Texas man on trial for Capitol riot ‘lit the match that started the fire,’ prosecutor says

FILE - Violent insurrectionists, loyal to President Donald Trump, storm the Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021. The first trial for one of the hundreds of Capitol riot prosecutions starts this week, with jury selection scheduled to begin on Monday, Feb. 28, 2022, for the case against Guy Wesley Reffitt. – A Texas militia member who is the first person to be tried for the assault on the U.S.

Reffitt is charged with bringing a gun onto Capitol grounds, interfering with police officers guarding the building and threatening his teenage children if they reported him to authorities. “Every time he took a step, they took a step,” Kerkhoff said of the rioters behind Reffitt. “It was becoming a dire situation.”

Prosecutors believe Reffitt took an AR-15 rifle and a Smith & Wesson pistol with him when he drove to Washington with a fellow militia member. FBI agents who searched Reffitt’s home after the riot found a handgun in a holster on a nightstand in the Reffitt's bedroom. More than 750 people have been charged with federal crimes related to the riot. Over 220 riot defendants have pleaded guilty, more than 100 have been sentenced and at least 90 others have trial dates.in the deaths of five people, including a police officer. More than 100 officers were injured. Rioters caused over $1 million in damage.

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Prosecutors paint alleged Texas militia member as a leader of Jan. 6 riot at U.S. CapitolGuy Wesley Reffitt is the first Jan. 6 defendant to have his case heard by a jury. The outcome of the trial could determine whether hundreds of other people charged for their roles in what transpired that day will seek to enter into plea deals with the government.
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North Texas Militia Leader Accused in Jan. 6 Attack on Congress Goes on TrialA militia leader from Wylie “lit the match that started the fire” of the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol last year, a federal prosecutor told jurors Wednesday in the first trial of alleged rioters.
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