A man was arrested twice in one day at the Wisconsin Capitol for demanding to see Democrat Gov. Tony Evers while carrying a firearm.
According to the Associated Press, the man approached the governor’s office while carrying a holstered handgun around 2 p.m. Wednesday.
Police officers arrested the man who reportedly returned to the Capitol that evening with an assault rifle after posting bail.
BREAKING: Man with handgun seeking Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers arrested in state Capitol, posts bail and returns with assault rifle. – AP pic.twitter.com/Xu6sBxCCzq
— Insider Paper (@TheInsiderPaper) October 5, 2023
The Associated Press provided further details:
The man, who was shirtless and had a holstered handgun, approached the governor’s office on the first floor of the Capitol around 2 p.m. Wednesday, state Department of Administration spokesperson Tatyana Warrick said. The man was demanding to see the governor, who was not in the building at the time, Warrick said.
A Capitol police officer sits at a desk outside of a suite of rooms that includes the governor’s office, conference room and offices for the attorney general.
The man was taken into custody for openly carrying a firearm in the Capitol, which is against the law, Warrick said. Weapons can be brought into the Capitol if they are concealed and the person has a valid permit. The man arrested did not have a concealed carry permit, Warrick said.
The man was booked into the Dane Count Jail but later posted bail.
He returned to the outside of the Capitol shortly before 9 p.m. with a loaded assault-style rifle, Warrick said. The building closes to the public at 6 p.m. He again demanded to see the governor and was taken into custody.
Madison police reported Thursday that the man, who was not named, was taken into protective custody and taken to the hospital.
The man’s motive remains unclear, and authorities have not released further details.
A man illegally brought a handgun into the Wisconsin Capitol, demanding to see the governor. Then he posted bail and returned with an assault rifle. https://t.co/23LmvV5eUC
— The Associated Press (@AP) October 5, 2023
“Evers, a Democrat, was on a hit list of a gunman suspected of fatally shooting a retired county judge at his Wisconsin home in 2022. Others on that list included Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell,” AP noted.
This story is developing.Â
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