Baltimore County track teammates shocked after man was killed in gunfight with Secret Service
Nasire Best, the 21-year-old gunman who was shot and killed after allegedly shooting at the U.S. Secret Service outside of the White House on Saturday, was a Maryland resident who had a previous run-in with federal officers.
Best lived in Dundalk, in Baltimore County, and may have had mental health issues, according to law enforcement sources and court documents. He graduated from Dundalk High School in 2023 and was a member of the track and field team.
Best was living in an apartment in Dundalk before his landlord evicted him in December 2025 for nonpayment of rent, according to our media partner, The Baltimore Banner.
CBS News Baltimore reached out to Baltimore County Public Schools for a comment.
Friends said, "Something had to be wrong"
Nasire Best's friends and former Dundalk High School track teammates said they are struggling to understand the events that led to the 21-year-old's alleged actions after noticing changes in his behavior in recent months.
The friends, who spoke with CBS News Baltimore by phone Sunday night but declined to appear on camera, described Best as someone who had become increasingly distant.
"He was not thinking. Something had to be wrong when he stopped talking to us," one friend said.
The friends said they had seen online rumors claiming Best was headed to the White House to target President Trump, but they questioned those claims, saying Best had previously expressed support for the president.
"People keep trying to say he was trying to do something to Trump, but honestly, I never heard him say anything bad about Trump," another friend said. "He actually supported Trump."
Friends described the situation as shocking and said they were unaware of the extent of the struggles Best may have been facing.
The friends said Best cared deeply about his family but acknowledged they had lost contact with him as his behavior changed.
They are now left grieving the loss of their friend while trying to wrap their heads around the allegations surrounding the case.
A resident in Best's old neighborhood in Dundalk told CBS News Baltimore that he remembers when Best lived there.
"Very shocking. You never know what people are going through," neighbor Derek Daniel said. "He didn't show any body language that he would be harmful. He was mostly in and out."
Shooting near the White House
Law enforcement said a gunman used a revolver to open fire on a U.S. Secret Service checkpoint on Saturday evening.
Officials said Secret Service officers returned gunfire, striking Best, outside of the White House at 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW, near the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. Best was pronounced dead at the hospital.
Law enforcement said 15 to 30 gunshots were fired, which prompted a lockdown at the White House.
The Secret Service said that President Trump was at the White House when the shooting occurred.
A bystander was also shot and is in serious but stable condition.
The gunman had a prior run-in with the Secret Service
In July, 2025, Best was arrested for trying to gain entry to the White House, and was ordered to stay away, according to court records.
Best neglected officers' commands and claimed to be Jesus Christ and said he wanted to be arrested. Court documents said Best walked around the White House complex asking how to gain access at several entry posts.
On June 26, 2025, two weeks before Best's arrest, he was sent for a mental evaluation by the Secret Service after he obstructed vehicle entry to the White House complex, court records revealed.
He was then arrested by Secret Service agents before a pretrial stay-away order was imposed by a judge.
