Riley June Williams, 22, of Harrisburg, is accused of theft, obstruction and trespassing, in addition to violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.
WASHINGTON – A Pennsylvania girl linked to the far-right “Groyper” extremist motion was convicted Monday of a number of federal fees after prosecutors mentioned she was a part of a gaggle that stormed Home Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s workplace through the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol.
Riley June Williams was discovered responsible of six federal counts, together with civil dysfunction. However the jury deadlocked on two different fees, together with “aiding and abetting the theft” of a laptop computer that was stolen from Pelosi’s workplace suite through the rebellion. The jury additionally failed to succeed in a unanimous verdict on whether or not Williams obstructed an official continuing.
U.S. District Decide Amy Berman Jackson ordered Williams be taken into custody after the jury delivered its verdict.
Williams joined a mob’s assault on the Capitol after attending the “Cease the Steal” rally, the place then-President Donald Trump addressed 1000’s of supporters earlier that day. Getting into Pelosi’s workplace, she discovered a laptop computer on a desk and informed one other rioter, “Dude, placed on gloves,” earlier than somebody with a black gloved hand eliminated the pc, based on prosecutors.
Williams later bragged on-line that she stole Pelosi’s gavel, laptop computer and exhausting drives and that she “gave the digital gadgets, or tried to present them, to unspecified Russian people,” prosecutors mentioned in a June 2022 courtroom submitting.
“Up to now, neither the laptop computer nor the gavel has been recovered,” they added.
A witness described as a former romantic associate of Williams informed the FBI that she meant to ship the stolen laptop computer or exhausting drive to a buddy in Russia who deliberate to promote it to Russia’s overseas intelligence service. However the witness mentioned Williams stored the gadget or destroyed it when the switch fell by means of, based on an FBI agent’s affidavit.
Williams, a resident of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, was arrested lower than two weeks after the riot. She was charged with theft of presidency property, assaulting police and obstructing the joint session of Congress for certifying the Electoral School vote. Williams additionally confronted misdemeanor fees, together with disorderly or disruptive conduct.
Williams denied stealing the laptop computer when the FBI questioned her. She claimed her ex-boyfriend “made up” the allegation, prosecutors mentioned.
Earlier than she left the Capitol, Williams joined different rioters in pushing in opposition to law enforcement officials making an attempt to clear the constructing’s Rotunda. Police physique digital camera captured the confrontation, as Williams inspired different rioters to “maintain pushing,” and “push, push, push.”
Williams was carrying a shirt bearing the message, “I’m with groyper,” when she entered the Capitol. The time period “groyper” refers to followers of “America First” motion chief Nick Fuentes, who has used his on-line platform to spew antisemitic and white supremacist rhetoric.
Different followers of Fuentes have been charged with Jan. 6-related crimes, together with former UCLA pupil Christian Secor, 24, of Costa Mesa, California. Secor, who was waving an “America First” flag when he entered the Capitol, was sentenced final month to 3 years and 6 months in jail.
Williams’ on-line footprint additionally included materials related to “accelerationism,” a violent ideology that asserts “Western governments are corrupt and unsalvageable, and subsequently the perfect factor an individual can do is speed up their collapse by sowing social chaos and producing political battle,” prosecutors mentioned.
In December 2020, Williams attended at the least two rallies protesting the end result of the presidential election. Each rallies featured speeches by Fuentes.
“Her admiration of Nick Fuentes, self-identification as a ‘Groyper,’ perception in Accelerationism, and help for violence all circumstantially present the blended motives behind her actions on January 6: she not solely particularly sought to dam Congress from certifying the Electoral School vote, but in addition to undermine and impede the federal government extra typically,” prosecutors wrote.
Earlier than her trial, Williams’ attorneys questioned the relevance of her political actions and beliefs.
“There isn’t any proof linking her beliefs and actions previous to January 6 along with her actions that day,” they wrote. “There’s a respectable threat that jurors will choose Ms. Williams merely for the unpopular and excessive ideologies she has embraced prior to now, fairly than for the precise crimes with which she is charged.”
More than two dozen dogs were rescued after an investigation into a dog fighting ring in Pennsylvania.
Pennsylvania State Police said they seized 28 dogs from a home in West Hazleton, Luzerne County, last week.
Troopers said the dogs and “numerous items of animal fighting paraphernalia” were found at the home. Police found weighted collars, heavy chains and treadmills at the scene, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, which is now caring for the dogs and puppies.
After getting another search warrant, police said they found 19 dogs crated inside the home and eight outside. Another was found running loose and was captured, troopers said.
(Photo: ASPCA/PA State Police)
Griffin Pond Animal Shelter and the Luzerne County Animal Response Team helped remove the dogs, and the shelter temporarily cared for them until they were given to the ASPCA. The dogs will have to undergo forensic veterinary evaluations, general vet care and behavioral analysis.
The ASPCA said some of the dogs had scarring and injuries consistent with dog fighting.
In a Facebook post, the Griffin Pond Animal Shelter said it was one of “the most horrific cases we’ve been a part of.”
“Seeing these photos brings tears to our eyes. We’re beyond tired of experiencing these heartbreaking situations because of humans that have failed the voiceless. The cruelty they were subjected to is unimaginable,” the shelter said.
Police said the person at the center of the search warrant is in the Luzerne County Jail on other charges. The investigation is ongoing.
March 10 (UPI) — A small plane has crashed in rural Pennsylvania, injuring all five on board, officials said.
The plane crashed at about 3:18 p.m. EDT on Sunday in a parking lot of a retirement community in Manheim Township, located about 85 miles northwest of Philadelphia, Manheim Township said in a statement.
All five people on board sustained injuries of unknown severity and were transported to local hospitals for medical treatment, according to the township. No injuries were reported on the ground and there were no deaths, it added.
The Brethren Village facilities also avoided sustaining damage, though several cars in the parking lot were damaged.
Officials told reporters during a press conference that the aircraft was on fire when responders arrived at the scene. About a dozen cars were damaged in the crash, with at least five having been “severely damaged,” Manheim Township Police Chief Duane Fisher said.
The fire has since been extinguished, the officials said.
According to FlightAware, the aircraft had departed from Lancaster Airport near the crash site with a final destination of Springfield, Ohio.
The cause of the crash was under investigation.
Fisher said they initially imposed a shelter-in-place order for the retirement community following the crash as a “precaution.”
“At no point did the plane or the aircraft strike any part of the structure,” Fisher said. “So, we’re very confident that all safety concerns have been addressed as far as the facility here and everyone that lives here.”
“I don’t know if I consider it a miracle, but the fact that we have a plane crash where everybody survives and nobody on the ground is hurt is a wonderful thing.”
The FAA, which said it was investigating the crash, identified the plane in a statement as a Beechcraft Bonanza.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said state police were on the scene assisting first responders.
“All Commonwealth resources are available as the response continues,” he said on X.
The incident follows a series of high-profile aviation crashes in the United States, including a crash involving a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter and an American Airlines Jet in Washington, D.C., in January.
A plane has crash-landed in a parking lot in suburban Pennsylvania.
Dramatic footage showed the aircraft erupt in flames in the parking lot, lined with other vehicles, in Manheim Township.
Medics, ambulances, and emergency vehicles rushed to the scene in Lancaster County – as flames engulfed the plane. It is unclear how many people were on board.
The aircraft crashed, triggering a fiery inferno and causing multiple vehicles to burst into flames, between Fairview Drive and Meadowview Court.
The aircraft’s tail can be seen in the wreckage, squashed up next to parked cars and surrounded by thick black smoke billowing through the air.
Numerous injuries have been reported at the scene – including burn victims.
The parking lot where the plane landed is just two streets away from Lancaster Airport – and serves a retirement home, Fairview Meadows.
Public records provided by Lancaster Airport show that a commuter airline provided by Southern Airways Express was scheduled to land at the airport at 2:14pm. It took off from Dulles International Airport in Virginia earlier on Sunday.
Dramatic footage showed the aircraft erupt in flames in a parking lot, lined with other vehicles, in Manheim Township
The aircraft’s tail can be seen in the wreckage, squashed up next to parked cars and surrounded by thick black smoke
Emergency services are seen working on the small plane crash in Pennsylvania
Smoke is seen billowing from the site of the aircraft crash
This comes after a particularly tumultuous start to the year for the aviation industry.
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