A heavily armed man who was arrested after trying to enter a Washington, D.C. security checkpoint with ‘false’ credentials, has claimed he is not a criminal and that the incident is a major misunderstanding.
Wesley Allen Beeler, 31, from Front Royal, Virginia was arrested by Capitol Police Friday evening as he tried to make his way through a restricted area in downtown DC that has been blocked off ahead of Joe Biden‘s inauguration.
Court documents say Beeler had approached the checkpoint on North Capitol and E Street NE around 6.30pm and presented cops with an invalid inauguration credential.
Officers later found a loaded pistol and more than 500 rounds of ammunition inside his vehicle. He was arrested on charges including possession of an unregistered firearm and unlawful possession of ammunition, according to a police report.
Beeler spoke out following his release on Saturday, claiming the situation was an ‘honest mistake’ and said he had been running late to his job as a security guard and had gotten lost due to all the blocked off roads.
The father of four explained he had driven up to Capitol from Virginia, where he is licensed to carry, but forgot to remove his gun from his car before heading to work.
‘It was just me forgetting to take it out of my truck before I left for work. I don’t know what the D.C. laws are. It still comes back on me, but I’m not a criminal,’ he told the Washington Post in a ‘tear-filled’ interview.
Wesley Allen Beeler, 31, of Front Royal, Virginia, was charged with carrying a pistol without a license and unlawful possession of ammunition after being stopped at the checkpoint near the US Capitol on Friday
The father of four (pictured with his young children) has insisted he’s not a criminal and said he had forgotten to remove his firearms from his pick-up truck before driving in from Virginia, where he is licensed to carry
Police sid Beeler had approached a restricted area on North Capitol and E Street NE that has been blocked off ahead of Joe Biden’s inauguration, around 6.30pm and presented officers with ‘false inauguration credentials’
His brother Clint Beeler also backed his story, telling DailyMail.com he believes the arrest was a result of ‘a major misunderstanding, adding that Wesley had been given proper credentials from his employer.
‘I believe someone forgot to put him in the system to be authorized in. He gave them the badge that was given to him. How can it be “false credentials”, when it was what they gave him?’ Clint added.
Police in a statement on Saturday said that Beeler had turned over a ‘non-government issued’ credential and wasn’t authorized to enter the area.
However, Beeler said he had been hired by security firm MVP Protective Services to guard ‘media equipment’ near 7th and Constitution and had previously accessed the area with his badge. The company, however, declined to comment when contacted by the Post.
He also said he has worked other security jobs in the area in the past as well. A spokesperson for Allied Universal Security Services confirmed this in a statement to the paper.
Beeler spoke to other news outlets on Saturday in a bid to clear his name, insisting he was not part of some sinister terror plot.
‘I was one block away asking the cop for directions and it blew up into this whole domestic terrorist thing,’ Beeler told Fox 5 DC late Saturday. ‘Just ’cause things are happening out there doesn’t mean that’s what I’m trying to do.’
‘I forgot my firearm was in my truck, I was trying to make it to work. You can literally go to the National Mall and ask any of the security that are wearing all black that says “MVP Protective Services.” I’ll put the name out there because they’re not helping me right now,’ he added.
The encounter comes just one week after the Capitol became the site of a violent siege that left five dead.
Beeler spoke to other news outlets on Saturday in a bid to clear his name, insisting he was not part of some sinister terror plot
Beeler (pictured right with his wife Noelle) said he was hired by security firm MVP Protective Services to guard ‘media equipment’ near 7th and Constitution and had previously accessed the area with his badge
Court documents state police officers had been checking Beeler’s credentials against the authorized access list, when one noticed decals on the back of his pick-up truck that said ‘Assault Life,’ with an image of a rifle. Pictured: Members of Pennsylvania 112th Infantry Regiment National Guard checking a car at a road block on January 16
Unprecedented levels of protection have been set up around the Capitol in the wake of the attack to prevent a possible invasion on inauguration day.
According to documents, police officers had been checking Beeler’s credentials against the authorized access list, when one of them noticed decals on the back of his pick-up truck that said ‘Assault Life,’ with an image of a rifle.
Beeler, pictured in an Instagram photo
There was also another with the message: ‘If they come for your guns, give ’em your bullets first.’
When asked if he was carrying any weapons, Beeler told officers he had a Glock handgun in the armrest.
A search uncovered the loaded handgun, more than 500 rounds of ammunition, shotgun shells and a magazine for the gun, the court document said.
Beeler admitted to being armed with a loaded gun and shotgun shells but denied he was carrying 500 ammo rounds as police claimed.
‘All I was trying to do was show [the officer] what I had and ask how I get around the blockade because I got lost,’ he said. ‘Everything’s blocked off and I’m trying to make money for my family. That’s all I’m trying to do, I’m not trying to hurt anybody.’
While Beeler and his family maintain he had no ill intentions, his wife acknowledged police officers’ actions were reasonable given recent events at the Capitol.
‘It’s understandable during these times. It does sound suspicious,’ Noelle Beeler told the Post.
She said the pair were in the process of trying to figure out how to explain the situation to their four young children. ‘I don’t want my kids to think I’m a bad person,’ Beeler said.
The incident Capitol comes amid concerns of ‘major security threats’ at Biden’s inauguration on January 20.
Beeler reportedly drove his pick-up truck to a checkpoint at North Capitol and E Street NE close to the Capitol just after 6:30 p.m. Police cruisers near the Capitol Friday night
National Guard troops guard the US Capitol as fences and barbed wire are put up as security for the upcoming inauguration
Washington DC has gone into lockdown and several blocks around the Capitol have been cordoned off to prevent a repeat of the chaos seen on January 6 when Trump supporters stormed the seat of American democracy.
A Baghdad-style ‘Green Zone’ perimeter has been set up and more than 20,000 armed National Guard troops have been mobilized.
The Secret Service released its restricted access plan, which includes what the agency is calling a ‘Green Zone’ in the heart of DC.
This is the same name given to the heavily-fortified area in Baghdad during the Iraq War.
Most of downtown DC is now off-limits to traffic and has already drawn comparisons to Baghdad’s high-security zone.
Trump supporters storming the Capitol last week in a riot that left five dead
Trump supporters storming the Capitol on January 6 during the violent siege
Thousands of armed military members are patrolling the streets and anti-climb steel fences and road blocks continue to be installed in the wake of last week’s deadly siege.
The security detail is unlike anything seen in the run-up to any inauguration before and comes after the Capitol was breached on January 6 – the first time since the British invaded in 1814.
A violent mob stormed the Capitol, breaking through police barricades and smashing windows to enter the building where the Senate and House were certifying the Electoral College.
Lawmakers were forced to go into hiding for several hours as Capitol police grappled to take back control while the mob defecated in the Senate and House, invaded Nancy Pelosi’s office and looted items potentially including state secrets.
Five people were killed in the violent riot including a police officer who was hit over the head with a fire extinguisher by a rioter.
Law enforcement officials across the country have been working to locate and arrest suspects who committed federal crimes and so far have brought nearly 100 cases in federal court and the District of Columbia Superior Court.
Donald Trump was impeached for the second time this week after House lawmakers voted that he had ‘incited the riot’.
Washington DC has gone into lockdown and several blocks around the Capitol have been cordoned off to prevent a repeat of the chaos seen on January 6