The Arkansas man who sat at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s desk in the Capitol this week has been taken into custody, federal authorities said Friday.
Richard Barnett, of Gravette, was taken into custody early Friday. He is currently charged with at least three charges: knowingly entering and remaining in a restricted building, violent access and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, and theft of public property, according to Ken Kohl, the U.S. attorney’s chief assistant in DC.
Photographs were widely circulated showing Barnett in Pelosi’s office with his feet on her desk. “Just because you’ve left the DC region, you can still expect a knock on the door when we find out you were part of the criminal activity in the Capitol,” said Steven D’Antuono of the FBI’s Washington field office. .
Barnett surrendered to authorities in the Benton County Sheriff’s Office in Bentonville on Friday morning, an FBI official told CBS News. He is currently being held in the Washington County Sheriff’s Office in Fayetteville, the source said.
More than a dozen FBI agents carried out a court-authorized search warrant at Barnett’s home Friday night, a federal law enforcement source told CBS News.
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The FBI is continuing its investigation to use tips and public photos to track down rioters. Derrick Evans, West Virginia State Deputy, was also taken into custody after posting a now-deleted video showing him in the capital. Barnett and Evans are among 15 others who are being federally prosecuted for crimes committed during the riot.
Five people died as a result of the violence on the Capitol this week, including a police officer who died of his injuries and a woman who was fatally shot by police. Three others died after medical emergencies, officials said.
Barnett spoke with CBS partner KSFM on Wednesday, identifying himself as the man in the viral photos. He said he had traveled to Washington earlier in the day to see President Trump speak and maintained his innocence. “I didn’t do anything,” Barnett said to the station. ‘I didn’t break the doors. I was pushed in. I didn’t want to be there. Hell, I was walking around looking for a bathroom. ‘
Barnett admitted taking an envelope from Pelosi’s desk, but said he only did so because it was bleeding on it. I took the envelope and put it in my pocket. I put a quarter on the desk because I’m not a thief, ”he said.
“The crowds were incredible,” he told KSFM. ‘We marched there. They start gassing us. They are starting to harass our people. Some people have made it angry. They went to the front door and began demanding to be allowed in. “
Representative Steve Womack, a Republican from Arkansas, on Wednesday condemned Barnett’s actions. “I’m sick to hear that the actions below were committed by a voter,” says Womack tweeted. “It is a shame for the people of the Third District and does not reflect our values. He must be held accountable and face the law fully. This is not the American or Arkansas way. ‘
Clare Hymes, Pat Milton and Erin Donaghue contributed to the reporting.