A Missouri man has pleaded guilty to attempting to ram the White House with a rented truck in a brazen attack that shook the nation’s capital. Sai Varshith Kandula, 20, of St. Louis, Missouri, faces up to 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to willful injury or depredation of property of the United States.
According to court documents, Kandula flew from St. Louis to Washington D.C. on May 22, 2023, and rented a U-Haul truck at 6:30 p.m. He stopped for food and gas before crashing into the barriers protecting the White House and President’s Park at 9:35 p.m. The truck backed up in reverse and struck the metal barriers a second time, disabling the vehicle and causing $4,322 in damage to the National Park Service.
Kandula then exited the vehicle and brandished a three-by-five foot red-and-white banner with a Nazi Swastika in the center. U.S. Park Police and the U.S. Secret Service officers arrested Kandula at the scene and took him into custody. At the time of the incident, Kandula was a lawful permanent resident of the U.S. with a green card.
According to the plea agreement, Kandula’s intent was to gain access to the White House to seize political power and replace the democratically elected government with a dictatorship fueled by ideology of Nazi Germany. Kandula admitted to investigators that he would have arranged for the killing of the U.S. President and others if necessary to achieve his objective.
Kandula planned the attack for several weeks, making several attempts to gain access to vehicles or armed security guards. For example, on April 22, 2023, Kandula requested 25 armed guards and an armored convoy from a security company located in Virginia. On May 4, 2023, Kandula attempted to contact several other companies in an attempt to rent a large commercial tractor-trailer truck, a dump truck, or another large truck.
U.S. District Court Judge Dabney L. Friedrich scheduled sentencing for August 23, 2024. Kandula’s actions caused over $50,000 in damage to U-Haul International, including costs for repairing the metal bollard barriers, spill cleanup, and disposal of fluids from the crashed truck.
The incident highlighted concerns about domestic terrorism and the potential for lone-wolf attackers to carry out devastating attacks on high-profile targets. As the nation’s capital remains on high alert, authorities are working to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future.
Related Federal Cases
- St. Louis Man, 20, Pleads Guilty to White House Truck Attack · Washington
- White Pleads Guilty in Brutal Murder of Big Stone Gap Cop · South Carolina
- Pitchfork & Zip Ties: Missouri Man Faces Jan. 6 Felony Charges · Kansas
- Missouri Man Pleads Guilty to Assaulting Law Enforcement on Jan. 6 · Washington
- Missouri Man Pleads Guilty to Assaulting Law Enforcement on Jan. 6 Capitol Breach · Kansas
Key Facts
- State: Washington DC
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Violent Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
🔒 Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →
Browse More
