WASHINGTON, November 5. /TASS/. The US Capitol Police said they had arrested a man who tried to enter the Capitol Visitor Center with a flare gun and a torch.

"Our officers just arrested a man who was stopped during our screening process at the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC). The man smelled like fuel, had a torch & a flare gun," the police said in a statement.

Public tours of the Capitol were cancelled for the remainder of the day, while the investigation is ongoing.

The US Capitol Police are an independent federal law enforcement agency responsible primarily for security of the US Congress.