A pilot was taken into custody after he landed a small unauthorized helicopter on the lawn of the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, police in Washington, D.C. said.
"The U.C. Capitol Police is investigating a gyrocopter with a single occupant that has landed on the grassy area of the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol," said Lt. Kimberly Schneider, public information officer for the Capitol Police, according to ABC News. "The U.S. Capitol Police continues to investigate with one person detained and temporary street closures in the immediate area."
Investigators said the man, whose identity has not yet been released, landed the aircraft in order to deliver a political message to the Capitol, ABC News reported. The Capitol was placed on lockdown following the incident, but it has since reopened and the area is secure, officials told CNN.
According to the Tampa Bay Times, a local man named Doug Hughes contacted the newspaper about his plan to fly to the Capitol to protest campaign finance reform.
"I have got a plane, a gyro-plane. And I'm going to fly it, I'm going to violate the no-fly zone, non-violently," Hughes said in a video posted Wednesday on the newspaper's website. "I'm going to land on the Capitol Mall."
Capitol Police have not confirmed the pilot's identity, and the man remains in custody for questioning.
