Supporters of US President Donald Trump gather at the west entrance of the Capitol during a “Stop the Steal” protest outside the Capitol in Washington DC on January 6, 2021.
Stephanie Keith | Reuters
Federal authorities said Tuesday they expect to soon indict hundreds of people in connection with the Capitol riot.
Officials added that they directed a strike unit to gather evidence of hate speech and conspiracy prosecution.
An FBI official confirmed a report that the FBI received information about the possibility of violence prior to the riot on Wednesday and shared that information with other Washington law enforcement agencies.
“Yesterday my office organized a strike unit of prosecutors whose only orders are to bring sedition charges in connection with the most heinous acts in the Capitol,” said Michael Sherwin, acting United States attorney for the District of Columbia, during a news conference It was pointed out that the maximum possible prison sentence for sedition is 20 years.
Sherwin said more than 70 people have been arrested by a group of supporters of President Donald Trump in connection with the uprising last Wednesday. Around 100 more criminal proceedings were opened.
“This is the tip of the iceberg,” said Steven D’Antuono, assistant director of the FBI’s Washington Field Office
Fees were relatively modest in some of these cases, but Sherwin said he expected the fees to increase for some people.
And he reckons that the number of those arrested will “increase geometrically” in the coming weeks.
“We will focus on the main charges,” said Sherwin. “This is just the beginning.”
He said the FBI and Justice Department’s “mind-boggling” charges were murder, gun possession, police assault, civil rights violations, mail theft, computer theft and trespassing.
“For example, we had a big jury in DC yesterday,” said Sherwin. “It was booked all day. We presented riot-related crimes and gun possession.”
He said he also hired a designated prosecutor in his office to focus on attacks on journalists during the riot.
“You will be found, you will be charged,” Sherwin warned members of the mob, many of whom are believed to have returned to their homes across the country.
D’Antuono said more than 100,000 digital files were sent to investigators with clues about the riot.
He also said that “several people” voluntarily reported their participation in the uprising to the authorities.
“Come forward,” D’Antuono urged other participants.
He said that prior to the riot, the FBI “had developed some information that a number of people were planning to travel to DC to cause violence”.
“We said that information and action had been taken, as demonstrated by the arrest of Enrique Tarrio the night before the rally. Other people were identified and the trip was disrupted,” he said.
At least four people died in the riot, including a Capitol police officer. Two pipe bombs were found near the Capitol complex by the headquarters of the Republican National Committee and the Democratic National Committee.
The violence began after a Trump rally where he, his son and personal attorney Rudy Giuliani called on a crowd to fight him in an attempt to get Congress to reject Joe Biden’s election as president.
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