Webb Aide Arrested For Carrying Firearm In Senate Office Building

An aide to Democratic Sen. Jim Webb of Virginia was arrested by Capitol Police on Monday for carrying a loaded pistol and two loaded magazines in a Senate office building, the police confirmed.

Phillip Thompson was entering the Russell Senate Office Building late Monday morning when an X-ray machine revealed he was carrying the firearm, as well as the extra ammunition, a police spokeswoman wrote in a statement.

After officers determined he did not have a license to carry the gun in Washington, D.C., the police arrested him and charged him with carrying a pistol without a license as well as possession of an unregistered firearm and unregistered ammunition.

“To our knowledge, this incident was an oversight by the Senator’s aide,"  Webb spokeswoman Jessica Smith said in a statement Monday afternoon. "Phillip Thompson is a former Marine, a long-term friend and trusted employee of the Senator. We are still awaiting facts.”