Feds accuse southern Illinois men of damaging U.S. Capitol during Jan. 6, 2021, riot
A pair of southern Illinois men were arrested Wednesday on charges for their alleged roles in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.
Justin LaGesse, 37, and Theodore Middendorf, 36, both of McLeansboro, southeast of Mount Vernon were charged in the District of Columbia with felony destruction of property in addition to multiple misdemeanor counts.
Their actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the 2020 presidential election.
According to allegations outlined in the criminal complaint, LaGesse illegally entered the U.S. Capitol building about 2:51 p.m. via a broken window next to the Senate Wing Door. He then helped Middendorf enter through the same broken window.
LaGesse carried with him a yellow “Don’t Tread on Me” flag, and Middendorf carried an American flag. After entering the building, the two made their way toward the Crypt while carrying their respective flags on their shoulders and continued south into the House of Representatives side of the Capitol, according to documents.
At about 3:01 p.m., the men passed by the House Wing Door emergency exit, through the Hall of Columns and eventually exited the Capitol through the south door as Middendorf recorded events with his cellphone, according to court records.
After leaving the Capitol, LaGesse and Middendorf approached a line of Metropolitan Police Department Officers standing behind a bicycle rack barricade. Court documents say that LaGesse called the officers “(expletive) traitors” and “(expletive) communist scum.”
The two then proceeded around the building to the north side of the Capitol, where they encountered a group of rioters attempting to breach the building via the north door. As officers attempted to stop the rioters, LaGesse and Middendorf are accused of approaching a large window to the left of the door and using their flagpoles to strike the window numerous times, damaging it in several places, according to court records.
After failing to shatter the window, Middendorf is accused of walking east toward another window and striking it with his flagpole once.
The Architect of the Capitol determined that the large window incurred about $41,315 worth of damages.
In addition to the felony, LaGesse and Middendorf are charged with misdemeanor offenses of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly conduct in a Capitol building, act of physical violence in the Capitol grounds or buildings, and parading, picketing, and demonstrating in a Capitol building.
They’ll make their first court appearance in the Southern Illinois District, a news release stated.
This case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section.
In the 36 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,265 individuals have been charged in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 440 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, according to a release from the U.S. Court for the District of Columbia. The investigation remains ongoing.
