Capitol Hill intern arrested after bringing unloaded handgun to House building

Capitol Building
(Image credit: Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

Capitol Police arrested a 25-year-old Hill intern after he allegedly tried to bring an unloaded pistol into the Longworth House office building Monday, Politico reports.

During a standard search, police found Josh Wheeler had an unloaded 9mm handgun. Wheeler, who recently started an internship with Rep. Lynn Jenkins (R-Kan.), was arrested for carrying a pistol without a license and having an unregistered firearm.

"It is our current understanding this was an accident and we are in full cooperation with the Capitol Police to resolve the situation," a spokesman for Jenkins told Politico. "Mr. Wheeler used poor judgment and was immediately placed on temporary leave as soon as we were informed of the arrest."

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Julie Kliegman

Julie Kliegman is a freelance writer based in New York. Her work has appeared in BuzzFeed, Vox, Mental Floss, Paste, the Tampa Bay Times and PolitiFact. Her cats can do somersaults.