Man in 'suspicious' SUV arrested outside U.S. Supreme Court

Posted: Oct 5, 2021 / 10:00 PM EDT

Updated: Oct 5, 2021 / 06:29 PM EDT

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WASHINGTON (KRON) — U.S. Capitol Police arrested a man who was inside a suspicious vehicle parked by the Supreme Court just a day after the start of the new term.

Police on Tuesday identified the suspect in the vehicle as Dale Paul Melvin of Kimball, Michigan.

According to police, he was illegally parked in front of the Supreme Court around 9:30 a.m. ET. He then refused to speak to responding police officers, police said.

After a couple of hours attempting to communicate with the suspect, officers were able to take him out of the SUV and arrest him, Capitol Police Chief Jason Bell said during a news conference. No weapons were found at the time, however, police said they are still investigating the situation.

The following road closures are in effect:
– First Street between Independence Avenue, SE and Constitution Avenue, NE
– Second Street between East Capitol Street and Constitution Avenue, NE
– East Capitol Street between First and Second Streets, NE
— U.S. Capitol Police (@CapitolPolice) October 5, 2021

No further information was available, however, police said everyone is safe.

The justices, minus Brett Kavanaugh, returned to the courtroom on Monday after over a year of separation due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Kavanaugh joined remotely after testing positive for COVID-19.