Capitol Police Arrest a Man Carrying a Torch Lighter and Smelling of Fuel

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A few hours ago Capitol Police arrested a man who was trying to enter the Capitol Visitors Center. The man smelled like fuel and his clothes were described as wet. He was carrying a torch lighter and a flare gun. The Capitol Visitors Center was shut down while police investigate.

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 CVC is closed for tours for the day, while we investigate. We will provide more information when we can. pic.twitter.com/J5geNud1h2

— The U.S. Capitol Police (@CapitolPolice) November 5, 2024

They were able to locate his car and track his movements.

Our investigators tracked the suspect’s previous movements and located his vehicle at 9th and Maryland Avenue, NE, which was just cleared. A press briefing will be outside the Capitol Visitor Center at First & East Capitol Street, NE, around 3 pm. https://t.co/f7UfSg4LjX

— The U.S. Capitol Police (@CapitolPolice) November 5, 2024

The police gave a press conference during which they described the suspect walking up to the visitors center at which point he was asked to put his coat and backpack on a conveyor belt so it could be scanned. He hesitated and after being asked a second time he complied. At this point, police noticed a smell they thought might be gasoline coming from his clothes. They later clarified that he hadn’t completely doused himself. 

His backpack contained two bottles of liquid which the police believe was either gasoline or some other accelerant. One of the bottles was apparently leaking so when police picked up the backpack they got a strong smell from it. His jacket contained the flare gun.

The man is still being interviewed so police aren’t giving out any motive. He was also carrying what Fox News described as a manifesto.

Fox is told the suspect also wrote a 25-page manifesto and indicated that on Tuesday he intended to deliver it to Congress. 

One senior source told Fox News that investigators were not certain if the suspect intended to self-immolate himself. 

The suspect is described as being a White male in his late-20s who drove all night from Michigan to the Capitol. 

In a tweet about the incident, Fox News congressional reporter Chad Pergram said the manifesto may have contained “anti-government and anti-Israel statements.” That hasn’t been confirmed by police yet.

Fox is told that US Capitol Police arrested a suspect at the screening center of the Capitol Visitor’s Center around 12:30 pm et.

This is via Congressional security sources or those familiar with the investigation.

His clothes reeked of fuel and his clothes were wet. Capitol…

— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) November 5, 2024

So a lot of loose ends still but it sounds like he may have been planning to set himself, or something else, on fire. Of course we’ve seen this before. In February a man named Aaron Bushnell set himself on fire outside the Israeli consulate in Washington, DC to protest the war in Gaza. Then last month a reporter named Samuel Mena set his arm on fire near the White House, also because he was upset about the war in Gaza. All that to say, a manifesto with anti-Israel statements might be a clue that this guy had similar motives. I’ll update this post if I see any more information about it today. For now, here’s the full press conference police gave a little while ago.