A North Carolina man who said he had explosives in his truck Thursday has surrendered to police. His threats had shut down a wide area of Capitol Hill while US Capitol Police and others negotiated with him outside the Library of Congress. It will take hours to assess the scene, Chief Thomas Manger said in a press conference after the man’s arrest. “As far as we could tell, it was his decision to surrender,” Manger said. Manger identified the suspect as 49 year-old Floyd Ray Roseberry of Grover, North Carolina, and said that there were items of concern in his truck, including propane, but did not say whether Roseberry was actually carrying explosives.
Earlier Thursday, Manger said the FBI, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, DC Police, and DC Fire and EMS were assisting with the investigation. A Facebook livestream that appeared on Roseberry’s profile has been taken down by the social network. In segments that Washingtonian watched, Roseberry appeared to scatter money outside his truck while repeating that this wasn’t a joke and that he wanted to speak with Joe Biden. He claimed that the “American people sent me” and that a purported bomb in his truck would decimate two-and-a-half city blocks.
In the video, Roseberry claimed there are four other bombs hidden in DC and says he has a toolbox full of ammonium nitrate. He holds a can that he says someone with military expertise built, refers to himself as a “patriot,” and says “the revolution’s on.” It’s not immediately clear what he wanted: He mentioned a desire for Biden to step down, as well as for the President to authorize airstrikes on the Taliban.
The Cannon House Office Building and Thomas Jefferson Building were evacuated, as was the library’s Madison building. Reuters reported the US Supreme Court has also been evacuated.
Andrew Beaujon joined Washingtonian in late 2014. He was previously with the Poynter Institute, TBD.com, and Washington City Paper. He lives in Del Ray.
