Police said the visitor’s center was temporarily closed for tours while they investigated the incident.
WASHINGTON — U.S. Capitol Police said they arrested a man with a torch lighter and a flare gun who attempted to enter the Capitol Visitor Center on Tuesday.
According to USCP Chief Thomas Manger, the man, identified only as a white male, entered the visitor’s center and looked around for a moment before being told by officers to put his coat and backpack through security.
“He stood there for a few seconds and then put his stuff on the conveyor belt. As soon as his coat and backpack went through the screening area, U.S. Capitol Police officers saw something that appeared to be a firearm as well as two bottles,” Manger said. “As they were standing there, one of the officers noticed a faint odor of gasoline. When they pulled the backpack off the conveyor belt they noticed a much stronger odor of gasoline. At that point the suspect was detained. He was placed under arrest. We found a flare gun and a torch lighter in his jacket. There were also other articles in his backpack. He is now in custody. Again, a very active investigation.”
Manger said the man told officers he had papers with him he wanted to deliver to Congress. The chief also said while some of the man’s clothing smelled like gasoline, it did not appear he had doused himself.
Manger said the department was still working to determine where the man came from and what his intentions were in entering the Capitol.
“There’s no indication right now that it had anything to do with the election,” Manger said.
USCP posted notice of the arrest to their official account on the social media site X, formerly Twitter, just after 1:30 p.m. Tuesday. Neither the U.S. House of Representatives nor the U.S. Senate had votes scheduled Tuesday, although the House was expected to meet for a brief pro forma session at 5 p.m.. The visitor’s center, which serves as the starting point for tours of the Capitol, is open nearly every day of the year regardless of whether Congress is in session.
USCP investigators said they tracked the man’s movements prior to coming to the Capitol and located his vehicle near the intersection of 9th Street and Maryland Avenue NE. Police said shortly before 3 p.m. the vehicle had been cleared.
Tours of the visitor’s center were being temporarily halted while police investigated the incident.
Enhanced security precautions were in place District-wide Tuesday as the nation went to the polls to vote in the hotly contested 2024 General Election. Temporary fencing was put in place around the White House, the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in the Capitol complex and the Naval Observatory, which serves as the residence of the vice president.
Several business along 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW near the White House chose to preemptively board up their windows out of concern for civil unrest. D.C. Police Chief Pamela Smith said she intended to have her officers working 12-hour shifts as needed until Inauguration Day.
This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
