Members of the Ottawa police service investigate an incident at Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Saturday April 5, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Spencer Colby

By Canadian Press, CHAT News Staff

NATIONAL

Police lock down Parliament Hill area after man barricaded himself inside East Block

Apr 5, 2025 | 8:00 PM

Ottawa police say a man “gained unauthorized access” to Parliament Hill’s East Block on Saturday afternoon and remained barricaded inside the building into the evening, as the area around Parliament Hill was in a lockdown.

Police initially released a warning for anyone in East Block, which houses parliamentary offices, to seek shelter in the nearest room, close and lock all doors and hide.

People were evacuated from the building and police shut down a significant stretch of Wellington Street in front of Parliament Hill, blocking traffic and pedestrians.

A social media post from Ottawa Police said a “barricaded man is in the area of East Block” and urged people to avoid the area, noting there are no reports of injuries.

More than three hours after the lockdown began, police extended the exclusion zone from Wellington Street one block back to Sparks Street.

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Ottawa police Insp. Mark Bouwmeester told reporters at around 7:30 p.m. that “the circumstances of this incident are considered suspicious,” but gave few details about what was happening inside.

“We’re currently in contact with the individual and our priority is to resolve this situation peacefully,” he said.

“At this time there is no known injuries and we believe that the man is the only person inside the building.”

Police would not say whether the man was believed to be armed or whether he had made threats.

Ottawa police brought in specialized units, including at least one canine unit and explosives units. Two bomb disposal unit robots were seen in front of Centre Block.

A government web page says East Block houses the offices of Senators and their staff, but Parliament Hill is mostly quiet this month due to the federal election. Parliament has been dissolved since the election was called on March 23.

The site says the building once held the officers of Sir John A. Macdonald and Sir George-Étienne Cartier, and that it still contains “faithful recreations of the offices of its famous occupants from the 19th century.”

Christoper Nardi, a National Post parliamentary reporter, said a police bomb squad may be part of the operation.

Sen. Patrick Brazeau posted “stay safe Ottawa” on X, along with a screenshot of the alert.