By STEFANIE DAZIO
Associated Press
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A participant in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol was taken into custody Thursday in Southern California after an hours-long standoff, authorities said.
Eric Christie, 56, was arrested in the Sherman Oaks neighborhood of the San Fernando Valley, according to Laura Eimiller, an FBI spokesperson.
He initially refused to comply with federal agents’ orders but surrendered without incident after three hours of negotiations, Eimiller said. She would not comment whether he was armed during the standoff.
Christie’s attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Video and photographs from the insurrection, discovered by online sleuths, show Christie at the Capitol last year, wrapped in a rainbow flag with a hammer attached to his belt, court documents state. A video captured Christie yelling “this is our Capitol” into a bullhorn while the crowd rushes into the Capitol as police attempted to keep them back.
Christie’s arrest came the same day as the House Jan. 6 committee released its final report, concluding an 18-month investigation, asserting that Donald Trump criminally engaged in a “multi-part conspiracy” to overturn the lawful results of the 2020 presidential election and failed to act to stop his supporters from attacking the Capitol.
Christie faces federal charges of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly weapon, as well as disorderly or disruptive conduct in restricted building or grounds with a deadly weapon, according to court documents.
It was not immediately clear whether he had an attorney who could speak on his behalf. He is scheduled to appear in court Friday afternoon. NBC News first reported Christie’s arrest.
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