Feds: Brooklyn man charged in Capitol riot
Anton Lunyk, charged in connection with the Capitol riot in January, appears in images federal prosecutors filed in court papers. Credit: USANYE
A Brooklyn man who allegedly participated in the U.S. Capitol riot on Jan. 6 was arrested Tuesday at his Midwood home, according to federal prosecutors in the Eastern District of New York.
Anton Lunyk, 26, was charged with breaking into a federal building, impeding government business and other crimes related to his role in the siege that left five dead. He was released on his own recognizance later Tuesday by Chief Magistrate Judge Cheryl Pollack during a teleconference arraignment.
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A Brooklyn man who allegedly participated in the U.S. Capitol riot on Jan. 6 was arrested Tuesday at his Midwood home, according to federal prosecutors in the Eastern District of New York.
Anton Lunyk, 26, was charged with breaking into a federal building, impeding government business and other crimes related to his role in the siege that left five dead. He was released on his own recognizance later Tuesday by Chief Magistrate Judge Cheryl Pollack during a teleconference arraignment.
The FBI learned of Lunyk’s role in the siege, according to a criminal complaint, from a college pal who spotted him in a New York Post tweet. The tweet showed a white supremacist media personality known as "Baked Alaska" in the office of an unspecified senator; Lunyk, according to the complaint, is standing in the background.
A second witness who does not know Lunyk personally also shared a photo with law enforcement from the suspect’s Instagram account, according to the complaint. The photo included a caption that said "This is going to be an interesting next few weeks...who else is going to DC this week?" Images of a man wearing the same clothes were included in a media report of the insurrection, the complaint said, and images of Lunyk in the Capitol were captured on closed-circuit television.
License plate readers also tracked Lunyk’s departure from New York on Jan. 5 and his return hours after the riot.
Lunyk’s attorney, Michael Weil of the Federal Defenders, did not return a request for comment. Lunyk’s next virtual hearing is scheduled for May 20. His case will be prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Washington.
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