Following a security breach at the White House, many are asking, "How could it happen?" INSIDE EDITION has the story.
Heightened security was seen everywhere on Monday at The White House as all tourists were being kept back from the fence.
It follows Friday night's scare when an intruder jumped the White House fence and actually entered the front door.
Now, everyone is asking the same question: “How could this happen?”
Dan Bongino is a former Secret Service officer who says the security breach is unprecedented.
He told INSIDE EDITION, “Frankly, we've never seen anyone make it more than 20 yards or so without being taken down. We've never arrested someone effectively in The White House residence. This is really embarrassing.”
Forty-two-year-old Army veteran Omar Gonzalez jumped the fence and sprinted 100 yards to zig-zag his way to the presidential mansion just 10 minutes after President Obama and his daughters left for Camp David.
One question being asked is: “Where were the hounds?”
Secret Service personnel with trained attack dogs are on constant patrol. The Belgian Malinois breed is prized by law enforcement. At the White House, the dogs are trained to move like a missile and take down any attacker.
Bongino said, “They're trained to knock you on your butt if you jump the fence.”
The dogs are supposed to be released within four seconds of a sensor alarm going off when someone climbs over the fence. That didn't happen.
Bongino said, “That's why I’m so surprised the dog wasn't let go. It wasn't complicated to do. But I’m sure after this, that whole mechanism is going to be changed. You may see active patrols now with the handler and the dog walking the grounds.”
A second question is: “Why sharpshooters didn’t bring him down?”
Bongino said, “There was no evidence of a weapon on him. There was no evidence of a suicide vest. We're not allowed to shoot people for trespassing. We're not.”
Turns out, Gonzalez was carrying a knife.
Gonzalez's former stepson, Jerry Murphy, says the suspect, who served in Iraq, suffers from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Murphy told INSIDE EDITION, "It is guys like him that sacrificed their bodies, their minds, their families, and everything else for this country. I think the United States and the government should stand-up and they should back him up. Not prosecute him."
