A Texas man who said that Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) should be assassinated over Twitter has been charged in the aftermath of the U.S. Capitol riot.
Garret A. Miller, of Dallas, was charged with four crimes, including: Knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted buildings or grounds without lawful authority; violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds; obstructing or impeding any official proceeding and certain acts during civil disorder.
Court filings detail how the FBI got wind of Miller’s criminal activity after he documented his involvement in the riot on Jan. 6 over social media, as well as commented on events in the days after and posted about his intent to go in the days leading up to the riot.
The FBI said in the court documents that it was able to confirm it was Miller posting about his involvement after obtaining a search warrant for his cellphone number, which was the same number associated with his Facebook account. His Facebook account was also linked to his Instagram account.
The cellphone number allowed the FBI to track its GPS data, according to the filings. Miller’s residence was confirmed after a van registered in his name was parked in the driveway of the home where GPS had data pointed FBI agents.
During the riot, court documents show that Miller posted a video on his Twitter account from inside the Capitol and titled it “From inside congress” around 7 p.m. on the night of the riot.
He also posted two photos of his face, according to the filings — one on Jan. 6 in what appears to be a grassy area outdoors and another on Jan. 11 with another man from inside the Capitol Rotunda. Miller was wearing a pro-Trump hat in both photos.
Surveillance images included in the documents also verified Miller’s presence inside the Capitol.
After the riot, court filings showed that Miller responded to a tweet claiming that the rioters were not Trump supporters by saying “Nah we stormed it. We where [sic] gentle. We where [sic] unarmed. We knew what had to be done…”
Documents show that Miller responded to another tweet, also on Jan. 6, that depicted a bloodied rioter by saying “They are right next time we bring the guns.”
On Jan. 10, court documents show that Miller talked about the woman who was shot and killed by a U.S. Capitol Police officer during the riot over Instagram, by saying “We going to get a hold of [the USCP officer] and hug his neck with a nice rope[.]”
On Jan. 15 over Facebook, the court filing show how Miller claimed that “millions” of people agree with him that the officer “deserve[s] to die” “so its [sic] huntin season.” That same day on Facebook, documents show that Miller said he is “happy to make death threats so I been just off the rails tonight lol,” in a private chat.
Days before the riot, court filings show that on Jan. 2 Miller wrote on Facebook to say “I am about to drive across the country for this trump s***. On Monday . . .Some crazy s*** going to happen this week. Dollar might collapse. . . . civil war could start . . .not sure what to do in DC.”
The next day, on Jan. 3, court filings show that Miller also wrote on Facebook that he was planning to bring “a grappling hook and rope and a level 3 vest. Helmets mouth guard and bump cap,” but filings go on to show that the last time Miller came to D.C. for a pro-Trump rally he said he “had a lot of guns” with him.
Other charges stemming from the attack at the Capitol included a Maryland man, who was one of three people who appeared in U.S. district courts Friday.
Emanuel Jackson, 20, of Maryland, was charged by criminal complaint with two counts of assault on a federal officer while armed with a deadly or dangerous weapon and one count each of unlawful entry on restricted building or grounds while armed with a dangerous or deadly weapon, obstruction of an official proceeding, and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.
At the detention hearing in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, Jackson was ordered held without bond pending trial.
Court documents allege Jackson joined a large group of rioters as they attempted to break through the barricaded doorway of the Senate Wing entrance on the west side of the U.S. Capitol building.
Video surveillance footage captured Jackson making a fist and repeatedly striking a U.S. Capitol Police officer while attempting to enter the building forcefully, according to the document.
Police say Jackson was again outside the Capitol building at the West Terrace entrance where he joined a violent and aggressive crowd that continued to try to break through a large group of police officers.
Video footage, according to court document, show Jackson wielding a metal baseball bat and repeatedly and forcefully striking a group of U.S. Capitol Police and Metropolitan Police Department officers in an attempt to break through.
Two other men, Scott Kevin Fairlamb, 43, of Stockholm, New Jersey, and Jeffrey Sabol, 51, of Colorado, also made appearances in courts Friday in their roles in the riot.
Fairlamb made his initial appearance in the District of New Jersey and was ordered released, but the order was stayed pending appeal by the government, according to a press release.
Sabol, after being taken into custody this morning, made his initial appearance in the Southern District of New York and was ordered detained and transferred to the District of Columbia for further hearings.
