USCP Arrests Man with Gun at North Barricade

A Mississippi man is facing a gun charge after he drove up to the North Barricade of the U.S. Capitol Building with a handgun.

At 11:22 a.m. on Monday, July 13, a man drove a rented Ford Bronco to the North Barricade on Constitution Avenue and asked a United States Capitol Police (USCP) officer for directions to the U.S. Supreme Court. 

The officer noticed a handgun on the driver’s lap, so the officer ordered the man to put up his hands. A team of USCP officers surrounded the SUV and took the driver into custody. The driver was arrested without incident within two minutes of pulling up to the North Barricade.

The suspect, 67-year-old Wendell J. Royster of Columbia, MS, is charged with Carrying a Pistol without a License and No Permit. All weapons are prohibited on Capitol Grounds. Royster was not on record with the USCP.  Currently, there does not appear to be a nexus to the Congress.

A dog was chained inside the Bronco, so USCP officers provided the dog water until animal control retrieved the dog.