Category: US Department of Justice

Source: United States Department of Justice News

            WASHINGTON – Taylor Taranto, 37, of Pasco, Washington, was charged in an indictment filed today on allegations that he illegally carried a firearm without a license and unlawfully possessed a large capacity ammunition feeding device on June 29, 2023. In addition, Taranto was charged for his involvement in the U.S. Capitol breach on Jan. 6, 2021.

            Taranto was indicted on six charges by a grand jury in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. These charges include one count of carrying a pistol without a license (outside home or place of business), one count of possession of a large capacity ammunition feeding device, both felony charges. Taranto is also charged with four misdemeanors related to his involvement in the January 6 Capitol breach, including one count of entering and remaining in a restricted building, one count of disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building, one count of disorderly conduct in a capitol building or grounds, and one count of parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building.

            The indictment also includes a forfeiture allegation seeking any firearms and ammunition involved in or used in the knowing commission of the offense.

            According to court documents, on Jan. 6, 2021, Taranto attended a rally in Washington D.C., near the Washington Monument, shortly before traveling to the Capitol grounds. Taranto approached the grounds from the west, where he ultimately joined a large crowd of rioters gathered on the upper west terrace of the building. While there, Taranto picked up and threw pieces of metal scaffolding that were stacked on the ground.

            At approximately 2:38 p.m., court documents state that Taranto entered the Capitol building after the door was breached by several rioters.  Taranto then moved through multiple areas of the Capitol, including into the Rotunda and through Statuary Hall toward the House chamber. At approximately 2:42 p.m., Taranto was captured on video standing at the entrance to the Speaker’s Lobby – an area behind the House chamber where Congresspeople were evacuating from the House chamber to a safe location. Around this time, a rioter attempted to jump through a glass window and was shot by a United States Capitol Police officer.

            In the wake of the shooting, multiple members of law enforcement arrived, including Metropolitan Police Department officers with the Civil Disturbance Unit, who began to quickly remove rioters from the area. A mob of people, including Taranto, was directed to leave the building. Video from the incident shows multiple rioters aggressively yelling, pushing, and refusing officers’ directives to leave. At the brink of the exit, Taranto and multiple other rioters, including a male identified as David Walls-Kaufman (who has been convicted and sentenced for his conduct on January 6, 2021), scuffled with police officers.

            Court documents say that at approximately 2:56 p.m., Taranto was forced to leave the building through the upper House door but remained on the Capitol grounds for an additional period of time.

            According to court records, investigators later found a video posted online, depicting Taranto from January 6. In the video, Taranto states, “So we’re in the Capitol Building…legislative building…we just stormed it.” The video was accompanied by a caption, which states, “This is me “stormin’ the capitol” lol I’m only sharing this so someone will report me to the feds and we can get this party rolling!”

            Taranto was later arrested on June 29, 2023, in the Kalorama neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Prior to his arrest, court documents say that Taranto made several concerning statements regarding the residences in the area and desires to commit acts of violence against a federal facility. During the arrest of Taranto, law enforcement officers searched his vehicle and found two firearms and hundreds of rounds of ammunition.

            An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of criminal laws and every defendant is presumed innocent until, and unless, proven guilty.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Defendant Convicted of Engaging in Conspiracy to Disrupt Congress

            WASHINGTON – A California man was found guilty in the District of Columbia today of four felonies, including conspiring to obstruct Congress, related to his actions during the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol breach. His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the presidential election.

            Alan Hostetter, 56, of San Clemente, California, was found guilty of all four charges against him following a bench trial before U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth. A sentencing hearing was scheduled for Oct. 13, 2023.

            Hostetter was convicted of conspiring to obstruct an official proceeding; obstruction of an official proceeding and aiding and abetting; entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon; and disorderly or disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon.

            According to the government’s evidence, Hostetter was among rioters in a mob that illegally entered the Capitol grounds and Capitol building on Jan. 6, 2021. In the weeks leading up to January 6^th, the government’s evidence shows that Hostetter and others coordinated and conspired together to arrange travel from California to Washington, D.C., to attend the Stop the Steal Rally and protest Congress’ certification of the Electoral College.

            On the morning of January 6^th, Hostetter and others met in a group in downtown Washington to walk to the Ellipse for the rally. The government’s evidence states that Hostetter carried a backpack containing a hatchet. Following the conclusion of the events at the Ellipse, Hostetter and others began to walk towards the Capitol building. At approximately 2:30 p.m., Hostetter joined other rioters on the lower west terrace of the Capitol who were pushing through a line of law enforcement officers trying to hold them back. Hostetter and a co-defendant then pushed through the law enforcement line and moved through restricted areas of the grounds toward the upper west terrace. Once on the upper west terrace, Hostetter stated, “The people have taken back their house. Hundreds of thousands of patriots showed up today to take back their government!”

            Hostetter later posted a picture of himself taken from the upper west terrace to an Instagram account that he controlled, writing, “This was the shot heard round the world!…the 2021 version of 1776. That war lasted 8 years. We are just getting started.”

            The charges of conspiring to obstruct an official proceeding and obstruction of an official proceeding and aiding and abetting both carry a statutory maximum of 20 years in prison. The charges of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon and disorderly or disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon both carry a statutory maximum of 10 years in prison. The Court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

            The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California.

            The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office, as well as the Metropolitan Police Department and U.S. Capitol Police, with significant assistance provided by the FBI’s Washington Field Office.

            In the 30 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,069 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 350 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains ongoing.

            Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Defendants Accused of Daylight Shooting in the Congress Park Area

            WASHINGTON – Johnny Wilkins, 34, of Temple Hills, Maryland, Marcel Gavin, 31, Kharee Jackson, 30, Earl Robinson, 31, and Darryl Little, 29, all of Washington D.C. are named in a 20 count indictment charging them with conspiracy, three counts of first degree murder while armed – felony murder, one count of premeditated first degree murder while armed, one count of assault with intent to kill while armed, three counts of robbery while armed, one count of assault with significant bodily injury while armed, one count of possession of a firearm with a prior conviction (Wilkins), and nine counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence. The defendants were arraigned on July 10, 2023, before D.C. Superior Court Judge Michael O’Keefe.

            The indictment was announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Interim Chief Ashan Benedict of the Metropolitan Police Department.

            According to the indictment, on June 13, 2020, decedent Albert Smith, who was an up-and-coming rap artist from the Tennessee/Georgia area, travelled up to the District with seven friends to meet up with the defendants and other individuals from the Congress Park area in Southeast, Washington, DC. After settling into their hotel, the victim and his friends (the “Georgia Group”) took an Uber to Congress Park. Once there, the Georgia Group joined the defendants and other members of the Congress Park group, where they socialized and gambled tens of thousands of dollars through the night into the next morning. Around 7:15 a.m., the Georgia Group decided they were going to leave. The five defendants and seven other members of the Congress Park Group followed the Georgia Group onto 13th Place where they split up and attacked and robbed three members of the Georgia Group. Defendant Wilkins chased Smith and four other members of the Georgia Group down Congress Street while shooting at them. Smith was killed, another member of his group was also shot, and two more victims were pistol whipped and robbed by the four other defendants and other members of the Congress Park Group, robbing each of them of approximately $20,000.

            The defendants are currently held without bond pending trial.  A status hearing is scheduled for September 8, 2023, before Judge Michael O’Keefe.

            In announcing the charges, U.S. Attorney Graves and Interim Chief Benedict commended the work of those investigating the case from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). They acknowledged the efforts of those who are working on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Metropolitan Homicide Detective Jeffrey Clay; Victim/Witness Advocate Jennifer Clark; Paralegal Specialists Kelly Blakeney and Lauren Douglas. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Marybeth Manfreda and Miles Janssen, who are investigating and prosecuting the case.

            An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of criminal laws and every defendant is presumed innocent until, and unless, proven guilty.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

            A Maine man was sentenced today on multiple felony and misdemeanor convictions for his actions during the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol breach. His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the presidential election.

            Kyle Fitzsimons, 39, of Lebanon, Maine, was sentenced to 87 months in prison after he was convicted of 11 charges, including seven felonies, following a bench trial in the District of Columbia before the Honorable Rudolph Contreras. In addition to the prison term, Judge Contreras ordered 36 months of supervised release, restitution of $2,000.

            According to the government’s evidence, on Jan. 6, 2021, between 3:45 and 4:30 p.m., Fitzsimons was illegally on the Capitol grounds and among a crowd of rioters brawling with law enforcement officers at the tunnel entrance of the lower west terrace of the Capitol building. Fitzsimons was wearing a white butcher’s jacket and a fur pelt and carrying an unstrung bow. While in that area, Fitzsimons committed five assaults against law enforcement officers over an approximately five-minute span.

            First, Fitzsimons hurled an unstrung bow like a spear at the group of law enforcement officers. The object hit an officer with the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) in the ballistic helmet and bounced off. Fitzsimons then reached for and made forcible contact with an MPD detective immediately before another rioter sprayed him with a chemical agent,  trapping the chemical under the detective’s mask and causing the detective to temporarily suffocate. Fitzsimons also tried to pull a fallen officer into the mob. A sergeant from the U.S. Capitol Police tried to protect the fallen officer, and Fitzsimons grappled with him, yanking on his shield and shoulder strap with all of his considerable weight, causing permanent injuries to the sergeant’s shoulder that necessitated surgery and ultimately ended the sergeant’s lengthy law enforcement career. Finally, Fitzsimons twice charged the group of officers, wildly swinging his fists. He eventually retreated, but only after being inadvertently bloodied by another rioter’s unsuccessful attack on those same officers. As Fitzsimons left the Capitol grounds, he encouraged others to “get in there” and fight the police like he had.

            Fitzsimons was found guilty on Sept. 27, 2022, of seven felony charges, including: one count of obstruction of an official proceeding; four counts of assaulting, resisting, or impeding law enforcement officers, including two involving a dangerous weapon or bodily injury; one count of interfering with a law enforcement officer during a civil disorder, and one count of engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds. He also was found guilty of four misdemeanor charges including: entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds; disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds; disorderly conduct in a Capitol Building or grounds; and committing an act of violence in the Capitol Building or grounds.

            This case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. Valuable assistance was provided by the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maine, the Middle District of Florida, and the Northern District of Texas.

            This case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office, which listed Fitzsimons as #139 on its seeking information photos. Valuable assistance was provided by the FBI’s Boston Field Office and its Portland Resident Agency, the U.S. Capitol Police, and the Metropolitan Police Department.

            In the 30 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,069 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 350 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains ongoing.

             Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

            WASHINGTON — A Florida man was sentenced on Wednesday, July 12, 2023, on felony charges related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the 2020 presidential election.

            Daniel Lyons Scott, 29, of Englewood, Florida, was sentenced to 60 months in prison, 36 months of supervised release, and ordered to pay $2,000 in restitution to the Architect of the Capitol by U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth.

            Scott pleaded guilty, on Feb. 9, 2023, to the felony charges of obstruction of an official proceeding and assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers.

            According to court documents, Scott, a member of the Proud Boys organization who goes by the nickname “Milkshake,” and co-defendant Christopher Worrell were involved in discussions leading up to January 6 on the encrypted messaging application Telegram about ways to block the Congressional certification of the Electoral College vote. On Jan. 3, 2021, Scott and other members of the Proud Boys organization attended a rally to protest the 2020 election in Naples, Florida. During the rally, Scott yelled to the crowd that if a Florida U.S. Senator did not vote against the certification of the Electoral College vote, they should “give him the rope!”

            On Jan. 6, 2021, Scott traveled from his hotel in Washington, D.C., to the Washington Monument to meet with other members of the Proud Boys organization and co-defendant Worrell. Court documents say that underneath his jacket, Scott was wearing a bulletproof vest. Shortly thereafter, the group began walking toward the east side of the Capitol building. Scott then yelled to the assembled group, “Let’s take the fucking Capitol!”

            At approximately 12:55 p.m., Scott, Worrell, and other Proud Boys illegally entered the Capitol grounds after the police lines were breached. Scott, Worrell, and others then moved near the front of the line facing law enforcement officers on the lower west plaza. At about 1:48 p.m., Scott was standing in front of the northwest stairs of the west terrace, facing two United States Capitol Police (USCP) officers guarding that staircase. Scott then suddenly moved forward up the stairs, pushing both officers backward, and pulled one officer back into the crowd of rioters, where the officer was additionally assaulted.

            Scott’s assault breached the police line, allowing the crowd behind him to surge up to the upper west terrace.  This group became the first crowd of rioters to enter the Capitol building. Worrell then filmed Scott shortly after the assault, and Scott can be heard yelling, “Proud of your fucking boy!” to Worrell.  Worrell then celebrated the crowd’s surge up the stairs: “Yeah, taking the Capitol!”

            Worrell was found guilty of all charges during a bench trial for his role in the matter on May 12, 2023. Worrell is currently awaiting sentencing.

            This case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida.

            This case was investigated by the FBI’s Tampa Field Office and Seattle Field Office, as well as the Metropolitan Police Department, with significant assistance provided by the FBI’s Washington Field Office.

            In the 30 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,069 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 350 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains ongoing.           

            Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.