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Friday, March 29, 2024 | Back issues
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Trump Supporters Lose Jobs and Businesses After Participation in Capitol Riot

Several Dallas-area Trump supporters lost their jobs and reportedly closed their businesses late Saturday after images of them participating in the deadly, armed riot at the U.S. Capitol last week went viral.

DALLAS (CN) — Several Dallas-area Trump supporters lost their jobs and reportedly closed their businesses late Saturday after images of them participating in the deadly, armed riot at the U.S. Capitol last week went viral.

Retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Larry Rendall Brock Jr. was arrested Sunday in the suburb of Grapevine. He faces federal charges in Washington: one count of knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority and one count of violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.

Brock was identified Friday in The New Yorker as the man who roamed the Senate floor holding zip-tie handcuffs while wearing green tactical gear and a helmet. 

He was among several thousand people who forced their way past U.S. Capitol Police in a bid to stop the confirmation of Electoral College votes in favor of President-elect Joe Biden. Moments earlier, the rioters were instructed by President Donald Trump in a speech in front of the White House to go to the Capitol and encourage Republican lawmakers to oppose the confirmation.

Five people died during or after the riot. Rioter Ashli Babbitt was shot and killed by police while trying to break into the Speaker’s Lobby. Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick died one day later from injuries inflicted by rioters. Three unidentified people died from unspecified medical emergencies.

Video from the riot showed Trump supporters shouting accusations that Vice President Mike Pence is a “traitor” for refusing to reject the valid Electoral College votes. Several rioters can be heard demanding Pence “hang” while others carried nooses.

Fort Worth-based Hillwood Airways confirmed Saturday evening Brock is an employee. The company is owned by real estate developer Ross Perot Jr.

“I can also confirm he no longer works for the company,” said Hillwood spokesman James Fuller. “Hillwood Airways has not released additional statements on this topic.”

Brock has yet to comment on the loss of his job. He told The New Yorker he assumed he was welcome to enter the Capitol and denied entering the office of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in spite of video showing him exiting the office. He claimed he merely found the zip-ties on the floor.

“I wish I had not picked those up,” he said. “My thought process there was, I would pick them up and give them to an officer when I see one … I didn’t do that because I had put them in my coat, and I honestly forgot about them.”

Two anonymous relatives of Brock claim he has made racist remarks in front of them and they believe white-supremacist views may have played a role. Brock has denied holding racist views. He defended wearing tactical gear at the Capitol, expressing a fear of getting stabbed or hurt by “B.L.M. and Antifa” aggression.

Air Force officials confirmed Brock retired from the military in 2014. He graduated from the Air Force Academy in 1989.

Realtor Jenna Ryan’s posts on social media show her flying on a private jet to attend the Trump rally and later smiling and flashing a “victory” sign in front of a broken Capitol window.

“Window at The capital,” Ryan posted in a now-deleted tweet. “And if the news doesn’t stop lying about us we’re going to come after their studios next.”

She also bragged that “we just stormed the capital” and that “it was one of the best days of my life.”

In an erratic series of tweets Friday and Saturday, she made several Bible references and denied doing anything wrong. She also denied entering the Capitol during the riot. She appears to have deleted her Twitter account at least once during the exchanges then reactivated it hours later to continue arguing with people. Ryan did not respond to several text messages and telephone calls requesting comment Saturday.

“I've been doxed and I have to close my company,” Ryan said. “1000s of death threats and I didn't even enter the capital.”

In a statement published on her Facebook page, Ryan added that she did not condone the violence at the riot and is “truly heartbroken” for the dead.

“I was invited to go to Washington D.C. by a friend to witness the march,” she said. "Unfortunately, what I believed to be a peaceful political march turned into a violent protest.”

Paul Davis, an attorney from Frisco, could not be reached for comment Saturday and his telephone number was disconnected. He was fired as associate general counsel at Goosehead Insurance in Westlake on Jan. 7 after he posted his participation in the riot on social media.

“Got tear gassed today, that was quite an experience,” Davis posted on Instagram while grimacing inside the Capitol. He graduated from the University of Texas School of Law in 2011. He has no record of professional discipline, according to the State Bar of Texas.

Ryan and Davis have yet to be criminally charged for their roles at the riot, according to a Sunday evening check of federal court records in Dallas and Washington. The Justice Department and FBI have confirmed they are investigating everyone involved in the riot and have repeatedly asked the public for help in producing photographs and video to identify suspects.

Follow @davejourno
Categories / Criminal, National

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