United States capitol threatened with bombs
September 2, 2021
On Thursday, Aug. 19, a man claimed to have a bomb in his pickup truck parked in front of the Library of Congress.
The man was later identified as Floyd Ray Roseberry, 49, from Grover, N.C. Roseberry was live streaming on Facebook during the hours-long standoff between himself and Capitol Police.
Roseberry drove his black truck onto the sidewalk of the library’s Thomas Jefferson Building. He then proceeded to tell an officer that he had a bomb.
Capitol police were able to contain the situation and get bystanders to safety. Police communicated with Roseberry via whiteboard until they got access to a robot that would be able to deliver a cell phone to Roseberry.
Roseberry declined to use the phone, and shortly after, he got out of his vehicle and surrendered.
“He gave up; he did not resist, and our folks were able to take him into custody,” U.S. Capitol Police Chief, J. Thomas Manger said in his interview with Bryan Naylor of NPR.
“We do not know what his motives are at this time,” Manger said.
Roseberry’s truck was removed from the crime scene, and investigators were able to investigate the truck. Capitol Police said that there was no bomb, but there were tools in the truck that could have potentially been used to make a bomb.
Manager also told NPR that Roseberry’s mother passed away recently, and he was dealing with that among other things.
Roseberry’s wife and family are cooperating with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) as they investigate his motives.
Facebook removed his live stream, as well as his profile on the platform.
Representatives from Facebook said that in at least one of Roseberry’s videos there was a man making anti-government remarks. Also in the video, the man stated that he had ammonium nitrate in his vehicle.
Ammonium nitrate is a crystal-like solid, which is made in industrial factories and is mainly used in fertilizer, but it can also be used in themaking of explosives. It is very easy to purchase.
“We not only deactivated his live stream, but we also removed his profile from Facebook and are continuing to investigate,” Facebook’s Director of Policy Communications said on Twitter.
Many lawmakers were out of office when this terrorist attack occurred due to the August recess.
Republican Alabama State Representative, Mo Brooks, stated that he was sympathetic towards Roseberry.
CNBC news reported Brooks stating on Twitter, “Although this terrorist’s motivation is not yet publicly known, generally speaking, I understand citizenry anger directed at dictatorial Socialism and its threat to liberty, freedom and the very fabric of American society.”
“The way to stop Socialism’s march is for patriotic Americans to fight back in the 2022 and 2024 elections. I strongly encourage patriotic Americans to do exactly that more so than ever before. Bluntly stated, America’s future is at risk.” Brooks said.
After Brooks made this statement he started to receive negative feedback. Brooks also voted on overturning President Biden’s election results.
According to CNBC, Brooks was present at the capitol on Jan. 6, speaking to insurrectionists about the alleged illegitimacy of the 2020 presidential election. CNBC also reported that Democratic Representative Eric Swalwell said that Brooks was one of the many that helped fan the flames of the rioters.
“Tells us you stand with a terrorist without telling us you stand with a terrorist,” Swalwell said on Twitter.
In March, Rep. Swalwell filed a civil suit against Trump and Brooks, along with others. CNBC reported the reasoning for the suit was that they were “wholly responsible for the injury and destruction caused by the mob.”
Another Republican Representative had something to say about Brooks’s justification of the capital bomb threat.
“Evil,” Republican Representative Adam Kinzinger said on Twitter in response to what Rep. Brooks said. Rep. Kinzinger was one of the few Republicans that voted to impeach former President Trump after Jan. 6.
As of right now, Roseberry is in jail and prosecutors say that they plan on keeping him behind bars during his trial.
