Prosecutors say Stewart Rhodes spoke by phone to members during the riot.
As federal prosecutors appear to continue to criticize Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes for his potential role in the January 6 Capitol riot, court documents describe additional communications between Rhodes and members of the militia group during and after the attack, including a supposed message from Rhodes, which suggests that he expected President Donald Trump to act during the attack.
Federal prosecutors claimed in the latest lawsuit that Rhodes, identified as “Person One” – that previous investigative cases described how the leader and founder of the Oath Keepers – received a brief call with another Oath Keeper while that person stood between a group of hooligans working to force open the eastern entrance to the Capitol just minutes before breaking into the building.
According to prosecutors, Rhodes, known not by name, but as “Person One”, exchanged a 97-second phone call at around 2:32 pm with Florida Oath Keepers leader Kelly Meggs, who was charged in the riot conspiracy case on Capitol Hill, like Meggs and other members of a tactical “pile”, dressed in militia clothes, pushed the crowd into the Capitol.
Minutes later, the Oath Keepers pile forcibly entered the Capitol, according to the court’s filing.
Rhodes was photographed outside the Capitol building during the rebellion, but no photograph shows him inside the building.
He was not charged with any crime and denied having coordinated or played a role in the attack on the Capitol. He did not respond to a request for comment from ABC News.
The new evidence is part of prosecutors’ efforts to keep Jessica Watkins, one of 10 alleged Oath Keepers accused in the Capitol conspiracy, detained until trial. Watkins called for the release of the court, arguing that these communications, which prosecutors said were exchanged through the Signal encrypted messaging platform, do not contain evidence of a conspiracy to prevent certification from the Electoral College.
According to recent government court documents, the call during the riot came after Rhodes, in previously revealed communications in which he was identified as “Person One”, used a Signal chat group entitled “DC OP: 06 January 21 “to share a photo of the Capitol with other members with a caption that read” South side of the US Capitol. Patriots knocking on doors. “
Soon after, while the Oath Keepers and others were inside the Capitol, Rhodes posted a photo showing the people on the Capitol and wrote, “Trump better do his damned duty.”
Other new messages included in the lawsuit show Rhodes at 5:50 pm asking leaders to “check that you have all of your team members. If anyone is missing, post here” and, later in the evening, sending a long message that served like a rallying cry, comparing the events of January 6 to the Boston Tea Party in 1773.
“We have a FINAL chance to get Trump to do his job and his duty,” wrote Rhodes according to prosecutors. “Patriots entering their own Capitol to send a message to traitors is NOTHING compared to what is to come if Trump does not take decisive action now.”
Rhodes went on to say that it was more important for Trump to see the Capitol riot, adding, “I hope he got the message.”
The next morning, on January 7, the Oath Keeper, Joshua James, reportedly sent a message to the group: “Trump admitted … it’s over. We lost.”