White House Fence Jumper 'Wanted to Die'

Conn. man slammed US government in Facebook post
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 28, 2015 9:27 AM CST
White House Fence Jumper 'Wanted to Die'
In this photo provided by Vanessa Pena, a man jumps a fence at the White House on Thursday, Nov. 26, 2015, in Washington.    (Vanessa Pena via AP)

The man who jumped the White House fence while the Obama family was celebrating Thanksgiving may have been planning suicide by Secret Service. Joseph Caputo, 23, of Stamford, Conn., left a suicide note that said he wanted to die on Thursday, and also left an audio message with his mother to warn her that she might not see him again, according to court documents seen by NBC. "Death is a natural part of life. Rejoice for those around us who transform in the Force," wrote Caputo, who was ordered to undergo an emergency psychiatric evaluation at a hearing on Friday. In social media postings, Caputo was highly critical of world leaders and US foreign policy, the New York Daily News reports.

"Let it be known to the world, the United States government does NOT represent the will of the American people," Caputo wrote in a Facebook post on Thursday morning. Authorities say later that day, he climbed the White House fence wearing an American flag as a cape and carrying a pocket guide to the Constitution, weightlifting gloves, and a flash drive shaped like Captain America's shield, the Post reports. Caputo has Asperger's syndrome, according to a 2011 Naugatuck Patch profile unearthed by the Daily News. "I always viewed it as something that would hold me back, if people knew," Caputo told the paper. "I don't like to be held back, I like to push forward." (He wasn't stopped by the "pencil point" spikes that have been added to the White House fence.)

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