A man was taken into custody Wednesday after being stopped by U.S. Secret Service near the Naval Observatory, traditionally the home of the vice president, and later found to have had a gun in his car.
Paul Murray, 31, was detained by agents as a possible suspicious person after they spotted him near the observatory at around noon, according to D.C. Metropolitan Police. Murray was the subject of an intelligence bulletin from Texas that circulated to police in the area.
Police officers searched Murray’s car, where they found a rifle and a large amount of ammunition, police said. It is unclear why Murray was in Washington, D.C., from Texas or why he was near the Observatory.
Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband Doug Emhoff have not been residing at the Naval Observatory since the inauguration as it has been undergoing repairs. The Secret Service confirmed to NBC News that its agents detained a man near the residence on Wednesday, but did not comment as to whether Harris and Emhoff were there at the time.
Murray is facing charges of carrying a dangerous weapon, carrying a rifle or shotgun outside of a business, possession of unregistered ammunition and possession of a large capacity ammunition feeding device.
He is currently in police custody and it is unclear whether he has retained an attorney.