By David Kenney | January 12, 2021 at 7:36 PM CST – Updated January 12 at 7:38 PM
JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) – Local law enforcement is on high alert Tuesday after the FBI warned them armed protestors could be headed to our State Capitol.
That warning comes just days after violence erupted at our nation’s Capitol last week. The threat of violent protestors coming here to the Mississippi Capitol is not being taken lightly by local law enforcement.
They are all in communication, formulating a plan to stop what happened in Washington from happening here.
State representative Chris Bell said he was shocked when he saw waves of armed protestors storming the nation’s Capitol. Now with news it could happen here, he’s assured law enforcement will make his safety their top priority.
“I don’t believe they’ll try to come to the Mississippi State Capitol. If they do, they will be met with force and I don’t foresee that even happening here.”
The Mississippi Department of Public Safety is meeting with local law enforcement but do not believe armed protestors will stir up trouble here.
Department of Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell said, “I can tell you that here in Mississippi, we have the office of the Mississippi Department of Homeland Security. They operate what’s called a Fusion Center which picks up on chatter online and through other resources not only in Mississippi but across the country, so we’ve been monitoring the situation. We haven’t seen any evidence there is a viable threat.”
At the State Capitol there were signs of increased patrols and adjustments at security checkpoints. This afternoon, Governor Tate Reeves was also aware of the possible threat armed protestors could pose.
Governor Tate Reeves said, “I’m not gonna go into any details about the measures that we either have taken or are taking, but I can assure you that I have personally communicated with Commissioner Tindell, our Emergency Management Team and whether you see us or not we are going to protect the integrity of our government buildings.”
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