The Associated Press
WASHINGTON, Oct. 30
A plastic revolver temporarily caused a major security scare Thursday at the U.S. Capitol, prompting police to shut down a congressional office building for almost two hours.
The scare ended when the police learned the suspected gun was a toy that was part of a Halloween costume two House of Representatives employees had carried into the building.
U.S. Capitol Police chief Terrance Gainer told reporters the pair, whom he did not identify, contacted the police and said they had no ill intentions running through a security check point at the Cannon House office building in preparation for Friday’s “trick or treat” parties.
The two congressional staff aides are “very sorry this all happened,” Gainer said.
No one was hurt in the incident.
Shortly after 1 p.m., the two passed through a security check point at the Cannon office building, carrying the costumes.
An X-ray machine displayed an image of what appeared to be a revolver in one of their backpacks, but the two grabbed the packs and ran before the officer on duty could respond, according to U.S. media reports.
This prompted the police to temporarily shut down the office building to conduct a room-to-room search for the pair, with all tunnels leading to other buildings sealed.
The Cannon building is one of three House office buildings near the Capitol. Tunnels connect the buildings.
CNN television reported the Capitol itself was not evacuated, though the House went into recess for 40 minutes after the incident.
The police locked down the building for the room-to-room search along with a SWAT team after the pair slipped through security at the southeast door of the building, CNN said.