ARLINGTON, Va. — The Defense Department identified George Gonzalez on Wednesday as the police officer killed in Tuesday’s attack at the Pentagon’s Metro bus platform. Officer Gonzalez, 37, was a native of Brooklyn and had been a Pentagon police officer since 2018, according to a statement.
“Officer Gonzalez embodied our values of integrity and service to others,” the statement said. “As we mourn the loss of Officer Gonzalez, our commitment to serve and protect is stronger.”
The F.B.I., which is leading the investigation into the episode, said Wednesday afternoon that a man who had just gotten off a bus at the Pentagon Transit Center attacked Officer Gonzalez with a knife, mortally wounding him.
The F.B.I. identified the attacker as Austin William Lanz of Acworth, Ga. Mr. Lanz, 27, then shot himself with the police officer’s service weapon, the F.B.I. said. Additional police officers “engaged the subject,” the statement said, and Mr. Lanz died at the scene.
A civilian bystander was injured during the attack and later released from a hospital. The F.B.I. said its investigation into the episode was still developing.
Maj. Jim Stenger, a Marine Corps spokesman, said in a statement on Wednesday that Mr. Lanz served briefly in the service, enlisting on Oct. 9, 2012. But, Major Stenger said, he was “administratively separated on Nov. 2, 2012, and never earned the title Marine.”
The attack at the Metro bus platform, just outside one of the Pentagon’s major entrances, happened around 10:37 a.m. and resulted in the building being locked down for more than an hour.
The White House press secretary, Jen Psaki, offered condolences to Officer Gonzalez’s family during a televised briefing Wednesday afternoon.
“His life was one of service,” Ms. Psaki said. “He lost his life protecting those who protect the nation.”
According to a statement from the U.S. Army, Officer Gonzalez served in field artillery on active duty from 2003 to 2005, including an 11-month deployment to Iraq. He remained in the Army Reserve until 2011, and his rank was sergeant at the time he left service, the statement said.
He was awarded the Army Commendation Medal for service in Iraq.
Secretary of the Army Christine E. Wormuth offered condolences on behalf of the service on Wednesday.
Since joining the force, Officer Gonzalez had been promoted twice and held the rank of senior officer at the time of his death, according to the Defense Department.
Officer Gonzalez had also previously served with the Federal Bureau of Prisons and the Transportation Security Administration. He was a graduate of Canarsie High School in New York City.
The Pentagon declined to release information about his surviving family members.
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