Former US President Jimmy Carter lies in state at the US Capitol Rotunda in Washington, DC, U.S., Jan. 7, 2025.Â
Mark Schiefelbein | Via Reuters
Police arrested a man trying to enter the U.S. Capitol with a machete and three knives Wednesday as former President Jimmy Carter lay in state there.
The arrest took place just hours before President-elect Donald Trump was scheduled to visit the Capitol to pay his respects to Carter and meet with Republican senators.
The unidentified man was stopped when the police spotted the machete in his bag during an X-ray screening in the Capitol Visitor Center just after 2 p.m. ET.
Officers said they also found three knives in the bag.
The man was arrested on multiple charges of carrying a dangerous weapon, authorities said.
It was unclear why the man came to the Capitol.
Carter, who died Dec. 29 at age 100, began lying in state in the Capitol Rotunda on Tuesday. His casket will remain there until his funeral at Washington National Cathedral on Thursday.
Members of the public were allowed to come to the Capitol starting Tuesday evening to pay their respects to the 39th president.
Trump is set to take office on Jan. 20.
President Joe Biden on Wednesday afternoon was flying back to Washington, D.C., from Los Angeles, where he attended a briefing with California Gov. Gavin Newsom on the devastating wildfires that are still spreading across swaths of the city.
Biden is scheduled to deliver a eulogy for Carter at Thursday’s funeral service.
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