A man is facing criminal charges after colliding with a vehicle that was part of President Joe Biden’s motorcade.
The collision — seemingly an accident — was caught on camera Sunday.
Biden — who was visiting his 2024 campaign headquarters — was hurried into a waiting car as he left the building.
The 81-year-old Delaware native turned to look at the crash before being moved along.
BREAKING: James Cooper, a 46-year-old man, was charged with DUI after crashing his car into President Joe Biden’s motorcade in Wilmington, Delaware, as Biden was leaving dinner last night. But it was determined to be an accidental collision, and Cooper has been released from… pic.twitter.com/KRiCIpqgd7
— Simon Ateba (@simonateba) December 18, 2023
The vehicle that was struck was not the one being used to transport the president.
The driver in question isn’t being named in a statement provided to CNN by the Wilmington Police Department.
The department confirmed that he is being charged with an alcohol-related driving offense and Inattentive Driving.
“Following our investigation, Wilmington Police have determined that this was an accidental collision, and have charged the driver of the striking vehicle — a 46-year-old Wilmington man — with Driving a Vehicle Under the Influence of Alcohol and Inattentive Driving,” Wilmington Police Department Communications Director David Karas said of the incident.
A man named James Cooper was later identified as the suspect allegedly responsible, with authorities claiming he initially tried to keep driving after the crash.
NEW: The man who crashed his car into President Joe Biden’s motorcade in Wilmington, Delaware has been identified as 46 year old James Cooper.
Cooper smashed his car into one of the SUV’s in Biden’s motorcade while Biden was walking out of a dinner.
Cooper was was charged with… pic.twitter.com/3bfgrLlizR
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) December 18, 2023
A Secret Service agent described the event as not being a cause for concern.
“Today, at approximately 8:09 p.m., a Secret Service vehicle securing the President’s motorcade route was struck by another vehicle in Wilmington, DE,” Secret Service spokesman Steve Kopek told CNN.
Kopek described the incident as an accident.
“There was no protective interest associated with this event and the President’s motorcade departed without incident.”
The trip to Biden’s Wilmington campaign headquarters is far from his first since becoming president.
Biden was on pace to break the historical record for presidential vacation time as of June 2022.
