Federico Klein, who lives in the DC area and serves for Freddie, is the first known political nominee from the Trump administration to be arrested for participating in the siege. Federal officials noted that Klein, who is also a former Trump campaign advisor, had a top-secret security clearance at the time of the riot and resigned from the State Department at the end of the government.
Investigators found several images of Klein in the rebellion, allegedly using a police riot shield to open an entrance for protesters and fighting a police line for several minutes, according to his arrest statement. Klein wore a red “Make America Great Again” cap and then changed to a “United States Marine Corps” cap during the riot, investigators say.
Klein is accused of six criminal cases, including assaulting police officers with dangerous weapons, violent entry to the Capitol and obstruction of law enforcement and Congress. About 300 people have been charged with federal crimes related to the siege.
He will be in custody at least until March 9, when a longer hearing will be held for the judge to hear the prosecutor’s arguments to keep him in detention and Klein’s responses through his lawyers.
“It’s really impossible to do anything for me right now,” said Klein during his first appearance in court on Friday, as the court discussed hiring a lawyer. He was represented by a public defender in court on Friday.
“I wonder if there is a place where I can be detained where there are no cockroaches crawling on me while I try to sleep,” Klein also told Judge Zia Faruqui. “I didn’t really sleep at all, Your Honor.”
Faruqui told Klein that he is only in a place of temporary detention and will be transferred.
Klein worked at the Secretariat of State from 2017 to 2021 at the Secretariat for Affairs of Brazil and the Southern Cone, according to the arrest record. At some point, he moved from that western-centered office to the Freedom of Information Act unit, which processes public record requests received by the Department, according to several sources familiar with his work.
He also helped with the department’s transition team, a State Department spokesman said on Friday.
He had been paid by the Trump campaign for almost $ 13,000 in 2016, show the Federal Election Commission’s campaign financial records.
The State Department said on Friday that his resignation would take effect on January 21 – the typical departure date for those nominated by the Trump administration who remained until the end of the Trump presidency.
Informants and witnesses finally identified Klein for the FBI after his resignation from the state, after his image was displayed on a police poster in search of information about unidentified protesters. In mid-February, a former Klein co-worker at the State Department spoke to the FBI and a special diplomatic security officer at the Department, identifying him in photos of the siege, according to his arrest record.
A State Department spokesman referred questions about Klein’s case to the Justice Department, which is suing him.
The State Department’s lack of response in the days after the insurrection was notable, even among the Trump Cabinet.
After the rebellion, then Secretary of State Mike Pompeo used Twitter to condemn protesters who invaded and injured the police, invaded the Capitol and occupied the Senate chamber while lawmakers tried to formally mark President-elect Joe Biden’s victory. But Pompeo never pointed a finger at Trump for encouraging the rowdies and sought to praise the president’s record during his last days in office.
“Look, what happened that day was terrible, and I said over and over that people who engaged in this activity need to be identified, prosecuted and are criminals and should be treated as such,” said Pompeo to Hugh Hewitt, a conservative radio host. . “But the story will reflect on the good work that this president and our government have done.”
CNN’s Christina Carrega and Mary Kay Mallonee contributed to this report.