Authorities are investigating a Department of Homeland Security employee with a top-secret clearance after he was caught bringing a gun, knife, infrared camera, pepper spray, and handcuffs into the agency’s headquarters in Washington, D.C., CBS News reported Wednesday.
Government officials said in court documents that investigators had "probable cause" to pursue a probe after Jonathan Wienke entered the building June 9 with the contraband.
Federal investigators are looking into whether Wienke "was conspiring with another to commit workplace violence, and more particularly may have been conspiring or planning to commit violence against senior DHS officials in the building," according to court filings.
Wienke, an analyst in the Office of Intelligence and Analysis, was charged June 10 with carrying a firearm without a license. He has been placed on administrative leave while the investigation proceeds.
Federal officials searched Wienke’s home in Martinsburg, W.Va. It is unclear whether officers found evidence in the house.
DHS Special Agent Eric Mann outlined potential crimes in his affidavit for a search warrant, including an "attempt and conspiracy to assassinate, kidnap or assault a member of the executive branch of the government, false impersonation of a federal officer and possession of a firearm in a federal facility," CBS News reported.