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WASHINGTON (AP) – As supporters of President Donald Trump gathered in front of the Capitol last week and sang the national anthem, a line of men wearing drab olive helmets and bulletproof vests deliberately climbed the marble stairs in a single file, each man holding the collar of the jacket of the one above.
The training, known as the “Ranger File,” is standard operating procedure for a combat team that “stacks up” to pierce a building – instantly recognizable to any US soldier or navy who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. It was a frightening sign that many in the vanguard of the mob that stormed the seat of American Democracy had military training or were being trained by those who did.
An Associated Press review of public records, social media posts and videos shows that at least 21 current or former members of the US military or law enforcement have been identified as being at or near of the Capitol Riot, with more than a dozen others under investigation but not yet named. In many cases, those who stormed the Capitol appeared to be using tactics, bulletproof vests, and technology such as two-way radio headsets similar to those of the very police they were faced with.
Local extremism pundits have for years warned of efforts by far-right activists and white supremacists to radicalize and recruit people with military and police training, and they say the January 6 uprising that left five people dead has seen some of their worst. fears realized.
“ISIS and Al-Qaida were drooling over someone with the training and experience of a US military officer,” said Michael German, former FBI agent and member of the University’s Brennan Center for Justice from New York. “These people have training and capabilities that far exceed anything any foreign terrorist group can do. Foreign terrorist groups have no members who wear badges. “
Among the most important to emerge is a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel and decorated combat veteran from Texas who was arrested after being photographed wearing a helmet and body armor on the ground. of the Senate, holding a pair of zippered handcuffs.
Another San Diego Air Force veteran was shot and killed by a Capitol Police officer as she attempted to jump through a barricade near the bedroom of the house. A retired Navy SEAL, one of the military’s most elite special warfare operators, posted a video on Facebook about traveling from his home in Ohio to the rally and apparently approving the invasion of “our building, our house”.
Two police officers from a small town in Virginia, both former infantrymen, were arrested by the FBI after posting a selfie of themselves inside the Capitol, one blinking his middle finger in front of the camera .
An active-duty North Carolina psychological warfare captain who arranged three buses of people who traveled to Washington for the “Save America” rally to support the president’s false claim that the November election was stolen from him is also under surveillance. Judges across the country have repeatedly dismissed cases challenging election results, and former Attorney General William Barr, a Trump ally, said there was no sign of widespread fraud.
While the Pentagon declined to provide an estimate of how many other active-duty military personnel are under investigation, senior military officials were sufficiently concerned before President-elect Joe Biden was inaugurated that they issued a very unusual warning to all military personnel this week. the right to freedom of expression does not give anyone the right to commit violence.
The United States Capitol Police Chief was forced to resign over the violation and several officers were suspended pending the outcome of investigations into their conduct, including one who posed for a selfie with a rioter and another who was seen wearing one of Trump’s reds. “Make America Great Again” caps.
The AP’s review of hundreds of videos and photos of the insurgency riot shows dozens of people mixed in the crowd wearing military-style gear, including helmets, bulletproof vests, backpacks and two-way radios. Dozens of containers carried bear bombs, baseball bats, hockey sticks and pro-Trump flags attached to large sticks later used to hit police.
Close examination of the group that climbed the steps to help clear the Capitol shows that they were wearing military-style badges bearing the inscription “MILITIA” and “OATHKEEPER”. Others wore crests and badges depicting far-right militant groups, including the Proud Boys, the Three Percenters and various self-proclaimed state militias.
The Oath Keepers, who claim to number thousands of former and current law enforcement officials and veterans among their membership, have become fixtures in protests and counter-protests across the country, often heavily armed with semi-automatic rifles and tactical shotguns.
Stewart Rhodes, a military veteran who founded the Oath Keepers in 2009 in reaction to Barack Obama’s presidency, had said weeks before the Capitol riot that his group was preparing for a civil war and was “armed. , ready to come in if the president calls us.
Adam Newbold, a retired Navy SEAL from Lisbon, Ohio, whose military career spanning more than two decades includes several combat-for-bravery awards, said in a January 5 Facebook video: “We’re just very prepared patriots, very capable and very qualified ready. for a fight.
He then posted a follow-up video deleted since the riot saying he was “proud” of the assault.
Newbold, 45, did not respond to multiple AP messages, but in an interview with the Task & Purpose website, he denied ever entering the Capitol. He added that due to the fallout from the videos, he quit a program that helps prepare potential candidates for SEAL.
Army commanders at Fort Bragg, North Carolina are investigating the possible involvement of Captain Emily Rainey, the 30-year-old psychological operations officer and Afghanistan war veteran who told the PA she had traveled with 100 others to Washington to “oppose voter fraud.” “She insisted that she had acted in accordance with army regulations and that no one in her group entered the Capitol or broke the law.
“I was a private citizen and I was doing everything right and within my rights,” Rainey said.
Retired Air Force Lt. Col. Larry Rendall Brock Jr. of Texas was returned to house arrest Thursday after a prosecutor alleged the former fighter pilot was in handcuffs zipper on the floor of the Senate because he was planning to take hostages.
“He wants to kidnap, detain, maybe try, maybe execute members of the United States government,” said Deputy United States Attorney Jay Weimer. “His previous experience and training makes him all the more dangerous.
So far, more than 110 people have been arrested on charges related to the Capitol Riot, ranging from curfew violations to serious federal crimes related to theft and possession of weapons.
Brian Harrell, who served as deputy secretary for infrastructure protection at the Department of Homeland Security until last year, said it was “patently problematic” when “bad extremist actors” had a track record. military and law enforcement.
“Many have specialized training, some have witnessed combat, and almost all have been fed disinformation and propaganda from illegitimate sources,” Harrell said. “They are fueled by conspiracy theories, feel like something is being stolen from them and they are not interested in the debate. It’s a powder keg cocktail waiting to blow.
The FBI warns of the potential for more bloodshed. In an internal bulletin released on Sunday, the office warned of plans for armed protests in all 50 state capitals and Washington, DC, in the coming weeks.
Meanwhile, police departments in major cities like New York, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Houston and Philadelphia have announced they are investigating whether members of their agencies participated in the Capitol Riot. The Philadelphia area transportation company is also investigating that seven of its police officers who attended Trump’s Washington rally broke laws.
A Texas sheriff announced last week that he had reported one of his lieutenants to the FBI after posting photos of herself on social media with a crowd outside the Capitol. Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar said Lieutenant Roxanne Mathai, a 46-year-old jailer, was entitled to attend the rally, but is investigating whether she may have broken the law.
One of the messages Mathai shared was a photo that appeared to have been taken on January 6 among the mass of Trump supporters outside Capitol Hill, captioned: “I’m not going to lie. … apart from my kids it was indeed the best day of my life. And it’s not finished yet.
A lawyer for Mathai, a mother and longtime San Antonio resident, said she attended the Trump rally but never entered Capitol Hill.
In Houston, Police Chief Art Acevedo said an 18-year veteran of the department suspected of joining the mob that violated the Capitol has been placed on leave and will face a disciplinary hearing.
“There is no excuse for criminal activity, especially on the part of a police officer,” Acevedo said. “I can’t tell you the anger I feel at the idea of a policeman and other policemen, thinking they can storm the Capitol.
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Bleiberg reported from Dallas and LaPorta from Delray Beach, Florida. Robert Burns and Mike Balsamo in Washington; Jim Mustian, Michael R. Sisak and Thalia Beaty in New York; Michael Kunzelman in College Park, Maryland; Juan A. Lozano in Houston; Claudia Lauer in Philadelphia; Martha Bellisle in Seattle; and Stefanie Dazio in Los Angeles contributed.
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Follow Associated Press investigative reporter Michael Biesecker at http://twitter.com/mbieseck; Jake Bleiberg at http://twitter.com/JZBleiberg; and James LaPorta at http://twitter.com/JimLaPorta
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Contact the AP Global Investigation Team at [email protected]
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