Air Force Guards Fired Shots at Intruder Who Drove Car Through Gate at Texas Base

FacebookXPinterestEmailEmailEmailShare
An Air Force entry controller stands ready at an Air Force base main gate
An Air Force entry controller stands ready at an Air Force base main gate on March 30, 2020. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Taylor Crul)

Air Force security personnel fired several shots in self-defense on Saturday afternoon when a driver breached the main entry point to Joint Base San Antonio-Camp Bullis in Texas, according to the base.

The driver, who had not yet been identified on Tuesday, drove toward the guards "at a high rate of speed in the wrong direction of traffic," said Robert Strain, a Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston spokesman.

The driver broke through the access control point and was on the installation for several minutes before turning around and speeding through the gate to exit.

Read Next: Army Air Defense Units from 3 Bases Are Deploying to Middle East After 13 Drone Attacks

The suspect did not reach any training areas located at the base, according to officials, and no injuries to Air Force personnel or property were reported.

The driver was arrested later that evening by the San Antonio Police Department, about nine miles from Camp Bullis, after involvement in a separate incident.

No injuries to the suspect were reported.

The San Antonio Police Department could not be reached for comment on the suspect's arrest.

Camp Bullis covers more than 27,000 acres in Bexar County, Texas, and functions primarily as a training area for Army, Air Force and Marine Corps ground combat units. The facility also serves as a field medical training site for units stationed at the nearby Brooke Army Medical Center.

Joint Base San Antonio provides support to three partner locations, including JBSA-Fort Sam Houston, JBSA-Randolph and JBSA-Lackland, which is home to the Air Force's basic training program.

The base briefly closed another gate -- and placed several buildings on lockdown -- Tuesday morning after gunshots were heard coming from a nearby wooded area.

Local police responded to the reports to investigate the off-base incident, according to a base press release. There were no reports of injuries or damage to government property, according to the press release. The entry point and buildings reopened hours later.

Earlier this year, a driver attempted to gain unauthorized access to Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton in California by ramming a vehicle into a barrier wall, Task and Purpose reported. Months later, during a separate incident at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, a base resident fired his weapon at a trespassing intruder, prompting another investigation.

Related: Intruder Breaches Base of Air Force One, Shot Fired

Story Continues