Kevin Seefried, one of more than 70 people arrested related to the riot, is accused of violent entry to the U.S. Capitol
Washington, January 15 (RHC)-- The man photographed carrying a Confederate battle flag inside the U.S. Capitol during last week’s mob attack on the building in Washington, DC has been arrested.
The Justice department has announced that Kevin Seefried, who was pictured holding the flag, was arrested in the state of Delaware along with his son Hunter Seefried, who was seen on video punching out a glass window in the Capitol complex, the Reuters news agency reported.
The Seefrieds were charged with unlawfully entering a restricted building, violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds and degradation of government property.
Separately on Thursday, the Justice Department confirmed to Reuters that a retired firefighter suspected of throwing a fire extinguisher at police during the attack was arrested. Robert Sanford, 55, of Chester, Pennsylvania, will appear in a virtual hearing in federal court in Allentown, Pennsylvania on Thursday to face charges of unlawful entry, civil disorder and assaulting, resisting or impeding police.
According to court documents, Sanford was captured on video hurling what appears to be a fire extinguisher at police. “The object appears to strike one officer, who was wearing a helmet, in the head. The object then ricochets and strikes another officer, who was not wearing a helmet, in the head. The object then ricochets a third time and strikes a third officer, wearing a helmet, in the head,” the documents said.
The Justice Department has brought more than 70 criminal cases so far since supporters of President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol on January 6, trying to prevent Congress from certifying Joe Biden as the winner of the U.S. presidential election.
Many of the people arrested so far were captured on social media bragging about taking part in the assault, and the FBI has been combing through more than 100,000 videos and photographs. After the violence was quelled, most of the rioters were allowed to leave the Capitol, meaning law enforcement has had to track them down in the days since.
One such person was Hunter Ehmke, charged by the Justice Department on Thursday with damaging government property, obstructing an official proceeding and violent entry. According to court documents, a Capitol Police officer witnessed Ehmke smash a window at the Capitol and rushed at him with his shield to try to stop him.
The officer “lost grip of the shield and fell” on to shards of glass, the documents say. Police managed to detain Ehmke but the crowd started to become aggressive and threatened police if they took Ehmke away.
“Due to the growing aggression of the large crowd that far outnumbered the officers and the exigent circumstances at the time, officers made the decision to allow Ehmke depart under his own power,” according to the government’s statement of facts.
