The driver of a car that crashed through the Chinese consulate in San Francisco and into the lobby of the building’s visa office on Monday was fatally shot by the law enforcers, according to the municipal police.
According to the police, the identity of the driver and the cause of the collision were yet unknown and nobody else who might have been hurt in the incident was mentioned.
“I don’t know how many people were inside the visa office at the time of the collision,” San Francisco Police Department spokesperson Sergeant Kathryn Winters told reporters at a news briefing hours later.
“When officers arrived here on scene, they found the vehicle had come to rest inside the lobby of the Chinese Consulate. Officers entered, made contact with the suspect and an officer-involved shooting occurred,” Winters said.
“The suspect was later pronounced deceased at the hospital. This is an open and active investigation.”
Police were coordinating with investigators from the US State Department, she said, adding: “There’s very little information that we can give at this time.”
Meanwhile, the Chinese diplomatic post in San Francisco issued a statement saying an “unidentified person drove violently into the document hall of the consulate, posing a serious threat to the safety of the staff and people at the scene, and causing serious damage to the facilities and property of the consulate.”
The consulate went on to say that it “strongly condemns this violent attack and reserves the right to pursue responsibility for the incident.”
According to BBC, San Francisco will host the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation next month with Chinese President Xi Jinping expected to attend.
Additionally, China’s foreign ministry took notice of the incident and urged the US to carry out an investigation promptly and take effective measures, Reuters reported.
The consulate said it would temporarily close its consular certificate hall from October 10, in a statement released on its WeChat account. The consulate said it would inform the public when services will resume.
— With additional input from Reuters
