Man with gun arrested near US Capitol, police say

Officers on Tuesday arrested a man with a gun after he was spotted at a park across from Union Station in Washington, D.C., according to U.S. Capitol Police.

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The incident, which happened around 12:40 p.m., prompted road closures and a search of the area. Senate buildings were briefly placed on lockdown, Axios reported.

“At this time we have no reason to believe there is an ongoing threat,” police said in a social media post on Tuesday afternoon.

Police chief Tom Manger said a person walking through the park to the Senate building reported the man. Officers quickly responded and found 21-year-old Ahmir Lavon Merrell holding a semi-automatic weapon. It was not clear whether the gun was loaded.

“He was walking along the sidewalk and he was holding the gun down as he walked,” Manger said at a news conference. “(Officers) ordered him to stop. He did not.”

The chief said an officer eventually deployed a Taser gun, causing Merrell to fall forward onto his weapon before he was taken into custody.

It was not immediately clear why Merrell was armed in the park.

“His identification says he’s from Atlanta, Georgia,” the chief said. “He is a registered sex offender in the state of Georgia and we have no other information about him.”

Authorities were searching a bag Merrell left on a bench in the park but had not immediately found anything suspicious.

“Based on our officers’ limited contact and limited conversation with Mr. Merrell, there is some indication that he may be dealing with some mental health issues,” Manger said. “We don’t know that. We don’t know why he was in the park with a gun. He made no statements as to why he was here or what he intended to do.”

Merrell, who was taken to a hospital as a precaution after he was tasered, will face at least one count of having a firearm on Capitol grounds.

Authorities continue to investigate.