By Steve Neavling
An off-duty DEA agent who flashed his badge and government-issued firearm outside the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 insurrection has been charged in connection with the riot and making a false statement to the FBI, according to court documents unsealed Tuesday.
Mark Sami Ibrahim, of Orange County, Calif., is the first federal law enforcement officer to be charged in the riot.
He was arrested Tuesday.
Court documents indicate that Ibrahim entered a restricted area on Capitol grounds and later lied to investigators about posing for pictures with his DEA badge and firearm holstered on his hip.
It wasn’t immediately clear if Ibrahim still works for the DEA. According to court documents, he’s a “probationary employee.”
In March, Ibrahim appeared on Fox News and said he had been fired. He defended his presence at the Capitol, saying he was with a friend to document the rally and had not stepped foot on the building’s steps.
But court documents suggest he did enter a restricted area, and his friend told the Inspector General’s office a different story.
“According to Ibrahim’s friend, Ibrahim went to the rally in order to promote himself,” an IG agent wrote. “Ibrahim had been thinking about his next move after leaving the DEA and wanted the protests to be his stage for launching a ‘Liberty Tavern’ political podcast and cigar brand.”
