WASHINGTON (AP) - Capitol Police said they have uncovered intelligence of a "possible plot" by a militia group to breach the U.S. Capitol today, nearly two months after a mob of supporters of then-President Donald Trump stormed the iconic building to try to stop Congress from certifying now-President Joe Biden's victory.
The threat appears to be connected to a far-right conspiracy theory, mainly promoted by supporters of QAnon, that Trump will rise again to power on March 4. That was the original presidential inauguration day until 1933, when it was moved to Jan. 20.
Online chatter identified by authorities included discussions among members of the Three Percenters, an anti-government militia group, concerning possible plots today against the Capitol, according to two law enforcement officials who were not authorized to speak publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. Members of the Three Percenters were among the extremists who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6.
The announcement comes as Capitol police and other law enforcement agencies are taking heat from Congress in contentious hearings this week on their handling of the Jan. 6 riot. Police were ill-prepared for the mass of Trump supporters, and it took hours for National Guard reinforcements to come. By then, rioters had made their way into the building and roamed the halls for hours, stalling Congress' certification effort temporarily and sending lawmakers into hiding.
"The United States Capitol Police Department is aware of and prepared for any potential threats toward members of Congress or toward the Capitol complex," the agency said in a statement. "We have obtained intelligence that shows a possible plot to breach the Capitol by an identified militia group on Thursday, March 4." Police did not identify the militia group in the statement.
The U.S. House was abruptly wrapping its work for the week Wednesday night given the threat of violence.
An advisory sent earlier this week to members of Congress by Timothy Blodgett, the acting House sergeant-at-arms, said the Capitol Police had "no indication that groups will travel to Washington, D.C., to protest or commit acts of violence."
However, that advisory was updated in a note to lawmakers Wednesday morning. Blodgett wrote the Capitol Police had received "new and concerning information and intelligence indicating additional interest in the Capitol for the dates of March 4th-6th by a militia group."
In her testimony to the House panel, acting Capitol Police Chief Yogananda Pittman said her investigators had collected "some concerning intelligence" but declined to provide any details publicly, saying it was "law enforcement sensitive" and she would provide a private briefing for the subcommittee members.
On Wednesday, federal agents were seeking to determine whether there was an increase in the number of hotel rooms being rented in Washington, as well as monitoring flights to the area, car rental reservations and any buses being chartered to bring groups into the capital, a person familiar with the matter told the Associated Press. The person could not publicly discuss details of the security planning and spoke on condition of anonymity.
The FBI and Department of Homeland Security also sent a joint intelligence bulletin to local law enforcement officials Tuesday warning that a group of militia extremists had discussed trying to take control of the Capitol on March 4 and encouraging thousands of people to come to D.C. to try to remove Democrats from power.
There has been a noticeable decline in online activity on some social media platforms surrounding efforts for today, and there was already considerably less online chatter than during the lead-up to Jan. 6, a day Trump promoted for a his rally and encouraged thousands to come to the nation's capital.
Several QAnon groups still operating on the social media messaging platform Telegram warned followers to stay away from any events today, claiming it was a setup for Trump supporters.
"If there are groups out there planning and advertising events on or around March 4 anywhere in the country (D.C. included) we strongly urge everyone to avoid them entirely," one Telegram user wrote late last month in a QAnon group that has more than 65,000 followers.
There's also a very large fence in place around the U.S. Capitol that blocks off all avenues of entry including on the streets around the building, which was put in place after Jan. 6.