Authorities are aware of online chatter about “an identified militia group” potentially planning to enter the Capitol on Thursday.
The United States Capitol Police Department (USCP) said in a statement Wednesday that it has “obtained intelligence that shows a possible plot to breach the Capitol.”
“We have already made significant security upgrades to include establishing a physical structure and increasing manpower to ensure the protection of Congress, the public and our police officers,” it added.
March 4 has been circled on law enforcement’s calendars for months because some QAnon adherents believe former President Trump will be re-inaugurated that day. That was the date for presidential swearing-ins until 1933.
USCP had previously said that there was little indication that any groups were planning on traveling to Washington, D.C., to protest or engage in any violence.
Far-right extremism researchers have also noted that the March 4 date has lost significance and that there appears to be little if any planning for a physical presence.
CNN reported Wednesday per sources familiar with the matter that some of the chatter about breaching the Capitol came from Three Percenters.
The militia movement, which draws its name from the belief that only 3 percent of American colonists fought against the British during the War of Independence, is fragmented with many different three percent related groups around the U.S. and Canada.
Three Percenters have been charged with criminal activity in the past, and some rioters charged in connection to the deadly insurrection at the Capitol Jan 6. sported paraphernalia associated with the percenterism concept.