An FBI investigation led to charges against two men accused of assaulting Capitol Police Officer Brian D. Sicknick, who died following the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.
George Tanios, 39, of Virginia, and Julian Khater, 32, of Pennsylvania, are accused of attacking Sicknick and other officers with bear spray during the riot.
They were charged with conspiracy to injure an officer, assaulting an officer with a dangerous weapon, civil disorder, obstruction of an official proceeding, and other crimes related to violent conduct on the grounds of the Capitol, the Justice Department said Monday.
It’s still unclear whether Sicnkick died as a result of the defendants’ alleged assault. One theory is that a chemical irritant may have contributed to his death.
This is the first arrest in connection with Sicknick’s death.
Both men appeared briefly in court via videoconferences Monday and will remain in jail pending future hearings.
In a statement Monday, Capitol Police Acting Chief Yogananda Pittman called the riot “an attack on our democracy.”
“Those who perpetrated these heinous crimes must be held accountable, and — let me be clear — these unlawful actions are not and will not be tolerated by this Department,” Pittman said.
The Justice Department recently said it expects to charge at least 100 more people in connection with the riot. As of last week, 312 people have been charged in connection with the riots, and investigators have accumulated more than 15,000 hours of law enforcement and body-cam video footage, 1,600 electronic devices and 210,00 tips, prosecutors said.
