A man who allegedly made “credible death threats” against Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Long Beach, was arrested by U.S. Capitol Police after he tried entering a federal building, the congressmember’s office said.
Garcia, who was in California, is safe, his office said in a statement on Tuesday, Nov. 4, which also happened to be Election Day in California.
“United States Capitol Police announced that they arrested a suspect who had made death threats to Congressman Garcia,” his office said.
“The suspect attempted to enter the Congressional complex and had sent a message to the congressman’s office stating that he was going to travel to Washington, D.C., to kill him. Congressman Garcia is in California and is safe,” the statement went on to say.
Garcia’s office did not name the suspect.
However, a separate press release by USCP, also issued Tuesday, announced the arrest of 43-year-old Richard Griffin of Pennsylvania for “threats to do bodily harm for threatening to kill a member of Congress.”
It was the only press release issued that day by USCP.
According to the agency, Griffin had been identified in a “be on the lookout” bulletin issued by USCP on Oct. 28. The man was stopped before he could go through security screening at the Russell Senate Office Building, the press release said.
“We will not tolerate any threats to the members of Congress, their families, or staff,” USCP Chief Michael Sullivan said. “Our officers, agents, and professional staff work relentlessly to bring offenders to justice. We have a zero-tolerance stance when it comes to threats.”
Griffin allegedly has a track record of “emailing a congressional office” and various government officials and law enforcement agencies, USCP said.
The USCP’s public information office did not immediately respond to an email requesting more information on Wednesday.
An auto-reply message from the office said it is closed for routine business during the federal government shutdown — though it noted that the shutdown doesn’t affect security at the Capitol Complex and USCP officers who perform or support emergency functions are still reporting to work.