Berks man arrested for role in U.S. Capitol riot
Ian MacBride of Douglassville has been charged with obstructing an official proceeding on Jan. 6, 2021
U.S. CAPITOL BREACH
A Douglassville man has been arrested on charges related to his conduct during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Ian MacBride, 43, is charged with a felony offense of obstructing an official proceeding, the U.S.
Department of Justice announced.
In addition to the felony charge, MacBride is charged with misdemeanor offenses, including entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds; disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds; disorderly conduct in a Capitol building; theft of government property and parading; and demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building.
MacBride was arrested Thursday. He made his initial appearance in an Eastern District of Pennsylvania federal courtroom and was later released on $25,000 bail.
According to a release from the Department of Justice:
MacBride was identified in and around the Capitol building and grounds on Jan. 6, 2021.
At 2:17 p.m., MacBride scaled the northwest stairs of the Capitol building with other rioters and approached the exterior of the Senate wing door. MacBride entered the building through the Senate wing door at 2:18 p.m., just five minutes after the initial breach. At the time MacBride entered, a loud siren continuously rang inside the doorway and shattered glass covered the floor near the entryway.
After entering the building, MacBride turned north and walked into a large, circular room known as the crypt, where he joined other rioters amassing against a thin line of U.S. Capitol Police officers blocking the crowd from breaching further into the Capitol.
At 2:25 p.m., the crowd of rioters in the crypt overran the line of officers blocking their path, allowing the crowd to fill the remainder of the room and access the memorial door staircase leading to the second floor of the Capitol where the Senate and House chambers are located.
After the rioters had pushed past police and filled the crypt, MacBride is seen following the crowd into a doorway and eventually toward the memorial door staircase. Capitol Police officers led MacBride and several other rioters east to the memorial doors, where MacBride left the building at 2:39 p.m.
Court documents state that during his time on Capitol grounds, MacBride stole a Capitol Police sign that stated “Area Closed.” MacBride allegedly later made a post on a social media forum stating, “Hung my Capitol battle flags and ill gotten ‘Area Closed’ sign up in my bar tonight.” He also posted photos of the sign hanging on a wall in his basement bar.
In the following days, MacBride again posted on a social media forum, writing, “I don’t regret my part in occupying the building.”
In the 36 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,265 people have been charged in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 440 people charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement.