Man claimed to have bomb near Capitol

A man who claimed to have a bomb in a pickup truck near the U.S. Capitol surrendered after a standoff.

WASHINGTON >> A North Carolina man who claimed to have a bomb in a pickup truck near the U.S. Capitol surrendered to law enforcement after an hourslong standoff Thursday that prompted a massive police response and the evacuations of government buildings in the area.

Authorities were investigating what led the suspect, identified as 49-year-old Floyd Ray Roseberry, to drive onto the sidewalk outside the Library of Congress, make bomb threats to officers and profess a litany of antigovernment grievances as part of a bizarre episode that he live-streamed for a Facebook audience. Police later searched the vehicle and said they did not find a bomb but did collect possible bomb-making materials.

The standoff was resolved peacefully after roughly five hours of negotiations, ending when Roseberry crawled out of the truck and was taken into police custody. Authorities who spent hours negotiating with Roseberry — he held up handwritten signs through his driverside window — were continuing to dig into his background Thursday evening. They did not reveal any details about a motive, and no charges were immediately announced.

Investigators had been speaking with members of Roseberry’s family and learned that his mother had recently died, Capitol Police Chief J. Thomas Manger said. “There were other issues he was dealing with,” the chief said, without providing details.

But social media appeared to offer its own clues.

As police continued negotiations, video surfaced of Roseberry on Facebook Live inside the truck, which was stuffed with coins and boxes. He threatened explosions, expressed hostility toward President Joe Biden, profanely warned of a “revolution” and laid bare a series of grievances related to U.S. positions on Afghanistan, health care and the military.

Roseberry’s ex-wife, Crystal Roseberry, said she had seen images of the man in the standoff at the Capitol and confirmed to The AP that it was her ex-husband.

Thursday’s incident began around 9:15 a.m. when a truck drove up the sidewalk outside the library. The driver told the responding officer he had a bomb, and he was holding what the officer believed to be a detonator. The truck had no license plates.

Kelsey Campbell, a student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison visiting Washington as part of a class trip, said she and another student encountered Roseberry around 9:20 a.m. outside the nearby Supreme Court building. Campbell said he was with his truck, which was parked next to the sidewalk, and was holding a large stack of dollar bills.

“He said, ‘Hey, call the police, tell them to evacuate this street, and I’ll give you all this money,’” Campbell recounted to The AP. “I said, ‘No!’ and he threw the money at us and we started running.”

Campbell said she and the other student saw some police officers standing nearby. They told the officers what happened, and the officers then went to confront Roseberry.

The standoff brought the area surrounding the Capitol to a virtual standstill as police emptied buildings and cordoned off streets as a precaution. Congress is in recess this week, but staffers were seen calmly walking out of the area at the direction of authorities.

By Thursday evening, authorities had finished searching the vehicle and determined the area to be safe after not finding an explosive.

ALEX BRANDON — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS A person is apprehended after being in a pickup truck parked on the sidewalk in front of the Library of Congress’ Thomas Jefferson Building, as seen from a window of the U.S. Capitol Aug. 19, in Washington. Officials evacuated a number of buildings around the Capitol and sent snipers to the area after officers saw a man holding what looked like a detonator inside the pickup, which had no license plates. The man was identified as Floyd Ray Roseberry, 49, of Grover, North Carolina, according to two people briefed on the matter.