‘It’s the real deal, man’: Calif. man allegedly drove to D.C. with guillotine in pickup truck
08/31/2026 3:15 pm PDT
WASHINGTON (TCN) -- A 35-year-old man who allegedly drove from California to Washington, D.C., with a guillotine in his pickup truck has been arrested for carrying a dangerous weapon.
According to the United States Capitol Police, officers noticed a guillotine in the back of a pickup truck that was illegally parked on the afternoon of Aug. 25. Philan-Tam-Duy Le had allegedly driven the truck to Washington, D.C., from Julian, California.
Le was allegedly sitting on a platform attached to his truck when officers approached him, the Jefferson City News Tribune reports. He allegedly told them he wasn’t parked in the permit-only spot near the Library of Congress “for any particular reason” and “didn’t have issues with specific members of Congress,” according to an affidavit obtained by the outlet.
The officers asked Le if the guillotine was functional and Le allegedly replied, “Yeah, it’s the real deal, man,” per the News Tribune.
Investigators are looking into Le’s background and why he allegedly drove the guillotine from California to D.C., according to police.
Le was arrested and charged with attempted possession of a dangerous weapon. According to The Guardian, he pleaded not guilty at his arraignment on Aug. 26. Prosecutors wanted to keep him in jail, but a D.C. Superior Court Judge declined their request, saying that Le never threatened anyone with the guillotine.
Le is scheduled to appear in court on Sept. 24, according to the News-Tribune.
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