Police arrest man with gun near Capitol and investigate suspicious package

United States Capitol Police arrested a man with a gun near the Capitol and Senate office buildings on Tuesday afternoon, putting Congress and the Capitol complex on high alert when they also spotted a suspicious package in the same area investigated.

The agency said its officers had “no reason to believe there is an ongoing threat” but that they continued to investigate the incident. They provided no further information about the arrested man. He was arrested in a park across from Union Station, about two blocks from the Capitol.

“We have just searched the area in the park that we have secured,” the agency said wrote on Xthe social media platform formerly known as Twitter added that “out of an abundance of caution” they would be searching the suspect’s belongings in custody.

At the same time, Capitol Police said they responded to a suspicious package in Upper Senate Park, which is directly across from the Capitol, and asked lawmakers and staff members to avoid the area.

Officers closed portions of two roads near the Capitol while they investigated.

This is a developing story and will be updated.