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A U.S. Capitol staffer has been arrested and charged with carrying a pistol without a license after he brought a gun into the House’s Longworth office building.
“The man was Jeffrey Allsbrooks, a staff member in the House Chief Administrative Office – a nonpartisan outfit that provides ‘support services and business solutions to House offices. Allsbrooks told the USCP that he forgot the handgun was in his bag. The department said it is charging Allsbrooks for carrying the gun without a license,” Fox News reported.
“The U.S. Capitol Police sent a security alert just before 8 a.m. ET Thursday telling staff to get inside the nearest office, stay away from external windows, remain quiet and to refrain from entering or exiting the building until given the go-ahead from police,” Fox News added.
“According to the USCP, officers saw an image of a handgun on their x-ray screen after the staffer had left the screening area. Officers caught up to him and arrested him four minutes later, the USCP said. There was no indication of any other security threat on Capitol Hill besides the one arrested individual. The USCP said it is ‘looking into what happened before, during and after those four minutes,'” the report continued.
“This morning at approximately 7:40 a.m., our officers in the Longworth Building spotted the image of a handgun in a bag on the x-ray screen,” said the Capitol Police in a statement. “The man was tracked down four minutes later and arrested.”
The penalty for possession of an unregistered firearm or ammunition carries a maximum sentence of one year in jail and a $2,500 fine.
2) Aide has been arrested.
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) December 9, 2021
The alleged owner of the bag and firearm, identified as Jeffrey Allbrooks, works with the House Chief Administrative Office and told Capitol Police that he forgot the gun was in there.
He is being charged with carrying a pistol without a license.
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) December 9, 2021
The arrest came hours before Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, and others will attend a congressional ceremony at the Capitol to pay tribute to the late Sen. Bob Dole, who died over the weekend and will lie in state.
“We meet here in the very heart of American democracy — the Capitol of the United States of America — to receive a hero of that democracy for a final time,” Biden said.
“And that’s not hyperbole,” Biden continued. “It’s real. Of wit and grace, of principle and persistence, of courage and conviction.”
Biden said: “May we follow his wisdom and his timeless truth and reach consensus on the basic fundamental principles we all agree on.”
“They once asked him why in God’s name did he vote to continue to fund Amtrak. He said because if he didn’t, Biden would stay overnight and cause more trouble. I commuted every day. True story. He was the deciding vote,” Biden said.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi all praised Dole.
Pelosi added: “As I stand here and see his coffin on the catafalque that was built for Lincoln with that flag draped over it, I’m sure many of you here will agree, it’s hard to think of anyone who was more worthy to have a flag draped over his coffin because of his great patriotism to our country.”
“A wounded warrior who spent decades carrying fellow veterans and Americans with disabilities on his shoulders — Bob was the last of the greatest generation to run for president, but he was never stuck in the past. His roots ran deep, but he was always looking to new horizons,” McConnell said.
Schumer said: “To pay tribute to Senator Bob Dole is to honor someone who redefined and elevated what it means to serve the country. By 21, Bob had given more of himself than most of us give in a lifetime and then he kept going for 77 years after that.”
