3 years ago
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By ERIC TUCKER, MICHAEL BALSAMO, COLLEEN LONG and MICHAEL BIESECKER
WASHINGTON (AP) — A North Carolina antheral who claimed to person a weaponry successful a pickup motortruck adjacent the U.S. Capitol surrendered to instrumentality enforcement aft an hourslong standoff Thursday that prompted a monolithic constabulary effect and the evacuations of authorities buildings successful the area.
Authorities were investigating what led the suspect, identified arsenic 49-year-old Floyd Ray Roseberry, to thrust onto the sidewalk extracurricular the Library of Congress, marque weaponry threats to officers and profess a litany of antigovernment grievances arsenic portion of a bizarre occurrence that helium live-streamed for a Facebook audience. Police aboriginal searched the conveyance and said they did not find a weaponry but did cod imaginable bomb-making materials.
The standoff was resolved peacefully aft astir 5 hours of negotiations, ending erstwhile Roseberry crawled retired of the motortruck and was taken into constabulary custody. But adjacent successful a metropolis with a agelong past of melodramatic instrumentality enforcement encounters extracurricular national landmarks, this occurrence was notable for its timing — Washington remains connected borderline 8 months aft the insurrection astatine the U.S. Capitol — and for the mode the fishy harnessed societal media to gully attraction to his actions successful the hours earlier his arrest.
Authorities who spent hours negotiating with Roseberry — helium held up handwritten signs done his driver-side model — were continuing to excavation into his inheritance Thursday evening. They did not uncover immoderate details astir a motive, and nary charges were instantly announced.
Investigators had been speaking with members of Roseberry’s household and learned that his parent had precocious died, Capitol Police Chief J. Thomas Manger said. “There were different issues helium was dealing with,” the main said, without providing circumstantial details.
But societal media appeared to connection its ain clues.
As constabulary continued negotiations, video surfaced of Roseberry connected Facebook Live wrong the truck, which was stuffed with coins and boxes. He threatened explosions, expressed hostility toward President Joe Biden, profanely warned of a “revolution” and laid bare a bid of grievances related to U.S. positions connected Afghanistan, wellness attraction and the military.
Roseberry’s ex-wife, Crystal Roseberry, said she had seen images of the antheral successful the standoff astatine the Capitol and confirmed to The Associated Press that it was her ex-husband. She said she had ne'er known him to person explosives, but helium was an avid collector of firearms.
Videos posted to Facebook earlier the leafage was taken down look to amusement Roseberry astatine a Nov. 14 Washington rally attended by thousands of Trump supporters to protestation what they claimed was a stolen election. One video appears to beryllium filmed by Roseberry arsenic he’s marching with a assemblage of hundreds of radical carrying American flags and Trump flags and shouting “stop the steal.”
Thursday’s incidental began astir 9:15 a.m. erstwhile a motortruck drove up the sidewalk extracurricular the library. The operator told the responding serviceman helium had a bomb, and helium was holding what the serviceman believed to beryllium a detonator. The motortruck had nary licence plates.
Kelsey Campbell, a pupil astatine the University of Wisconsin-Madison visiting Washington arsenic portion of a people trip, said she and different pupil encountered Roseberry astir 9:20 a.m. extracurricular the adjacent Supreme Court building. Campbell said helium was with his truck, which was parked adjacent to the sidewalk, and was holding a ample stack of dollar bills.
“He said, ‘Hey, telephone the police, archer them to evacuate this street, and I’ll springiness you each this money,’” Campbell recounted to The AP. “I said, ’No!’ and helium threw the wealth astatine america and we started running.”
Campbell said she and the different pupil saw immoderate constabulary officers lasting nearby. They told the officers what happened, and the officers past went to face Roseberry.
The standoff brought the country surrounding the Capitol to a virtual standstill arsenic constabulary emptied buildings and cordoned disconnected streets arsenic a precaution. Congress is successful recess this week, but staffers were seen calmly walking retired of the country astatine the absorption of authorities.
By Thursday evening, authorities had finished searching the conveyance and determined the country to beryllium harmless aft not uncovering an explosive.
The nation’s superior has been tense since the Jan. 6 insurrection astatine the Capitol, erstwhile thousands of supporters of then-President Donald Trump stormed the gathering arsenic Congress was gathered to certify the results of the statesmanlike election.
A time earlier the riot astatine the Capitol, tube bombs were near astatine the office of the Democratic National Committee and the Republican National Committee successful Washington. No 1 has been arrested yet for placing the bombs.
The RNC, not acold from wherever the motortruck was parked Thursday, was besides evacuated implicit the threat. A spokesperson for the DNC said its headquarters, which is located farther distant from the truck’s location, was enactment nether lockdown, but that lockdown has been lifted.
Thursday’s incidental marked the 3rd clip successful arsenic galore weeks that national and subject instrumentality enforcement authorities had to respond to attacks oregon imaginable threats successful the Washington area. Officials are besides jittery implicit a planned rally successful September.
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Long reported from New Buffalo, Michigan. Associated Press writers Alanna Durkin Richer successful Boston, Tom Foreman Jr. successful Charlotte, North Carolina, and Zeke Miller, Nathan Ellgren, Ashraf Khalil and Alex Brandon successful Washington contributed to this report.
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