A California Resident’s Arrest Raises Questions
Philan-Tam-Duy Le, a resident of Julian, San Diego County, was arrested near the U.S. Capitol Tuesday. United States Capitol Police (USCP) apprehended him after spotting a guillotine in his truck bed.
Officers noticed the illegally parked pickup truck along East Capitol Street at approximately 3 p.m. ET, close to the Capitol grounds and the U.S. Supreme Court. Both Congress and the High Court are currently in summer recess.
Le made the journey from California to Washington, D.C., spanning over 2,500 miles. Investigators are still uncertain of his motive for traveling to the nation’s capital.
“USCP investigators are going through the suspect’s background to learn more about why he came to Washington, D.C.,” police stated in a release.
Le faces charges for carrying a dangerous weapon. Police released photographs showing the guillotine assembled upright in the truck bed, with its frame towering into nearby trees.
Newsweek reached out to Capitol Police for further details, questioning whether Le drove all the way from California with the guillotine loaded in his truck.
Series of Weapons-Related Incidents
This event adds to several other weapons-related incidents at the Capitol this year. Last month, Newsweek reported that officers arrested Wendell J. Royster, 67, from Columbia, Mississippi. Royster arrived at a barricade outside the Capitol with a firearm on his lap, seeking directions to the Supreme Court.
In another incident in February, an 18-year-old from Georgia faced charges for running towards the Capitol while carrying a loaded shotgun and wearing tactical gear. The Justice Department reported that officers recovered the weapon along with additional ammunition. The suspect claimed he was there to speak with a member of Congress.
This arrest occurred a week before President Donald Trump’s State of the Union speech.
For more details, contact Newsweek editors Anna Commander and Edward T. Cummins.