Officer Killed At Pentagon Honored With Police, Military Ceremony

ARLINGTON, VA — Members of the U.S. Department of Defense, the Pentagon Force Protection Agency, and public safety agencies held a ceremony Friday afternoon to honor the memory of a PFPA officer who was fatally wounded in a violent attack earlier in the week at the building's transit center.

Around 10:40 a.m. on Tuesday, a man exiting a bus at the mass transit facility that services the Pentagon attacked Officer George Gonzalez with a knife without provocation, according to the FBI.

The assailant, whom the FBI identified as Austin William Lanz, 27, of Acworth, Georgia, struggled with Gonzalez and then shot himself with Gonzalez's service weapon. Other PFPA officers engaged with Lanz, who died at the scene.

Gonzalez was transported to George Washington University Hospital in Washington, D.C. to be treated for severe injuries. He succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead later that evening.

PFPA observed an End of Watch ceremony Tuesday night for Gonzalez.

During brief ceremony in the Pentagon parking lot on Friday afternoon, members of the Gonzalez/Rubert family placed flowers on the hood of a PFPA cruiser.

Military personnel and police officers remained at attention until the procession carrying Gonzalez's body departed.

@PFPAOfficial, @DeptofDefense and the law enforcement/fire community render honors to fallen Police Officer George Gonzalez. Watch here https://t.co/MDhURTojJO pic.twitter.com/0K8pqLjCFa
— Pentagon Force Protection Agency (Official) (@PFPAOfficial) August 6, 2021