Armed man nabbed on Capitol Hill
A pro-Donald Trump West Virginia senior citizen, with a gun in his car alongside a list of congressional members, was arrested as he marched alone down a Washington street near the U.S. Capitol, authorities said Thursday.
Dennis Westover, 71, of South Charleston, told police he was convinced of election fraud in the November victory of President Biden when he made the six-hour, 365-mile drive to the nation’s capital.
He was arrested Wednesday afternoon just a few hundred feet from an entrance to the Rayburn House Office building on charges of unlawful possession of a firearm and possession of unregistered ammunition — 20 rounds of 9-mm. bullets along with a 9-mm. Sig Sauer handgun.
Westover was walking and shouting “I wanted to see the fence that was around my Capitol” before police took him into custody, according to cops. And he told police “the process I am engaged in is righteous, justice and truth,” according to law enforcement documents.
When asked if there was a gun in the vehicle, Westover acknowledged there was a handgun in the center console, police said. The suspect was arrested and transported to D.C. police headquarters for processing.
According to police documents, Westover’s birth certificate and will were found inside his car along with “Stop The Steal” paperwork. The vehicle was abandoned in the middle of the intersection of 2nd St. and Washington Avenue S.W. around 2 p.m.
Cops described the suspect as cooperative during his arrest and subsequent interview. He was released Thursday after pleading not guilty in D.C. Superior Court.
Westover apparently attended the Jan. 6 Trump rally-turned-riot in Washington — with photos posted on his fiancee’s Facebook page.
“On our way to the Trump MAGA Rally in DC with our friends — poet(s), ministers, contractors, and fellow Patriots,” the woman wrote.
Federal authorities also arrested a Long Island man on Thursday for his role in the Capitol riots after the 39-year-old boasted online about breaking into congressional offices.
At least two people contacted the FBI about Justin McAuliffe after seeing his posts and recognizing his face in media footage of the Jan. 6 attack, court papers show.