Man tased and arrested after trying to sneak a hammer into the Capitol Building

A man was tased and arrested by police Friday after he tried to get inside the US Capitol Building with a hammer, according to authorities. 

An X-ray machine at the Capitol Visitor Center detected the hammer hidden inside 33-year-old Christopher Snow’s backpack shortly before 4 p.m., according to Capitol Police, as the Senators prepared to vote on legislation to avert a partial government shutdown. 

A struggle ensued when a Capitol Police officer attempted to search the Ohio man’s belongings and Snow tried to grab the backpack, becoming combative, according to the USCP. 

Officers used a Taser on Snow before taking him into custody. He is being charged with assault on a police officer.

“These officers did what they were trained to do and stopped this man from getting into the US Capitol,” USCP Captain Andrew Pecher said in a statement. “Great work from the officer who spotted the hammer, to the officers who quickly took the suspect into custody.”

The USCP shared an image of the yellow-handled hammer Snow attempted to bring inside the secure building. 

Investigators are trying to determine why Snow tried bringing the tool into the Capitol. 

Earlier this year, Capitol Police revealed that more than 8,000 threats to members of Congress were investigated last year, an increase from 2022, when 7,500 threats were probed.

Friday’s incident also comes one day after President Biden was at the Capitol to deliver his annual State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress.