A man faces charges after police say he parked outside the U.S. Capitol with “a fake badge, a BB gun, body armor, high capacity magazines and other ammunition.”
Jerome Felipe, 53, of Flint, Michigan, was arrested early Friday and charged with unlawful possession of high-capacity magazines and unregistered ammunition, U.S. Capitol Police said. It wasn’t immediately clear if he had an attorney.
A Capitol Police officer began talking before 5 a.m. Friday with a man who parked his 2017 Dodge Charger near Peace Circle, on the west side of the Capitol, police said.
Felipe, a retired police officer “out of New York,” gave officers a fake badge printed with "Department of the INTERPOL” and said he was a criminal investigator with the agency, police said.
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Felipe gave officers permission to search his vehicle, and they discovered “a BB gun, two ballistic vests, several high-capacity magazines and other ammunition,” police said.
No weapons except the BB gun were found.
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It wasn’t immediately clear why Felipe parked near the Capitol, police said.
Security on Capitol Hill is high and was reinforced after the Jan. 6 attack.
Stay with NBC Washington for more details on this developing story.
