After crawling under the barrier, a youngster is said to have been the first successful burglar across the new White House fence, which was completed in 2022.
The toddler caused a commotion when it pushed under the metal gate outside the White House in Washington, DC on Tuesday morning, April 18, forcing officials from the US Secret Service Uniformed Division to walk across the executive mansion’s North Lawn to capture the child.
Access to the complex’s public areas was temporarily blocked while officers sought to restore the toddler to his parents on Pennsylvania Avenue.
Officers “encountered a curious young visitor along the White House north fence line who briefly entered White House grounds,” according to Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi.
“The White House security systems instantly triggered Secret Service officers, and the toddler and parents were quickly reunited,” he stated in a statement.
In 2022, the National Park Service will replace the two-metre-tall (6.6-foot) fence in front of the White House with a roughly four-metre (13-foot) fence.
“The new fence incorporates anti-climb and intrusion detection technology and is designed to mitigate current and future security threats,” according to the National Park Service.
The new fence is taller, but it includes an extra inch of room between pickets, for a total of 14cm (5.5 inches) between posts – just enough for a pint-sized baby to slip through.
