Active shooter scare on Capitol Hill was a false alarm, police say

Washington — A security scare on Capitol Hill that prompted a brief lockdown of Senate office buildings on Wednesday came in response to a potentially “bogus” 911 call about an active shooter, the U.S. Capitol Police chief said. 

A search of three buildings yielded no shooter, victims or signs of gunshots.

“We’ve found no confirmation that there was an active shooter,” Capitol Police chief Thomas Manger told reporters, adding that “this may have been a bogus call.”

Manger said the Metropolitan Police Department received a call at 2:30 p.m. about an active shooter in the Hart Senate Office Building. He said Capitol Police responded “within seconds.” 

Capitol Police alerted the public that law enforcement had received a “concerning 911 call” and “everyone should be sheltering in place as the report was for a possible active shooter.” The agency said at the time there were no confirmed reports of gunshots. Dozens of armed officers were seen clearing the area. 

“We’ve found nothing concerning. We’ve got nobody that actually heard shots and certainly no victims. As we’ve gone through the buildings, no one has said that they’ve seen anyone,” Manger said. 

The alert comes as law enforcement has heightened security ahead of former President Donald Trump’s arraignment at the federal courthouse in Washington, D.C., on Thursday. Trump was indicted on four felony charges related to his alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election, which culminated in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. 

Manger said law enforcement is “prepared” for the arraignment and Capitol Police and other agencies have been preparing for a possible indictment “for a couple of weeks.” 

“We’re prepared for whatever,” he said. “We have a security plan.”