Capitol Hill rioters may face significant felony charges of “sedition and conspiracy” for their role in the storming of the U.S. Capitol last week, the Justice Department (DOJ) announced Tuesday.
The DOJ made the announcement during a Tuesday press conference in which it also said it expects to level “hundreds” of charges against rioters in the near future. The sedition and conspiracy charges are likely relegated to the organizers of the event and potential future events around President-Elect Joe Biden’s inauguration.
DOJ says they are looking at “significant felony cases tied to sedition and conspiracy.”
— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) January 12, 2021
The Justice Department expects “hundreds” of charges in the U.S. Capitol riot. “This is only the beginning.”
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) January 12, 2021
The DOJ has already identified at least 170 people suspected of having committed violence in and around the Capitol last week.
But even as investigations into the Capitol riots are getting under way, new threats against Biden’s inauguration ceremony are emerging. The National Guard is increasing troop presence to 10,000 ahead of the ceremony. Protests against Biden’s victory are planned all across the country, with some including threats of violence.
NEW: DOJ says it arrested a 45-year-old Chicago man for allegedly threatening violence at the inauguration.
Here’s the voicemail they say he left for a House member: pic.twitter.com/pZIqkrJ39G
— Andrew Solender (@AndrewSolender) January 12, 2021
Five people were confirmed to have died in the riots, including a Capitol Hill police officer, Brian Sicknick. (RELATED: Police Gather In Washington, D.C., To Honor Fallen Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick)
“Officer Sicknick was responding to the riots on Wednesday, January 6, 2021, at the U.S. Capitol and was injured while physically engaging with protesters,” The Capitol Hill Police Force said in a statement. “He returned to his division office and collapsed. He was taken to a local hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. The death of Officer Sicknick will be investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department’s Homicide Branch, the USCP, and our federal partners.”