Zachary Christopher Brown faces a federal drug-possession charge after driving to the CIA headquarters gate in McLean on Saturday, Aug. 29. CIA police found suspected methamphetamine, knives, a rifle scope and a gun safe inside his vehicle, according to an affidavit Patch first reported.

Brown approached the guardhouse at about 11:45 a.m. in a Ford Escape with a Michigan license plate, the affidavit said. The vehicle passed restricted-area signs, three turnarounds designated for unauthorized visitors and a traffic-control chicane before reaching the gate.

Brown showed a passport but did not have authorized credentials, according to CIA police.

Officers asked Brown three times whether he had weapons. He denied it twice, the affidavit said. On the third ask, he began reaching between his body and the center console and indicated he might have a knife. Officers directed him to stop, removed him from the vehicle and seated him on a curb. Brown then gave verbal consent to search the SUV.

CIA police recovered a 9-inch Smith & Wesson fixed-blade knife with a dual-edged, 4.75-inch spear-point blade beneath the driver's seat. Brown then told officers he had methamphetamine in the center console, according to the affidavit.

Officers found two plastic bags inside a pill bottle. One contained a crystalline substance and the other a powder. Both tested presumptive positive for methamphetamine, CIA police said.

A broader search before the vehicle was towed turned up prescription pill bottles, two folding knives, a rifle scope, a pistol safe and a scale.

A records check showed Brown had an outstanding arrest warrant and did not have a driver's license, the affidavit said. The Ford Escape was registered to a relative in Florida.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Lindsey R. Vaala appointed the Office of the Federal Public Defender to represent Brown on Aug. 29, according to the court docket. Attorney Sean Carlton Mitchell was assigned to the case. A federal criminal complaint filed Sunday, Aug. 30, charged Brown with possession of a controlled substance, which carries up to one year in prison.

The complaint had no disposition listed as of Monday, Aug. 31.

Residents who observe suspicious activity near federal facilities can call the Fairfax County Police non-emergency line at 703-691-2131.