WHP: Pedestrian Found Suspected IED on Capitol Steps — Carried it inside; Building Evacuated, Reopens Wednesday

Oil City News, Wyoming Tribune Eagle, Wyoming Public Media, Cowboy State Daily, 2KUTV and Casper Star-Tribune contributed to this report.

The Wyoming Highway Patrol says a pedestrian picked up a suspicious device from the Great Seal in front of the State Capitol on Tuesday morning and brought it inside — triggering an evacuation and an hours-long bomb investigation in downtown Cheyenne.

Timeline & closures

• ~9:45 a.m. — Troopers evacuated the Capitol and secured the area. The neighboring Herschler Building was told to shelter in place.
• Streets from 21st to 26th between Carey and Central were cordoned off as drones and K-9 units swept the complex.
• By mid-afternoon, most roads reopened; 26th Street reopened around 4:30 p.m.
• The Capitol stayed closed the rest of Tuesday but will reopen as usual Wednesday, Oct. 22, per WHP.

This was a full multi-agency mobilization: WHP, Laramie County Sheriff’s Office, Cheyenne Police, Wyoming DCI, the joint EOD (bomb) team, Cheyenne Fire & Rescue, AMR, plus federal partners FBI, ATF and DHS.

What we know (and don’t)

• The device is being treated as a suspected improvised explosive device (IED).
• Officials have not released details about the object, how it was rendered safe, or whether any suspects have been identified.
• No injuries were reported.

The investigation is active and ongoing. WHP is asking anyone who saw anything suspicious near the Capitol in the early morning hours of Oct. 21 — including photos or video — to contact Wyoming DCI via the dedicated Capitol incident link on the agency’s website.

WHP thanked the public for patience during the rolling closures and credited partner agencies as the scene shifted from emergency response to a detailed forensic sweep.