“I had not seen that many weapons in one location since I was in the military,” said Terry Cummings, a member of the Oath Keepers organization, during a trial Wednesday.
He was referring to a pile of firearms gathered in a room of the Comfort Inn hotel of Arlington, Va., the night before rioters descended upon the U.S. Capitol last Jan. 6 for a deadly insurrection, according to NBC News. Cummings brought an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle to the hotel.
The trial is for Stewart Rhodes, identified by the U.S. Department of Justice as the founder and leader of the Oath Keepers, who is charged with seditious conspiracy. Rhodes was arrested this January and indicted for his role in the Capitol breach.
He is on trial alongside four other Oath Keeper associates: Kelly Meggs, Kenneth Harrelson, Jessica Watkins and Thomas Caldwell. Others are expected to go on trial next month.
According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, the Oath Keepers is one of the largest far-right, anti-government groups operating today. Its members include tens of thousands of present and former law enforcement officials and military veterans, said the SPLC.
Cummings is a veteran of the Air National Guard. He testified under a subpoena, said NBC News.
During his testimony, Cummings said that he did not hear about storming the Capitol and thought the weapons were for defense. He said that he did not see Oath Keepers carrying guns at the riot. Prosecutors allege that riot attendees intended to prevent a peaceful transition of power from former President Donald Trump to current President Joe Biden, who won the 2020 presidential election.
“Rhodes had urged former President Donald Trump to invoke the Insurrection Act and called upon members of the Oath Keepers to help stop the peaceful transfer of power,” said NBC News. He also said that he regretted not bringing weapons to the Capitol.
“I personally didn’t think it was a good idea to enter,” the Capitol, said Cummings, who attended because he wanted to express his First Amendment rights. He also attended a rally held by Trump near the Capitol on Jan. 6 with a VIP pass.
According to Cummings, he and some other Oath Keepers left the rally before Trump finished speaking. He said they were called to escort “an unnamed Hispanic female VIP” in the direction of the Capitol. As they escorted this person, Cummings heard from Meggs that the Capitol had been breached. He left the woman with another Oath Keeper and went to the Capitol himself.
However, Cummings said he was separated from other members as they arrived at the Capitol grounds.
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