[ad_1]
A Texas man who posted death threats online against Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and a U.S. Capitol Police officer has been arrested and faces federal charges for allegedly participating in the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.
Federal officials said in a criminal complaint that Garret Miller of Dallas has been charged on four counts including violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds. He was arrested Wednesday, according to the Justice Department.
Miller allegedly posted selfies of himself on social media wearing a pro-Donald Trump hat both inside and outside the Capitol. According to the complaint, surveillance footage from inside the building shows Miller, carrying an American flag and backpack, pushing his way into the Capitol with a throng of insurrectionists.
He later allegedly posted multiple messages on social media about his participation in the riot. He said the group he was with had “stormed” the Capitol, though he said they had been “unarmed.”
“Next time we bring the guns,” he tweeted, according to the complaint.
Miller allegedly also posted threats against Ocasio-Cortez and the U.S. Capitol Police officer who fatally shot a rioter.
“Assassinate AOC,” he wrote in a tweet referring to the congresswoman, per the complaint. As for the officer, Miller allegedly said on Facebook that he “deserve[s] to die” and won’t “survive long” because it’s “huntin season.”
Clint Broden, a lawyer for Miller, told CNN that his client regrets his participation in the riot.
“He did it in support of former President Trump, but regrets his actions,” Broden said. “He has the support of his family, and a lot of the comments, as viewed in context, are really sort of misguided political hyperbole. Given the political divide these days, there is a lot of hyperbole.”
Ocasio-Cortez said after the riot that she thought she was “going to die” during the attack.
“I did not know if I was going to make it to the end of that day alive,” she told followers on Instagram Live.
Calling all HuffPost superfans!
Sign up for membership to become a founding member and help shape HuffPost’s next chapter
[ad_2]
Source link
