Seattle man charged with assaulting officer in Capitol riot

A Capitol Police officer said the 51-year-old man repeatedly punched an officer.

  • By Wire Service
  • Sunday, January 10, 2021 3:21pm
  • Northwest

Associated Press

SEATTLE — A 51-year-old Seattle man has been charged with assaulting a federal police officer when a mob of pro-Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol last week.

The Seattle Times reports that Mark J. Leffingwell was also charged Thursday in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia with entering a restricted building and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.

In the criminal complaint filed against Leffingwell, a Capitol Police officer said that while forming a barrier with other officers to block a crowd from entering the Senate wing through a first-floor window, Leffingwell attempted to push past and then repeatedly punched an officer.

A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Washington D.C. confirmed Sunday that Leffingwell is from Seattle, the newspaper reported, which Leffingwell stated on the record during a proceeding before a magistrate judge on Friday.

Leffingwell was released on his personal recognizance to a third-party custodian — his wife. Leffingwell and his attorney did not respond to requests for comment by the newspaper.

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