Police are negotiating with a man near the Library of Congress in Washington, DC, who claims to have one in his truck, forcing the area around the building to be evacuated, police authorities reported Thursday.
The suspect said he has a propane tank in his vehicle, which does not have a license plate, forcing him to deploy a large contingency operation, including snipers located in the main buildings in the area.
Capitol Police Chief J. Thomas Manger explained in a brief news conference that officers saw the man holding what appeared to be a detonator.
"My negotiators are working hard to try to achieve a peaceful resolution of this incident. We are trying to get as much information as possible to find a way to resolve this peacefully," Manger explained.
"We do not know what their motives are," he said.
The man communicates with authorities through notes he writes from inside the truck, according to three sources cited by The Associated Press news agency.
The suspect has been identified, but his first and last names have not been released.
[A passenger plane received bomb threats. The intention was to lower an opponent on board]
According to NBC News, sister network of Noticias Telemundo, it is about a white man from North Carolina who makes anti-government proclamations.
Two members of the Capitol Police explained to The Associated Press under anonymity that investigators are trying to determine if the device is an operable explosive and if the man actually has a detonator.
However, several officers said they did not see any objects that resemble an explosive device in the truck, according to NBC News.
The alarm is based entirely on the driver's statements.
A group of people evict the James Madison building of the Library of Congress due to a bomb threat Alex Brandon / AP
Technicians in explosives from the FBI and the Agency for Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF, for its acronym in English), as well as negotiators from the FBI have traveled to the place.
The images captured by NBC News showed the area completely empty, with an unknown number of patrol cars guarding the surroundings of the Library.
Congress is in recess this week, but work continues on the building.
Other federal agencies have also been evacuated due to the threat.
The White House, which is about two miles from the Capitol, said it has already been informed by police and is monitoring the situation.
The incident comes seven months after thousands of supporters of former President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol in January.
With information from The Associated Press