Arrested by FBI
Not guilty plea entered for three federal misdemeanors
Coeymans man faces charges for taking part in Jan. 6 insurrection at U.S. Capitol.
A 70-year-old Coeymans man who staunchly opposes what he called “ungodly socialist forces” was arrested by the FBI on Tuesday and charged in U.S. District Court with taking part in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.
William Tryon, whose attendance at the Jan. 6 storming of the Capitol was caught on Youtube.com, was charged with three federal misdemeanors: knowingly entering a restricted building without authority, engaging in disorderly conduct in a restricted building and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.
The top charges carry a maximum of a year behind bars and maximum fine of $100,000, Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua Rosenthal told U.S. Magistrate Judge Daniel Stewart during Tryon’s appearance in the James T. Foley U.S. Courthouse in Albany on Tuesday afternoon.
Tryon, represented by attorney Lauren Owens, pleaded not guilty.
Additional details of the case against Tryon are in a federal complaint that prosecutors had not made public as of Tuesday evening. The case is being brought by federal prosecutors in Washington, D.C.
A video posted on Youtube featuring footage of the Capitol insurrection also includes an interview with Tryon outside the Capitol on Jan. 6.
“This is our country; this is our Capitol building,” Tryon says in the clip. “All we want to do is enter and tell our representatives that we want our country back. We’re not gonna take this!”
Tryon, getting louder and choked up, references two young boys, not seen in the video, and compares the storming of the Capital to the June 6, 1944, D-day invasion during World War 11. “Those two boys deserve what those men in Normandy paid for. This was nothing so far,” he says. “This is your freedom.” The interviewer asks Tryon, “What happened to you? Did you go inside?” Tryon responds that he was pepper-sprayed “right at the door” and hit with batons two or three times. “Actually, inside,” he adds. “I don’t know. What the hell — I feel pretty good!” Tryon says. “You look pretty good!” the interviewer replies. “I know. I feel good!” Tryon answers. “It’s our country.” Chants of “U-S-A” can be heard in the background.
In another video posted on Facebook on Jan. 23 Tryon asks with a laugh, “Do I really look like a threat to our country?” It was taken outside the state Capitol in Albany where Tryon, among a few other conservatives, said they were appearing once a week.
The defendant’s remarks were on a Facebook page for a group called “Liberty Bell Alliance 76,” with which Tryon is
closely involved.
In a description of the group on the page, he described it saying: “Modern day Minutemen and women working together through peaceful channels to protect our children’s beautiful America from ungodly socialist forces that would destroy it from within, and enslave our posterity!!! Bill Tryon.”
Tryon, a registered member of the Conservative Party, is a familiar face in Capital Region conservative circles. He was one of the organizers of a “Back the Blue” rally held last summer in Albany, according to WAMC.
In the fall, he also protested outside Schenectady County courthouse while lawyers inside argued over how much of a police officer’s personnel file should be made public after New York repealed a state law that shielded such disclosures. At that time, an emotional Tryon told reporters he hoped to let law enforcement know they were appreciated. He said he backed the release of disciplinary records, but only if the officer’s conduct was criminal.
Tryon is one of several local people who have been arrested in connection with the insurrection in Washington, D.C.
In late January, the FBI arrested 29-year-old James Bonet of Glens Falls after tipsters sent them Facebook videos that captured him smoking what appears to be pot in the Capitol building and proclaiming it “our house!” according to the complaint.
Brandon Fellows, 26, of Niskayuna was also arrested. While inside the Capitol, Fellows allegedly put his feet up on the desk of U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley of Oregon. He was charged with two misdemeanor federal offenses: violating a restricted building or grounds and violent entry or disorderly conduct.
Tryon is scheduled to reappear on April 13 at 2 p.m. The judge allowed Tryon to remain free under conditions that required him to stay within the 32-county Northern District of New York unless otherwise approved, provide a DNA sample, appear at all proceedings and not face any new charges (Tryon has no prior record) and avoid anyone involved in the case or similar cases.