A Richmond couple was arrested and charged Monday after they allegedly brought two loaded guns near the U.S. Capitol.
U.S. Capitol Police officials said in a statement that the incident unfolded around 12:50 p.m. when a man came up and asked two Capitol Police officers for directions near First and East Capitol streets SE.
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One of the officers saw a “black firearm handle sticking out of the front pocket of the man’s shorts” that was later identified as a 9mm pistol with a “high capacity magazine,” according to the statement. The man — later identified as Titus Hayes, 40, of Richmond — was arrested.
Authorities said that while Hayes was in custody, he told officers that his wife — Nicole Carter, 42 — “had a second gun in their SUV along East Capitol Street SE.” Officers found another 9mm handgun in the vehicle’s glove box.
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Officials said they did not have any “information to indicate” whether “either suspect was targeting a member of Congress or the Capitol complex.” Neither has a prior record with the Capitol Police, officials said.
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U.S. Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger said in a statement that his agency has confiscated 13 guns near the Capitol so far this year.
The couple was taken into custody without issue. It was not immediately clear whether they had retained a lawyer.
Officials said Hayes was charged with carrying a pistol without a license, having an unregistered firearm, unlawful possession of ammunition and possession of a large-capacity feeding device.
Carter was charged with carrying a pistol without a license, having an unregistered firearm, unlawful possession of ammunition and unlawful transportation of a firearm.
“It was the officer’s keen observation and attention to detail that removed two more illegal guns from our community,” Manger said.