VI News Staff 3 years ago
VINStaff Verified #usnews

US Capitol rioter 'sought to physically remove' Pelosi and McConnell, prosecutors say

(CNN)Justice Department prosecutors say they have evidence that an alleged rioter who brought a gun to the US Capitol on January 6 was targeting both House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and then-Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

According to a filing Thursday, Guy Reffitt, a member of the Texas Three Percenter militia, "specifically targeted at least two lawmakers -- the Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, and then-Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell -- whom he sought to physically remove or displace from the Capitol building."

Prosecutors aim to prove the allegation at Reffitt's trial, which is tentatively scheduled for late February. He will be the first January 6 defendant to go to trial, and is facing five federal charges. He has pleaded not guilty, and has been in jail since his arrest in January.

According to court documents, Reffitt drove to Washington, DC, days before the riot, carrying an AR-15 rifle and pistol in his car. Prosecutors say Reffitt wore body armor and carried his pistol and plastic cuff restraints on the Capitol grounds on January 6.

The assertion by prosecutors may further undermine efforts by some Republicans to whitewash the deadly insurrection and claims by former President Donald Trump that rioters posed "zero threat" to those inside the building.

READ MORE: CNN

U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS WEATHER

Home Depot Desk Supervisor Arrested for Embezzlement

VI News Staff
9 months ago

Blaze Contained at Structural Fire on STT

A structural fire broke out on St. Thomas Thursday at a residential property at 200-6H Alt...

VI News Staff
10 months ago

Vote for St. Thomas’s Harika Jhanwar in the National 'Doodle for Googl...

VI News Staff
6 months ago

Former track prodigy sues Nike and her ex-coach Alberto Salazar for $2...

VI News Staff
3 years ago

Bill to Elect USVI Attorney General Killed in Senate By Gittens, Johns...

VI News Staff
6 months ago