The chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee on Wednesday said his panel is investigating reports that a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) official might have been plotting an attack at the department's headquarters.

“Initial reports of this incident are very troubling, and my Committee is looking into this serious matter. DHS has been in contact and we will continue to engage with the appropriate officials to gather all the facts," Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) said in a statement.

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Jonathan Wienke, a DHS official with top-secret security clearance, allegedly entered the headquarters with a gun, a knife, an infrared camera, pepper spray and handcuffs earlier this month, according to a report by The Associated Press.

Court documents filed by the federal government say investigators have probable cause to believe that Wienke, an analyst in the Office of Intelligence and Analysis, "was conspiring with another to commit workplace violence, and more particularly may have been conspiring or planning to commit violence against senior DHS officials in the building."

In an affidavit for a warrant to search his home in Martinsburg, W.Va., a DHS agent described what led the department to suspect he was planning an attack.

The agent said Wienke entered DHS headquarters at 7:30 a.m. on June 9 and was randomly selected for screening. Security officers said they found weapons and other items, and seized the knife and pepper spray, according to the affidavit.

At 9 a.m., the agent and another officer searched Wienke at his cubicle, the agent said, where Weinke denied he was carrying any additional weapons. According to the affidavit, the agent patted Wienke down and discovered he was carrying a five-shot revolver loaded with .22-caliber bullets in the front pocket of his pants. The agent said he heard Wienke "utter an audible expletive."

The agent listed potential crimes as attempt and conspiracy to assassinate, kidnap or assault a member of the executive branch of the government, false impersonation of a federal officer and possession of a firearm in a federal facility.

Wienke was charged on June 10 with carrying a pistol without a license and was released on June 13 pending further court proceedings, the AP reported. The case remains under investigation.

A spokesman for the DHS told the AP that Wienke has been placed on administrative leave.