Judge sets bail for man accused in US Capitol rioting

Nicholas Ochs was arrested Thursday after he returned home to Honolulu

HONOLULU — A U.S. judge in Honolulu on Monday ordered a Hawaii resident and neofascist group member accused of participating in the riot at the U.S. Capitol last week to be released on $5,000 bail.

Nicholas Ochs was arrested Thursday after he returned home to Honolulu from Washington. He was charged with illegally entering a restricted building or grounds, a misdemeanor.

Court documents say Ochs posted a photo of himself to his Twitter account on Jan. 6 with the caption ìHello from the Capitol lol.î He later acknowledged to a CNN reporter that he entered the Capitol, the documents said.

Ochs did not enter a plea during Monday’s hearing, which was held via telephone to limit the spread of the coronavirus. His lawyer Myles Breiner did not immediately return a call seeking comment on the charge.

Ochs is the founder of the Hawaii chapter of the Proud Boys, a neofascist group. He was the Republican Party’s candidate to represent Waikiki in the state House of Representatives in the November election. Ochs lost to Democrat Adrian Tam after winning nearly 30 percent of the vote.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Wes Reber Porter said Ochs would not be allowed to travel outside Oahu as a condition of his release, except to go to Washington for court hearings.

However, the U.S. court in Washington has said his proceedings would all be conducted by WebEx or Zoom due to the pandemic, so there was no need for him to travel there.