A man "smell[ing] like fuel" and carrying a flare gun was just arrested at the U.S. Capitol on Election Day. He reportedly had a manifesto he intended to deliver to Congress; his name was not publicly released.
U.S. Capitol Police announced Tuesday afternoon that its officers made the arrest during routine screening at the southern entrance of the underground Capitol Visitor Center (CVC), which sits beneath the U.S. Capitol complex and near the Supreme Court building.
Our officers just arrested a man who was stopped during our screening process at the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC). The man smelled like fuel, had a torch & a flare gun.
— The U.S. Capitol Police (@CapitolPolice) November 5, 2024
The CVC is closed for tours for the day, while we investigate. We will provide more information when we can. pic.twitter.com/J5geNud1h2
During a press conference addressing the incident, USPC Chief J. Thomas Manger said the "white male" suspect was stopped while being screened at around 12:20 p.m.
He was wearing heavy clothing, walking slowly, and frequently looking around, raising suspicions.
An officer subsequently confronted the suspect and directed him to load his possessions onto a conveyor belt.
He hesitated briefly then complied. Security staff noticed "something in the shape of a firearm" and "a faint odor of gasoline," which strengthened upon closer inspection of the man's backpack.
The subject was detained and placed under arrest at this point. On him, cops found fire-starting items, including a torch lighter in his jacket and two bottles of "accelerant," one of which leaked onto his bookbag and clothing.
"He had papers with him," Manger said, "that he said his intent was to deliver them to Congress. We're still going through all of those papers. It's quite a bit."
Sources told Fox News Digital the man's 25-page manifesto was what he wanted to apparently hand-deliver.
Investigators tracked the suspect's "previous movements" and located his vehicle at the corner of 9th and Maryland Avenue on Capitol Hill, USCP said.
The visitor center is closed for the rest of the day as authorities investigate the incident. Officials said visitors "further" inside the building at the time were not in direct danger.
It's not immediately clear if the suspect planned to light himself on fire in an act of self-immolation or torch something — or someone — else. "It's hard to tell," Manger said, noting he had other flammable items in his possession that he may have wanted to set ablaze. "It's really unknown at this point what his intention was."
"There's no indication right now that it had anything to do with the election," the police chief stressed.
The investigation is ongoing. Authorities are now investigating the suspect's social media posts and figuring out where he came from. Officials believe he originated from outside the D.C. area and likely traveled out of state to carry out his apparent plans.
Described as being in his late 20s, the man drove "all night" from Michigan, appears to have acted alone, and was not on the USPC's radar at the time, Fox News reports. Fox's sources confirm that the suspect's clothes reeked of fuel and were wet.
"There are some details that we have to hold back as investigators do their work," USPC communications director Tim Barber prefaced today's news conference.