Feds: New York man among Capitol rioters who said they wanted to kill Pelosi, Pence

Federal prosecutors said a New York man was arrested on several charges this weekend for his role in the deadly riot by a pro-Trump mob at the U.S. Capitol earlier this month and for allegedly discussing killing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Vice President Pence.

According to press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, Dominic “Spaz” Pezzola, 43, was arrested and charged on Friday with unlawful entry, destruction of government property and obstruction of an official proceeding over his alleged criminal activities in the Jan. 6 riot.

An affidavit supporting a criminal complaint against Pezzola alleged that he had gained unlawful entry to the Capitol building by using a Capitol Police shield to break a window.

After entering the building, Pezzola was allegedly captured on footage smoking a cigar and “saying words to the effect of, ‘Victory smoke in the Capitol, boys. This is f***ing awesome. I knew we could take this mother***er over [if we] just tried hard enough,’” the release states.

Pezzola allegedly bragged about the criminal activities afterward and stated along with others that he “would have killed anyone they got their hands on, including Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Vice President Michael Pence,” the release states, citing the allegations in the affidavit.

According to the affidavit, Pezzola also had been seen participating in other rallies in Washington last month that “included individuals wearing clothing consistent with the ‘Proud Boys,'” the release states.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia is prosecuting the case along with the Counterterrorism Section of the Department of Justice’s National Security Division. The FBI’s Buffalo Field Office, Albany Field Office and Washington Field Office are also investigating the case.

The arrest on Friday is one of a number tied to the Jan. 6 riot that have been made in recent days.

Thousands of the president’s supporters had flocked to the District that week to oppose the November election results amid Congress’s then-scheduled certification of votes by the Electoral College affirming that President-elect Joe Biden had won the presidential race.

At the time, President Trump had told his supporters in a speech outside the White House to march to the Capitol. 

“If you don’t fight like hell, you’re not going to have a country anymore,” he said during the speech, in which he repeated disputed claims about the election that he has made since the race was called for Biden in November. 

Weeks before the riot, the president had also invited his supporters to gather in the nation’s capital as Congress prepared to certify the Electoral College vote. 

“Big protest in D.C. on January 6th. Be there, will be wild!” he tweeted on Dec. 19. 

Trump was impeached by the House for a second time this week over the riot after the chamber voted to pass an article with bipartisan support charging him with “willfully inciting violence against the Government of the United States.” 

The article now heads to the Senate, where Trump’s second impeachment trial will be held.