Federal authorities seek to identify suspects who breached Capitol
Federal authorities expect to arrest more than a dozen pro-Trump rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol in a violent assault, officials said.
At least one laptop with national security data and congressional members’ mail was stolen in the breach, and a two pipe bombs were found on the Capitol’s grounds along with a number of Molotov cocktails, federal officials told multiple news outlets in the wake of the riots.
Acting Attorney General Jeffery Rosen in a statement Thursday denounced the violence that left five people dead, including a Capitol Police officer hit on the head with a fire extinguisher who died on Thursday evening, according to multiple news reports.
Additionally, Washington’s Metropolitan Police Department said it had made more than 80 arrests for trespassing and breaking curfew.
More than 50 Capitol Police and other law enforcement officers were injured in the breach, and one woman was shot by police while trying to break through a door inside the Capitol, according to officials. Another three people died due to medical emergencies, official sources said.
Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick was injured while engaging with suspects, the USCP said in a statement on Thursday evening.
“He returned to his division office and collapsed. He was taken to a local hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. The death of Officer Sicknick will be investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department’s Homicide Branch, the USCP, and our federal partners.”
Sicknick had been with the department, most recently as part of the first responder unit, since 2008.
In the wake of the incident, the FBI and other federal law enforcement agencies are seeking to identify and arrest suspects who were videotaped or photographed inside the Capitol.
“Our criminal prosecutors have been working throughout the night with special agents and investigators from the U.S. Capitol Police, FBI, ATF, Metropolitan Police Department and the public to gather the evidence, identify perpetrators, and charge federal crimes where warranted,” Rosen said.
“Some participants in yesterday’s violence will be charged (Thursday), and we will continue to methodically assess evidence, charge crimes and make arrests in the coming days and weeks to ensure that those responsible are held accountable under the law,” he added.
Investigators are combing social media and cellphone records to determine who was involved in the destructive security breach that made international headlines.
The riots broke out around 2:15 p.m. on Wednesday as thousands of pro-Trump agitators stormed through the metal barriers around the U.S. Capitol and entered the building, forcing lawmakers trying to certify Joe Biden’s Electoral College win to flee the inner chamber.
Footage of the chaos shows overwhelmed Capitol police struggling to stop the violent mob from entering the building and making it to the floor of Congress where lawmakers were certifying the election results.
U.S. Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund, who announced he would resign effective Jan. 16 following Wednesday’s breach of security, said the riots were “unlike anything” he’s experienced in his 30 years in law enforcement in D.C.
“Maintaining public safety in an open environment — specifically for First Amendment activities — has long been a challenge . ... But make no mistake — these mass riots were not First Amendment activities; they were criminal, riotous behavior. The actions of the USCP officers were heroic given the situation they faced,” he said, noting that multiple pipe bombs were discovered in cars and around the building even as rioters fought their way inside.
“The USCP is conducting a thorough review of this incident, security planning and policies and procedures,” he noted.
The mob broke into House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office, and photos showed one trespasser sitting at a desk on the U.S. Senate floor occupied by Vice President Mike Pence before the evacuation.