ABC News

A 21-year-old man accused of firing shots at the White House last week has been charged with trying to assassinate US president Barack Obama, even though the president was out of town at the time.

Oscar Ortega-Hernandez of Idaho appeared in a Pittsburgh court after his arrest on Wednesday (local time) at a hotel near Indiana, Pennsylvania, according to the US Secret Service.

No-one was hurt in the shooting on Friday night. Mr Obama and wife, Michelle, were not in Washington at the time.

The Secret Service said one bullet broke a White House window but was stopped by protective ballistic glass and the other round struck the exterior of the building.

Two cars were seen racing from the scene. One vehicle was found abandoned nearby with a semi-automatic rifle on board, authorities said.

Ortega-Hernandez was charged with attempted assassination of the president, assistant US attorney James Kitchen said at the court hearing.

If convicted, Ortega-Hernandez faces up to life in prison. A magistrate judge in Pittsburgh ordered him detailed pending transfer to Washington.

Late on Friday evening authorities responded to reports of gunfire south of the White House complex and witnesses reported a dark coloured sedan speeding by.

Authorities found in the abandoned car a semi-automatic assault rifle with a large scope, as well as three loaded magazines of ammunition and nine spent shell casings, according to court papers.

FBI investigators who scoured the White House grounds on Wednesday found several bullet impacts on the south side of the executive mansion on the second story or above. The president's family quarters are on those upper floors.

An FBI affidavit said a witness interviewed in Idaho who "knows Ortega-Hernandez well" said he had become increasingly agitated against the government.

The witness told authorities Ortega-Hernandez "wanted to hurt President Obama and referred to him as 'the anti-Christ,'" according to the affidavit.

Another witness interviewed in Idaho told authorities Ortega-Hernandez "was very specific that President Obama was the problem with the government" and that he was "the devil," according to the court papers.

Featured Video

• VideoLocal residents react to news of a fatal fire at a nursing home at Quakers Hill in western Sydney.

  Source: ABC News | Duration: 49sec

• VideoFire and Rescue NSW Commissioner Greg Mullins describes the scene at a fatal nursing home fire in western Sydney.

  Source: ABC News | Duration: 1min 5sec

• VideoSurvivors and their loved ones remember the day the USS Peary was attacked in Darwin.

  Source: ABC News | Duration: 3min 48sec

• VideoBarack Obama has praised Australian troops for their role in the US alliance.