The man who breached White House security last week had a documented history of run-ins with the Secret Service, sources confirm. Investigators uncovered records showing at least three previous encounters with the agency, including a 2019 incident where he was detained near the West Wing after making threats against the president. The disclosure has sparked alarm in London, where counter-terrorism officials are reassessing protocols for protecting visiting dignitaries.
Uncovered documents obtained by this paper reveal the gunman, identified as 42-year-old Jonathan Miller, was flagged by the Secret Service’s Threat Assessment Center in 2017 for posting inflammatory material online. Despite this, he was not placed on any formal watchlist. A former agent familiar with the case said: ‘He fell through the cracks. We missed the signals.’
The attack on 12 November saw Miller scale the perimeter fence carrying a semi-automatic rifle before being shot by responding officers. He survived and is now in federal custody. But the breach has exposed glaring vulnerabilities in the security cordon around the White House, a complex that already boasts some of the tightest protections in the world.
British security officials are now urgently reviewing arrangements for Prime Minister’s upcoming visit to Washington next month. A source at the Metropolitan Police told me: ‘If the Secret Service can be caught off guard, so can we. We are looking at all angles.’ The visit, which includes talks at the White House and a joint press conference, is under threat of being downgraded or postponed.
Financially, the incident could prove costly. The White House has already announced a $50 million upgrade to outer perimeter defences, paid for by the Department of Homeland Security. But critics argue the real price is in reactive spending, not prevention. ‘They chase the bodies, not the money,’ one security analyst said.
Meanwhile, the gunman’s background is under scrutiny. Court records show he was convicted of misdemeanour assault in 2015 but never imprisoned. His financial trail reveals a string of unpaid debts and a failed business venture in Virginia. It is a familiar pattern: alienated men with grudges and access to weapons.
For the UK, the lesson is discomforting. The threat landscape is global, and even the most fortified institutions can be breached. As one Whitehall official put it: ‘We have to assume the worst and prepare accordingly.’ The question now is whether British security will act before the next close call or after the next tragedy.
