The U.S. Capitol Building riot that occurred on January 6, 2021, is still being investigated by Joe Biden’s Justice Department as they actively pursue individuals believed to have been involved in the incident, marking its third anniversary.
“FBI agents from the Tampa, Florida, field office apprehended Jonathan Daniel Pollock, Olivia Michele Pollock and Joseph Daniel Hutchinson III at a ranch near Groveland, Florida, according to the FBI’s statement. Law enforcement had been searching for Daniel Pollock since June 2021, while Olivia Pollock and Hutchinson became fugitives in March 2023 after removing their ankle monitors and going into hiding before they faced trial in a federal court,” The Daily Caller reported on Saturday.
The outlet added:
“The government did not disclose details pertaining to how the arrests were conducted or what may have happened while agents were executing search warrants in its announcement. The FBI also did not explain how it located the suspects at the ranch in the first place.
Johnathan Pollock is suspected to have assaulted multiple law enforcement officers with a deadly weapon, while Olivia Pollock and Hutchinson face charges for assaulting officers and several other crimes, according to court documents.”
According to CBS News, federal prosecutors have brought charges against more than 1,200 defendants in connection with the incident over the past three years. Out of these, over 700 individuals have pleaded guilty to various offenses, and more than 100 people have been convicted. The Biden Justice Department is actively pursuing numerous other individuals who are believed to have participated in the violence during the riot but have not yet been identified.
In a separate development, the estate of Ashli Babbitt, a protester who was fatally shot by a plainclothes Capitol Police officer on January 6th, has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the Biden administration. The lawsuit, filed by legal watchdog organization Judicial Watch on behalf of Ashli’s husband Aaron Babbitt, seeks $30 million in damages. It alleges that the officer responsible for shooting Ashli was “incompetent” and “dangerous,” and should have recognized that she posed no threat to Congress when she entered the House speaker’s lobby. This information was reported by Paul Bedard, a columnist for the Washington Examiner’s ‘Secrets’ section, on Friday.
“The only homicide on January 6 was the unlawful shooting death of Ashli Babbitt. Her homicide by Lt. [Michael] Byrd is a scandal beyond belief. This historic lawsuit seeks a measure of justice and government accountability for Ashli’s wrongful death,” Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton said.
“Judicial Watch and our supporters are honored to represent Ashli’s steadfast widower Aaron Babbitt and her estate in this legal action. Ashli was shot in cold blood, and the rule of law requires justice for her,” Fitton added.
Following the incident, the Biden Justice Department conducted an investigation and absolved Byrd of any misconduct. However, the lawsuit argues that Ashli Babbitt, an Air Force veteran who was unarmed while attempting to enter the House anteroom through a shattered window, did not pose a threat to anyone. The lawsuit further highlights Byrd’s questionable past involving the use of firearms.
“For example, it claimed that Byrd once left his Glock 22, used to shoot Babbitt, in a public bathroom. It also claimed that Byrd shot into a car allegedly stolen by teenagers,” Bedard wrote.
The suit also said Byrd had his police powers suspended in the past for “failing to meet or complete semiannual firearms qualification requirements,” adding, “Lt. Byrd had a reputation among peers for not being a good shot.”
Bedard noted further:
“A time-stamped video released this week by a group headed by a Jan. 6 suspect showed a new angle of the shooting. In it, an unarmed Babbitt is pushed into the speaker’s lobby as Byrd raises his gun. After he shot, she fell back, bleeding from the shoulder and neck.
In seeking $30 million from the federal government, the lawsuit said Babbitt suffered horribly.”