Staffer for Rep. Brad Finstad attacked at gunpoint after Congressional Baseball Game

A staffer for Rep. Brad Finstad was attacked at gunpoint near Nationals Park in Washington, DC hours after Wednesday’s Congressional Baseball Game, the Republican congressman revealed.

The staffer suffered minor injuries during the frightening ordeal, which Finstad (R-Minn.) blamed on DC’s “soft-on-crime policies.”

“Following Wednesday’s Congressional Baseball Game for Charity, one of my staffers was attacked outside of his residence by an armed gunman,” Finstad said in a statement on Friday.

“Thankfully, he will be able to make a full recovery and the extent of his physical injuries was minor. I thank the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department for their quick response and their attention to this incident.” 

According to a public incident report obtained by The Hill, the staffer was walking home around 3 a.m. when “two males wearing black hoodies pushed him to the ground and pointed a black hand gun at him.”

The staffer, in his late 20s, was able to get away from the assailants without “giving them any of his belongings,” the report states.

“At this time, there is no indication that the Staffer was targeted, however the case is under investigation by MPD,” a Capitol Police spokesperson told the outlet.

No arrests have been announced related to the attack. 

“In Washington, D.C. and cities across the country, anti-police, soft-on-crime policies have created lawless societies that endanger the public and empower criminal behavior,” Finstad said in his Friday statement.

“It’s time we started treating criminals like criminals and bring back commonsense policies that imprison career criminals, keep the public safe, and allow our police officers to adequately protect our communities and keep violent criminals off the streets,” the congressman added. 

In March, a staffer for Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) suffered life threatening injuries after being stabbed in broad daylight on the same street where Rep. Angie Craig (D-Minn.) was attacked by a crazed suspect with a long rap sheet inside her apartment building’s lobby elevator in February. 

The alleged attackers were arrested after both incidents. 

Violent crime is up 21% in the district in 2023 compared to this time last year, crime data shows, and total crime is up 28%.