Kamala Harris

Man Wanted by Police Arrested Near Residence of Vice President Kamala Harris, Gun and Ammo Found in Car

The residence of the Vice President on the grounds of the United States Naval Observatory.
Matt McClain | The Washington Post | Getty Images
  • A Texas man wanted by the police was stopped by the U.S. Secret Service and arrested Wednesday afternoon near the residence of Vice President Kamala Harris.
  • Police said they found a rifle and ammunition in the man's car, which was parked some distance away in a garage in downtown Washington.
  • Paul Murray, 31, of San Antonio, was stopped by Secret Service officers just after noon in the northwest section of Washington on Massachusetts Avenue, right outside the Naval Observatory, which contains Harris' residence.

A Texas man wanted by the police was stopped by the U.S. Secret Service and arrested Wednesday afternoon near the Washington residence of Vice President Kamala Harris, authorities said.

Police found a rifle, a large amount of ammunition and several gun clips in a car belonging to the man, 31-year-old Paul Murray of San Antonio, after he told them it was parked in a garage several miles away near the Washington Convention Center, according to NBC 4.

Also found in that black Chevy Impala was what police called a large capacity ammunition feeding device.

A U.S. Army spokesman confirmed to CNBC on Thursday that Murray served as an unmanned drone pilot from March 2010 to April 2014. He held the rank of Specialist and had no deployments, the Army said.

A police report specified that Murray was in possession of an "AR-15 semi-automatic rifle, 113 rounds of unregistered ammunition, and five 30 round magazines."

Murray was stopped by Secret Service officers at around noon in the northwest section of Washington on Massachusetts Avenue, just outside the Naval Observatory, which contains Harris' residence.

A person detained by Secret Service at Vice President's residence in Washington DC.
penguinsix | YouTube
A person detained by Secret Service at Vice President's residence in Washington DC.

Police said they arrested Murray in response to an intelligence bulletin that originated from Texas.

The vice president and her husband, Doug Emhoff, do not currently live at the Naval Observatory, as the residence is undergoing renovations. The couple is living at Blair House, near the White House.

Murray was charged with carrying a dangerous weapon, carrying a rifle or shotgun outside of a business, possession of unregistered ammunition and possession of a large capacity ammunition feeding device.

Andrew Leyden, a former Capitol Hill staffer who lives near the Naval Observatory, told CNBC he witnessed the arrest while passing by on a scooter on his way to the Irish Embassy to film a St. Patrick's Day video for his YouTube channel.

"A bunch of cops passed me at the National Cathedral," which is just up the road from the Observatory, Leyden said. "What was really odd was it was marked units and unmarked units."

A video Leyden took of the scene showed Murray surrounded by police, with a bike lying on the grass near them.

"I saw that kind of scraggly looking guy, cuffed," said Leyden, who posted video of the scene on Twitter.

Harris' spokeswoman Sabrina Singh referred CNBC to the Secret Service when asked for comment.

CNBC's Amanda Macias contributed to this report.

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