So much for a “peaceful” protest.
Molotov cocktails. Rifles and pistols. Pipe bombs. Body armor and handcuffs with zipper.
The MAGA crowd that invaded Washington, DC, and invaded the US Capitol appeared for a “protest” with the battle implements – creating what a federal prosecutor called “a very dangerous situation”.
They were not prevented from looting the house of Congress on Wednesday, but now federal officials are filing the first charges against them for the deadly uprising.
“We will make as many accusations as we can,” said Michael Sherwin, an incumbent DC attorney, at a news conference on Thursday. “This is just the beginning.”
Sherwin said prosecutors are filing federal lawsuits in 15 criminal cases related to Wednesday’s violence. They include the man trapped with his “military semi-automatic rifle” and 11 Molotov cocktails that were “ready to go”, another hooligan wielding a pistol and a third protester who repeatedly punched a police officer.
When asked if he was planning to investigate the White House, Sherwin insisted that all options are still on the table and that his investigation into the disturbances is ongoing. The chief prosecutor added that his office is also trying to file lawsuits against people who may have organized the riot.
“We are trying to deal with the crocodiles closest to the boat right now,” said Sherwin. “These are the people who obviously violated the Capitol, created violence and chaos there and then left. But yes, we are looking at all the actors here, not just the people who entered the building ”.
Sherwin said he would consider charges of sedition and insurrection, but his office would start with crimes “easier to prove”. He did not rule out the possibility of legal action against President Donald Trump, his lawyer Rudy Giuliani or any other speakers who stirred the crowd before the riot.
The Daily Beast obtained a statement from a Capitol Police officer – the force charged with defending the seat of American legislative affairs – that describes how a certain Mark Jefferson Leffingwell was among the hundreds of right-wing rioters who forced his way into the compound as lawmakers. they were trying to certify President-elect Joe Biden’s victory in November.
The officer describes how Leffingwell punched him when he tried to stop him from joining the crowd that ended up in the Senate Chamber.
“When he was prevented from moving further into the building, Leffingwell punched me several times with a closed fist,” wrote the officer in the statement. “I was hit in the helmet I was wearing and in the chest.”
The officer describes how he and his colleagues subdued Leffingwell after a fight. Once in custody, the officer claims that Leffingwell apologized for attacking him.
Efforts to reach Leffingwell and his family were not immediately successful. He faces charges of assaulting a federal police officer, as well as several charges of breaking into a restricted building and committing violence inside.
In a separate complaint, a DC Metropolitan Police officer detailed his meeting with Christopher Michael Alberts of Maryland. While applying Mayor Muriel Bowser’s curfew and driving protesters away from the Capitol, the policeman reported that Alberts, wearing a bulletproof vest, tried to stay behind.
When he approached the 33-year-old man, the officer said he realized that Alberts had a pistol – and when he searched him he discovered ammunition clips, a knife, gas mask, first aid kit and a ready-to-eat military meal. Alberts faces federal charges of possession of a firearm and ammunition without a license on Capitol Hill and violation of the curfew. Attempts to contact Alberts were unsuccessful.
While the right-wing media on Wednesday afternoon repeatedly characterized the violent siege of the Capitol as “peaceful” – these accusations, like the photos of the day, show that it was anything but.
Several protesters carried weapons and restrictions in a sinister sign of their intentions. Some are visible in photos and videos carrying flexible handcuffs and zippers, often used as improvised handcuffs.
A man, all dressed in black, with a “Black Rifle Coffee” hat and a revolver-shaped object on his hip, was seen walking around the Senate chairs with a pack of flexible disposable handcuffs in his hand, while another man, dressed in armor and a Navy SEAL MICH helmet was on the Senate floor with handcuffs on his hands. Shortly before the siege, another man with “We Kill Commies” stamped on his helmet is visible outside the Capitol with a bundle of ties attached to his armor.
Others turned to irritants, revolvers and explosives.
“The violent attack on the United States Capitol was unlike any I have experienced in my 30 years of law enforcement here in Washington, DC,” Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund said in a statement.
“[Thousands of] actively attacked individuals [officers] with metal tubes, chemical irritants discharged and other weapons against our officers. They were determined to enter the Capitol building causing major damage. “
Metropolitan Police Chief Robert Contee said on Thursday that they made 68 arrests, including several for carrying unlicensed pistols, and recovered two tubular bombs placed at the headquarters of the Democratic and Republican National Committee.