Capitol Cops Nab Man With Machete Near Jimmy Carter’s Body
Police arrested a man armed with a machete and multiple knives attempting to enter the U.S. Capitol complex as visitors streamed in to pay their respects to the late President Jimmy Carter and just hours before President-elect Donald Trump met with GOP senators.
Capitol Police officers intercepted the man—who faces multiple charges of carrying a dangerous weapon—during a routine security check Wednesday afternoon in the Capitol Visitor Center after spotting multiple weapons in his bag, the Capitol Police said in a statement.
“During security screening, our officers spotted a machete in the man’s bag, stopped the x-ray machine, arrested the man, and secured the machete,” Capitol Police said in a statement on X.
USCP Stops, Arrests Man with Machete & Knives at Security Screening: https://t.co/l3CPimfyAt pic.twitter.com/S1zRwt3vg4
— The U.S. Capitol Police (@CapitolPolice) January 8, 2025
“Three knives were also found in the bag, along with the machete,” the statement said. Capitol Police added, “The man is being arrested for multiple charges of Carrying a Dangerous Weapon.”
Around the time that Trump arrived in the Senate for a scheduled meeting with Republicans, police announced the presence of a “suspicious vehicle” near the Capitol.
The arrest of the man with the machete took place amid heightened security during a particularly busy time, with thousands of individuals lined up at the Capitol to pay respects to Carter, who is lying in state in the Rotunda. Capitol Police took extra precautions in recent days, erecting fencing around the campus for the certification of the election results and ahead of Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20.
No one was harmed during the incident and Capitol Police said it expected to provide “additional information as it becomes available.”
Trump was holding a strategy session with Senate Republicans Wednesday evening on his agenda on the border and taxes.
