A House staffer who walked into a congressional office building with a gun in his bag Thursday was arrested, U.S. Capitol Police said.
Jeffrey Allsbrooks, 57, said he forgot the gun was in his bag, police said.
Allsbrooks walked into the Longworth Building before 7:40 a.m. and checked his bag with the gun inside through the X-ray at the security checkpoint, according to charging documents.
He retrieved the bag and departed before police noticed the gun in the X-ray image, according to charging documents.
We've got the news you need to know to start your day. Sign up for the First & 4Most morning newsletter — delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up here.
The doors were locked down while they located the man, which took four minutes, according to the charging documents.
Charging documents say the gun, which wasn’t registered in D.C, had 14 rounds of ammo and a 15-round magazine.
Allsbrooks faces a charge of carrying a pistol without a license, police said.
Local
Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia local news, events and information
A security alert was issued for the Longworth building due to police activity Thursday morning, but police issued an all-clear shortly after, NBC News reported.
Allsbrooks works with the House Chief Administrative Office, a non-partisan office that helps congressional officers with day-to-day operations.
The arrest came as President Joe Biden was preparing to pay tribute to former Republican senator and presidential contender Bob Dole, who is lying in state at the Capitol.
U.S. Capitol Police have been on high alert following a year marked by security breaches and deadly attacks at the Capitol, including the Jan. 6 insurrection.
A U.S. Capitol Police officer died and another was badly injured on April 2 when a man rammed a car into them at a barricade outside the U.S. Capitol, authorities said.
A man drove a pickup truck onto a sidewalk outside the Library of Congress in August and claimed he had explosives, leading law enforcement to evacuate government buildings and nearby homes as they negotiated with the suspect.
A man with multiple knives who said he was “on patrol” was arrested near Democratic National Committee headquarters in September, Capitol Police said.
