Far-right extremist groups are expected to descend on the U.S. Capitol Sept. 18 to “demand justice” for people who have been charged in the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection at the same spot, reported the Associated Press Tuesday.
Police were overwhelmed when rioters stormed the Capitol earlier this year. More than 100 officers were injured and the insurrectionists – who were motivated by claims of election fraud and wanted to prevent the certification of votes for President Joe Biden – caused more than $1 million in damage.
Yogananda Pittman, the Capitol Police official who led intelligence operations for the agency when the riot occurred, is again in charge of intelligence.
In a statement to the Associated Press, Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger said the department was “closely monitoring September 18 and we are planning accordingly.”
Look Ahead America, a nonprofit group founded and led by Matt Braynard, a former Trump campaign operative, is planning the “Justice for J6” rally, said the Washington Post. Braynard’s group requested to hold its rally at Union Square, the public park by the Capitol Reflecting Pool, according to a permit application his group submitted to the U.S. Capitol Police Board and provided to the outlet.
According to the Washington Post, Look Ahead America estimates that 700 people will attend the rally and plans for a counter protest began circulating online this week.
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Members of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers (groups with members who have been charged for their actions on Jan. 6) are expected to attend the rally, said three people familiar with intelligence gathered by federal officials, according to the Associated Press.
Though the outlet said these groups “make up just a fraction of the nearly 600 people who have been charged so far in the riot, they are facing some of the most serious charges brought so far,” making their expected presence at the Capitol concerning.
As the date of the planned rally looms closer, Washington D.C. has been the site of “troubling” incidents, including a man claiming to have a bomb parking a pickup truck near the Library of Congress.
At the same time, unexploded pipe bombs placed at the headquarters of the Republican and Democratic national committees – near the U.S. Capitol – the night before the Jan. 6 insurrection remain unexplained and no suspect has been charged, said the Associated Press.
For federal officials, the person who planted the pipe bombs remains a serious concern.
Leads in the investigation have come up dry and investigators haven’t even been able to determine if the subject was a man or a woman, said the Associated Press. FBI surveillance video of the person they believe left the bombs shows a figure who wore a gray hooded sweatshirt, a face mask with a backpack and distinct Nike Air Max Speed Turf sneakers in yellow, black and gray. These shoes have been a focus of some attempts to identify the individual.
“After January 6, we made Department-wide changes to the way we gather and share intelligence internally and externally. I am confident the work we are doing now will make sure our officers have what they need to keep everyone safe,” Manger said of the Capitol police department’s approach to the expected rally.
U.S. Capitol Police are considering putting the large perimeter fence that was erected outside the Capitol after the January riot in light of the information. Officials have also discussed security plans that do not involve a fence, said the Associated Press sources, who are authorized to speak publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
The Capitol Police Board will most likely ultimately determine the fencing question, said a House aide familiar with the matter and granted anonymity to discuss it, according to the outlet. This board consists of the Sergeant at Arms of the U.S. House of Representatives, the Sergeant at Arms and Doorkeeper of the U.S. Senate, and the Architect of the Capitol.
The Metropolitan Police Department, a separate law enforcement agency, is also expected to activate its entire force the day of the planned rally and to have specialized riot officers on standby, law enforcement officials said, according to the Associated Press.
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