Staff Report –

WASHINGTON. D.C. — A Massachusetts man was arrested this week for assaulting police during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, which disrupted a joint session of Congress in the process of certifying the electoral votes confirming Joe Biden as the winner in the presidential election of 2020.

Vincent J. Gillespie, 60, of Athol, Massachusetts, is charged in a criminal complaint filed in the District of Columbia with assaulting, resisting and impeding officers, as well as civil disorder, engaging in physical violence in a restricted building and grounds, according to a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice.

He was arrested in Athol, Massachusetts, and will make his initial appearance Tuesday in the District Court of Massachusetts.

According to court documents, on Jan. 6, from at least 4:11 p.m. to at least 4:25 p.m., Gillespie was among rioters in the Lower West Terrance of the Capitol who engaged in pushing, shoving, yelling and fighting with Capitol Police and Metro Police officers.

He struggled his way through the crowd, eventually maneuvering through the rioters to the line of police officers defending the Lower West Terrace’s exterior door. At one point, he gained control of a police shield as he approached the officers.

Gillespie used the shield to ram the law enforcement officers, continuing to scream “traitor” and “treason” at the police. He also grabbed a law enforcement officer by the arm and attempted to pull him into the crowd.

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. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.

The case is being investigated by the FBI Boston Division’s Western Massachusetts Joint Terrorism Task Force and the FBI’s Washington Field Office. Valuable assistance was provided by the Athol, Massachusetts Police Department. Gillespie was identified as #141 on the FBI Washington Field Office’s seeking information photos.

In the 13 months since Jan. 6, more than 750 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including over 235 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains ongoing.

Georgia Man Arrested For Assaulting Cops During Jan. 6 Capitol Insurrection

A Georgia man was also arrested last week for assaulting law enforcement during the breach of the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, according to a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice.

Jake Maxwell, 20, of Athens, Georgia, is charged in a criminal complaint filed in the District of Columbia with assaulting, resisting and impeding officers, as well as civil disorder, engaging in physical violence in a restricted building and grounds.

He was arrested in Flowery Branch, Georgia, and made his initial appearance in the Northern District of Georgia.

According to court documents, on Jan. 6, Maxwell engaged in physical confrontations with law enforcement officers in the West Plaza area of the Capitol grounds. He banged his hands and pushed on the riot shield of a U.S. Capitol Police officer as the officer tried to push him away with the shield.

He then moved towards an officer with the Metropolitan Police Department and got into a physical struggle with him. During that struggle, Maxwell first hooked his arm around the officer’s baton. The officer then got his baton away from Maxwell and used it to keep Maxwell away from the line of law enforcement trying to protect the Capitol building from the crowd of rioters. Maxwell, however, grabbed the officer’s baton with his left hand and pulled on it during the struggle.

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. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia.

The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Atlanta Field Office and its Athens Resident Agency, as well as the FBI’s Washington Field Office, which identified Maxwell as #474 in its seeking-information photos. Valuable assistance was provided by the Metropolitan Police Department and the U.S. Capitol Police.

In the one year since Jan. 6, more than 725 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including over 225 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains ongoing.

Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.