A person charged in connection with the Capitol riot is being charged with assaulting a DC police officer and carrying his badge to his home in New York, where he allegedly buried him in the backyard.
Thomas Sibick is accused of grabbing Officer Michael Fanone’s badge and radio while the officer was dragged through a multitude of riots, where he was beaten and stabbed, leaving him unconscious and in hospital.
According to the FBI affidavit, “SIBICK stated that he tried to reach the agent to remove him, but he could not reach him and at that time he feared for his life and that of the officer. “
Sibick claims that when he tried to pull the agent away, he accidentally ripped off the badge and just grabbed the radio so he could press the “orange emergency button” to get help from the agent, according to court records.
Authorities say he originally told them he threw the items in a container because he was afraid of being arrested if he turned them into the FBI, but later withdrew that statement and told the officer he buried the badge in the your garden.
Sibick faces multiple charges for his actions. A federal judge in the western district of New York he was released, although the Justice Department has filed an urgent appeal for the decision, CBS News reported.
Sibick says he left the riot after the incident with Fanone due to the violence.
Hundreds of people have been arrested since the riot, and federal authorities are still investigating the January 6 incident that left five people dead.