Through his many campaigns for office, Harrell has never mentioned the arrest. Harrell’s online biographies make no mention of living or working in Omaha.

Current Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell was arrested on weapons charges nearly three decades ago in Iowa. The charges were dropped, but the mayor has not spoken about the ordeal until recently. He believes he was racially profiled in the incident.

The arrest, which Harrell never publicly discussed before but came to light after multiple local media outlets reported on it Wednesday night, came in September 1996 in Pottawattamie County, Iowa while he was living in Omaha, Nebraska. Harrell provided a statement to KING 5 about the arrest late Wednesday night.