More police officers have gone on the record to describe the violent attacks they faced from a mob of pro-Trump rioters Jan. 6.
“It was difficult to offer any resistance when you’re only about 30 guys going up against 15,000,” D.C. Metropolitan Police officer Michael Fanone told CNN. “Some guys started getting a hold of my gun and they were screaming out, ‘Kill him with his own gun.’”
“People are going to be shocked by some of the egregious contact that happened in the Capitol,” said acting U.S. Attorney Michael Sherwin. Fanone described laying on the ground as rioters stripped his equipment off of him, taking ammunition, his radio and his badge. He says he was tasered multiple times before the rioters began yelling to take his gun.
Fanone, a 40-year-old father of four and narcotics detective, reportedly considered using deadly force. Knowing he’d still be overpowered, he says he chose a different response. “So, the other option I thought of was to try to appeal to somebody’s humanity. And I just remember yelling out that I have kids. And it seemed to work.”
A group of rioters then circled Fanone to protect him, according to CNN. Investigators are now exploring the possibility that the violence was planned to some extent, and not just a spontaneous outburst of an angry mob, CNN reported. (RELATED: DCNF INVESTIGATES: Was Antifa Responsible For The Capitol Riot?)
“Certainly some things that we saw on the ground were some indication that there were (sic) some coordination going on,” acting MPD Chief Robert Contee said Thursday.
“The individuals were pushing officers, hitting officers. They were spraying us with what we were calling, essentially, bear mace, because you use it on bears,” officer Christina Laury told CNN. “It seals your eyes shut. … You’ve got to spray and douse yourself with water. And in those moments it’s scary because you can’t see anything and have people that are fighting to get through.”
Laury says she was able to avoid being beaten, but saw other officers who were not as lucky. “They were getting hit with metal objects. Metal poles. I remember seeing pitchforks. They’re getting sprayed, knocked down,” she told CNN.
Daniel Hodges, the DC police officer who was crushed in a doorway at the Capitol speaks out saying a man ripped away his baton, and was “practically foaming at the mouth… true believers in the worst way.” https://t.co/WWGvhbSnt5 pic.twitter.com/jUTkvTDsxT
— Anderson Cooper 360° (@AC360) January 15, 2021
Officer Daniel Hodges was seen in a viral video being crushed against the wall, gasping for enough air to yell for help. “There’s a guy ripping my mask off, he was able to rip away the baton and beat me with it,” he told CNN.
“He was practically foaming at the mouth so just, these people were true believers in the worst way.” (RELATED: REPORT: Man Arrested In Capitol Riot Kills Himself)
Hodges, who had blood dripping from his mouth, was able to be rescued by fellow officers and escape with no major injuries, CNN reported.
Hodges said he was surprised that many of the rioters expected police to be on their side. “They say things like, ‘Yeah, we’ve been supporting you through all this Black Lives Matter stuff, you should have our back’ and they felt entitled.”
As for reports of more violence possibly planned around President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration, Hodges had one message. “Stay home. Stop this.”