Former Brick woman accused of taking part in Jan. 6 Capitol riot

A former Brick resident was arrested and charged last month for participating in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol building, according to court documents.

Anna Lichnowski was arrested on July 25 and charged with entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly conduct in a capitol building, and parading, demonstrating or picketing in a capitol building, according to the criminal complaint.

See the full Statement of Facts from the Department of Justice at the bottom of this story.

The Jan. 6 riots occurred in 2021 during a joint session of Congress at the Capitol, where members of the House of Representatives and Senate were meeting in separate chambers to certify the vote count of the Electoral College for the 2020 presidential election. President Joe Biden defeated the incumbent, Donald Trump, and Trump supporters swarmed into the Capitol building in protest following a Trump speech and rally in Washington.

On Jan. 15, 2021, an anonymous tip was submitted to the FBI alleging that Lichnowski participated in the Capitol riot, the documents said. Then, on Aug. 10, 2021, an individual called the FBI and again alleged that Lichnowski had been present during the riot.

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The caller also stated that Lichnowski posted pictures on Facebook of herself inside the Capitol building that she had since deleted, but still continued to tell people she was inside the building, according to the court documents. The caller was in touch with one of Lichnowski's relatives, who sent the caller a screenshot of a message Lichnowski sent to the relative, which said "And yes. I was with the group that f--- stormed the capital. And I’m proud of it.”

In the documents, nine photos from inside the building, alleged to be Lichnowski, are shown. The surveillance stills show the woman entering the Capitol through the Senate Wing Door, which had been broken open by other rioters. It also shows her walking around and taking photos inside the building before exiting around 30 minutes after she entered.

On Aug. 8, 2022, a federal agent investigating the tips interviewed a detective with the Brick Township Police Department, who was able to identify Lichnowski in three of the stills taken from surveillance video of the Capitol building during the riots, the court documents said. The detective knew her as a personal acquaintance from growing up together in Brick.

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Additionally, records showed that Lichnowski booked a stay at the State Plaza Hotel in Washington for Jan. 5, 2021, with a departure the next day. Records obtained from Capital One bank also showed a transaction with Lichnowski's signature at the hotel on that date.

According to posts on Lichnowski's Facebook page, she now resides in Florida.

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As recently as March 20, she made a public post criticizing Trump loyalists, and even Trump himself, for not doing enough for people charged in the wake of the Capitol riot, "rotting in jail as political prisoners."

Trump himself was recently indicted by a federal grand jury, accused of conspiring to steal the 2020 presidential election. In an interview at his Bedminster golf course, he said the accusations were unfair. “It’s a very horrible thing that is taking place in our government,” Trump said. “They’re stopping free speech.”

Anna Lichnowski Statement of Facts by Dennis Carmody on Scribd

Jenna Calderón covers breaking news and cold cases in Monmouth and Ocean counties. Before coming to the Press, she covered The Queen City for Cincinnati Magazine in Ohio. Contact her at 330-590-3903; jcalderon@gannettnj.com

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Former Brick NJ woman accused of taking part in Jan. 6 Capitol riot