Over 100 Arrests Made After Capitol Hill Siege: Who Are They?

Over 100 Arrests Made After Capitol Hill Siege: Who Are They?

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On Tuesday, DOJ and FBI officials held a press conference saying they have made over 70 arrests in connection to the siege of Capitol Hill on Jan. 6, saying that number is expected to increase exponentially in the weeks and months to come.

Less than 24 hours later, the arrest numbers have already jumped to over 100, according to a tally by The Associated Press from a nationwide review of court records and announcements of arrests issued by law enforcement agencies. 


What You Need To Know

  • Over 100 people across the country have been arrested in connection to the violent siege on Capitol Hill last Wednesday, according to an AP tally
  • The charges range from misdemeanor curfew violations in the District of Columbia to federal felonies related to the assault of law enforcement officers
  • A man who was photographed wearing a “Camp Auschwitz” sweatshirt during the U.S. Capitol riot last week was arrested Wednesday in Virginia
  • Aaron Mostofsky, the son of a prominent Brooklyn judge, was arrested Tuesday after being seen storming the U.S. Capitol building with other pro-Trump rioters

The charges range from misdemeanor curfew violations in the District of Columbia to federal felonies related to the assault of law enforcement officers, theft of government property and possessing firearms and explosives. But officials said Tuesday the misdemeanors are merely placeholders, with prosecutors planning to bring more serious charges — including the possibility of sedition, in some cases — against those individuals who have already been arrested. 

Law enforcement now has the herculean task of sifting through hundreds of thousands of pictures and videos from last Wednesday, with officials receiving over 100,000 pieces of digital media as of Tuesday afternoon. 

Officials on Tuesday acknowledged concern surrounding a widely-circulated photograph of the “zip-tie guys,” which shows two men carrying what appear to be zip-tie handcuffs while in the Senate chamber. Law enforcement officials say they are still actively investigating whether the men — who have since been arrested — or any other people intended to take members of Congress hostage. 

While the scope of the investigation into the violent siege of Capitol Hill will likely not be known for months to come, law enforcement officials have already made several high-profile arrests in connection to the event. 

Here are some of the people who have been arrested in connection to the insurrection on Capitol Hill: 

Robert Keith Packer via Western Tidewater Regional Jail/AP

A man who was photographed wearing a “Camp Auschwitz” sweatshirt during the U.S. Capitol riot last week was arrested Wednesday in Virginia, authorities said.

Robert Keith Packer, 56, was arrested in Newport News, where he lives. He was charged with violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, and knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority.

A law enforcement official said Packer is the man who is seen in a photo inside the Capitol wearing a sweatshirt with the name of the Nazi concentration camp where about 1.1 million people were killed during World War II. The sweatshirt also contained the phrase, “Work brings freedom,” a translation of “Arbeit macht frei,” the German phrase that appeared on the camp’s entrance. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to release details of the case.

Another man, Douglas Allen Sweet (not pictured), of Grimstead, Virginia, was also arrested Wednesday for his alleged participation in the riot.

Court records for Sweet show he faces similar counts as Packer does, including violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.

Sweet was charged along with five other people who police said were on the upper level of the United States Capitol Visitors Center, near the door to the House Atrium.

The criminal complaint against Sweet and five others described a scene in which a crowd of several dozen people were “making loud noises, and kicking chairs, throwing an unknown liquid substance at officers, and spraying an unknown substance at officers.”

Capitol police ordered the crowd to leave, and the crowd responded by shouting and cursing at the officers, the complaint states. Police said Sweet and the five others “were positioned towards the front of the crowd, close to the Capitol police officers who were responding.”

“The six individuals, like others in the larger crowd, willfully refused the order to leave,” the complaint says.

 

Aaron Mostofsky via AP

34-year-old Aaron Mostofsky, the son of a prominent Brooklyn judge, was arrested Tuesday after being seen storming the U.S. Capitol building with other pro-Trump rioters last Wednesday. 

Mostofsky was caught on camera, clad in fur and wearing a bullet-proof police vest, inside the Capitol building. He faces four charges, including theft of government property and unlawful entry.

Mostofsky was released on $100,000 bond after appearing remotely before a judge. If convicted, he faces a maximum of 10 years in prison.

His father is Judge Shlomo Mostofsky of Kings County Supreme Court, a well-known figure in the Orthodox Jewish community.

Federal authorities on Sunday arrested two men who were photographed with plastic restraints inside the Capitol. Investigators said they used social media and livestream videos to identify Eric Munchel of Tennessee as the masked person seen in photos carrying plastic hand restraints in the Senate chamber.

Retired Air Force Lt. Col. Larry Rendall Brock Jr. of Texas was photographed on the Senate floor carrying zip-tie handcuffs and wearing a military-style helmet and vest, authorities said. He confirmed to The New Yorker that he was the man in the photographs and claimed he found the handcuffs on the floor. “I wish I had not picked those up,” he said.

Jacob Chansley via AP

Jacob Anthony Chansley, also known as Jake Angeli, is a regular at pro-Trump events and a known follower of QAnon. He has been widely referred to as the “Q Shaman,” a moniker that was only reinforced after photos circulated of him holding an American flag while wearing a fur hat with horns that had red, white and blue face paint during the Capitol Hill siege.

Angeli was arrested on Saturday after turning himself in to the FBI. He was charged with knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority, and with violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, according to a press release from the DOJ

“It is alleged that Chansley was identified as the man seen in media coverage who entered the Capitol building dressed in horns, a bearskin headdress, red, white and blue face paint, shirtless, and tan pants,” the release states. “This individual carried a spear, approximately 6 feet in length, with an American flag tied just below the blade.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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