula drove onto the sidewalk, pedestrians panicked and ran from the scene fearing for their lives.
After striking the barriers, the truck reversed and then lurched forward, striking the metal barriers a second time. The second impact disabled the truck, which began smoking from the engine compartment and leaking fluids.
After getting out of the vehicle, Kandula took out a flag — foot red-and-white banner with a Nazi Swastika in the centre — and brandished it.
US Park Police and the US Secret Service officers arrested Kandula and took him into custody, the Department of Justice said.
According to the plea agreement, Kandula was trying to gain access to the White House to seize political power.
“Kandula’s intent was to replace the democratically elected government with a dictatorship fuelled by ideology of Nazi Germany and for himself to be put in charge of the United States. Kandula admitted to investigators that he would have arranged for the killing of the US President and others if necessary to achieve his objective. His actions were calculated to influence or affect the conduct of government by intimidation or coercion,” it said.
Kandula, who planned the attack for several weeks, caused damage worth $4,322 to the National Park Service, according to Department of Justice.
