Capitol Police arrest man who 'smelled like fuel' and had torch and flare gun

The U.S. Capitol Visitors Center was closed Tuesday afternoon, after Capitol Police arrested a man during their security screening process who was carrying a torch and flare gun. 

“Our officers just arrested a man who was stopped during our screening process at the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC),” the Capitol Police wrote in a statement online. 

“The man smelled like fuel, had a torch & a flare gun. The CVC is closed for tours for the day, while we investigate,” the Capitol Police continued. “We will provide more information when we can.” 

Capitol Police did not release any additional information.

Congress is not in session, but the House is scheduled to meet for a brief pro forma session at 5 p.m. today. These sessions do not include the full lower chamber, but rather sessions where a few members meet for procedural reasons.

Security has been heightened across Washington, D.C., and the nation on Election Day, with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) warning of the high likelihood of attacks and threats on important institutions and buildings, such as the Capitol.

DHS and FBI prepared a series of bulletins in the run-up to the election, warning that domestic violent extremists are considering a range of activities to disrupt the 2024 election and peaceful transfer of power.  

“DVEs continue to create, exploit, and promote narratives about the election process or legal decisions involving political figures, and we are concerned that these grievances could motivate some DVEs to engage in violence, as we saw during the 2020 election cycle,” reads an October bulletin from DHS crafted alongside the FBI.

There have been no other threats in Washington as of 2 p.m. 

In Georgia, election officials had to evacuate two polling precinct locations due to non-credible bomb threats. Voting resumed 30 minutes after the incidents.