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A California man who was arrested this week for having a wooden guillotine near the US Capitol grounds pleaded not guilty at a Wednesday arraignment to a misdemeanor weapon charge, court records show.

Prosecutors sought to keep 35-year-old Philan-Tam-Duy Le in jail, but Judge Robert Hildum of the District of Columbia superior court declined the request, according to the Washington Post.

At the Wednesday hearing, Hildum acknowledged having a guillotine amounted to a “very, very serious thing”, but noted that Le did not threaten anyone with the device.

The remark stood in contrast to prosecutors’ accusation that Le, who has been charged with attempted possession of a prohibited weapon, had intent to use the guillotine “unlawfully against another”, per court docs.

“He didn’t even threaten anyone,” Hildum reportedly said. “He didn’t flee. He didn’t do anything other than speak to police officers.”

US Capitol police officers observed the 10ft-tall antiquated decapitation device, historically used for executions in France and other European countries, in the back of a black Toyota Tacoma on Tuesday. The officers made contact with Le as he sat on the side of the wooden machine. The Tacoma had been parked illegally in a Library of Congress permit-only spot near the supreme court building.

An officer asked Le whether the guillotine was working and could cut him.

“Yeah, it’s the real deal, man,” Le responded, according to a court affidavit.

His lawyer, Anthony Smith, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Le told Capitol police he had no specific reason for being near the federal grounds and that he did not have issues with any members of Congress, according to the affidavit.

It remains unclear why he allegedly had the guillotine.

Capitol police released photos on Wednesday of the large guillotine positioned upright in the truck bed, both of which they have seized.

Le’s brother, Kelvin Le, told the Los Angeles Times on Tuesday: “I don’t think he’d hurt anyone.”

Le lacked partisan allegiances, but was unhappy with the state of politics, the LA Times reported. Kelvin Le said the guillotine may have been intended as a “symbol of disapproval”.

Kelvin Le described his brother as a free spirit, who is skilled in handcraft and enjoys taking road trips.

Le had resided in Julian, a mountain town 60 miles (97km) north east of San Diego.

An investigation into Le’s background and his reasons for traveling to Washington is under way, according to Capitol police.