Richard Barnett faces multiple charges for the assault on the Capitol. Photo: JIM LO SCALZO / EFE
By: EFE 08 from January 2021
WASHINGTON – The man who in the assault on the United States Congress entered and took pictures on Wednesday in the office of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, was arrested this Friday in Arkansas, reported the authorities.
The individual, identified as Richard Barnett , has been charged with illegal entry to a restricted building, violent entry and disorderly conduct on the Capitol and stealing public property, by the legislator’s mail that he allegedly took, after posing for photographers.
Newly elected Republican state legislator Derrick Evans, from West Virginia, also thickens the group of 13 alleged participants in the assault on the Capitol what have been accused of the raid on the Legislative headquarters, in which there were five deaths, including a policeman, reported the Department of Justice.
Barnett, of 60 years and known by the nickname of “Bigo” was arrested in the city of Little Rock, Arkansas, reported Washington Assistant United States Attorney Kenneth Kohl.
The individual was photographed sitting, with feet on Pelosi’s desk, in the office of the Speaker of the House, an image that quickly went around the world as the epitome of the chaos generated by Trumpistas in Congress.
On his Facebook page, according to the media locals, Barnett has defended positions close to white nationalism and wrote that he is prepared for a violent death.
For its part, the legislator or state Derrick Evans has been charged with trespassing on restricted land, a federal crime , after having been videotaped entering the Capitol by force shouting “We are inside.”
After being identified by the released images of the assault, the legislator’s lawyer, John Bryan issued a statement on Thursday in which he maintained the innocence of his client, of whom he said was exercising his rights of free expression.
According to the lawyer, Evans was not part of the group that starred in the riot and the raid of the legislative headquarters.
The 13 arrested so far are only the first , since efforts will be maintained against “those responsible for the criminal acts of violence and destruction carried out during the rape of the Capitol building, ” said FBI Director Christopher Wray.
“To be clear, what happened that day was not an activity protected by the First Amendment (which guarantees freedom of expression), but a an affront to our democracy, ”added Wray.
>> How Trump was “alone” and why the attack on the Capitol can generate a schism in the Republican Party >> The Capitol Police did confirm the death of an agent during the assault on the Capitol >> Why the assault on the Capitol does not become a coup but it brings the US closer to fragile democracies Among those arrested is Lonnie Coffman of Ala bama, accused of possession of an unregistered firearm and in whose vehicle the police found “eleven explosive devices known as Molotov cocktails and firearms”, reported by the Department of Justice.
Also Christopher Alberts of Maryland , who carried “a pistol on his hip, a bulletproof vest”, a backpack with a knife, a gas mask and a “first aid kit”.
The Attorney General’s Office is preparing to open a federal criminal case for the death of the policeman in these incidents, reported today by local media.
The Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick was one of the five fatalities of the assault perpetrated by supporters of President Donald Trump to disrupt a session in which the electoral victory was certified Democrat’s l Joe Biden .
Congressmen Democrats and some Republicans have held Donald Trump responsible for the incidents for urging protesters to go to Congress in a speech to the White House in which he reiterated his unsubstantiated allegations of electoral fraud.