TEXAS, USA — An East Texas man and his cousin from Louisiana have been arrested in connection with the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, Jan. 6.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Daniel Adams was taken into custody Saturday in East Texas. His cousin, Cody Connell, was arrested the same day in Louisiana.
Per the statement of facts filed by the DOJ, Adams and Connell traveled to Washington, D.C. and took part in the riot.
Adams was charged with the following:
- Assaulting a federal officer
- Obstructing law enforcement engaged in official duties incident to civil disorder
- Knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority
- Violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds
Connell was charged with the below crimes:
- Assaulting a federal officer
- Obstructing law enforcement engaged in official duties incident to civil disorder
- Knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority
- Violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds
The DOJ released the following statement regarding the arrest of Adams and Connell:
"During national news coverage of the aforementioned events, video footage which appeared to be captured on mobile devices of persons present on the scene depicted evidence of violations of local and federal law, including scores of individuals inside the Capitol building without authority to be there," the DOJ said in a statement. "On January 7, 2021, an unknown individual provided law enforcement with information regarding a subject, 'CODY CONNELL,' who claimed to have breached the Capitol on January 6. That individual provided a screenshot of what appears to be a Facebook exchange between CONNELL and another individual, in which CONNELL states, 'I have more videos of us breaching the Capitol but not gonna post them. We will be back and it will be a lot worse than yesterday!'"
"Additional social media research illustrates CONNELL’s plans to travel from Louisiana to Washington, D.C. on January 6, 2021," the DOJ said. "On January 5, for example, CONNELL reposted a message stating, 'Join President Donald J. Trump at the Save America March' and listing the event details for January 6, 2021. CONNELL added a message to this post saying, 'Definitely gonna be an experience.' Later that night at about 12:26 a.m. on January 6, CONNELL posted on Facebook a screen shot of what appears to be a Google maps picture of the Washington, D.C. area with a pin dropped in the center of Washington. CONNELL added a message with flexing arm emojis saying, 'gonna be right there in the middle of it.' At about 11:43 a.m. on January 6, CONNELL posted to his public profile page a two-minute and fifty-eight second video of CONNELL and another individual law enforcement believes to be CONNELL’s cousin, ADAMS, walking in what appears to be Washington, D.C., with the Washington Monument in the foreground. At about the fifteen-second mark, CONNELL says, 'We here' and flashes the camera to his face and ADAMS’s face. CONNELL is the bearded individual with a dark-colored hooded sweatshirt and a gray hat with markings on the front bottom-left, depicted in Figure Four. ADAMS is the next individual shown in the video with a mullet hairstyle, camouflage jacket, purple shirt, and blue multicolored hat, depicted in Figure Five.
"Finally, social media information revealed that CONNELL and ADAMS posed for a photograph in Washington, D.C. with the same clothing as in the aforementioned video," the DOJ said. "In the photograph, CONNELL appears to be the bearded individual in the center-right, with the same dark-colored hooded sweatshirt and gray hat with markings seen in Figure Four, and distinctive tattoos on his hands. ADAMS appears to be the individual in the center-left with the same mullet hairstyle, camouflage jacket, purple shirt, and blue multi-colored hat seen in Figure Five. The social media photograph is below in Figure Six, with CONNELL’s face and tattoos identified by red ovals."
"According to one witness familiar with both CONNELL and ADAMS, CONNELL created videos and photographs apparently taken with a mobile device and distributed to others via social media on January 6, showing himself and ADAMS on the Capitol grounds," said the DOJ's statement. "This witness provided the photographs and videos to law enforcement and identified CONNELL and ADAMS. In one twelve-second video, CONNELL wrote 'They tear gassing us.' The video shows CONNELL and ADAMS surrounded by other rioters and covering their faces as if to shield themselves from tear gas, all while standing under what appears to be the temporary fixture connected to the Capitol building on January 6. In Figure Eight below, CONNELL appears to be wearing the same dark-colored hoodie, gray hat with markings, and hand tattoos (marked with red ovals) as in Figures Four and Six. Also in Figure Eight, CONNELL’s cousin is standing behind CONNELL and appears to be wearing the same mullet hairstyle, camouflage jacket, and blue-patterned hat as in Figures Five and Six. Because of the face, clothing, and location matches between CONNELL’s personal Facebook post and the witness’s video provided to law enforcement, your affiant has reason to believe the subjects in both are CONNELL and ADAMS. In Figure Nine below, the screenshot of the video displays the surroundings after CONNELL flipped the camera around, and your affiant recognizes those surroundings to be the Capitol stairs.
"Law enforcement also reviewed additional social media information connected to CONNELL that appears to be a cellphone video taken either by CONNELL or ADAMS," the DOJ said. "The video depicts ADAMS at the front of a crowd on the Capitol grounds, pushing toward a line of United States Capitol Police officers standing guard. At the beginning of the video, ADAMS repeatedly asks to those around him, 'Let’s go. Are you ready to push?' ADAMS is directly in front of a line of Capitol Police officers who are holding protective shields up between themselves and ADAMS. At this point, ADAMS starts yelling, 'let’s go, let’s go, let’s go!' and he and others appear to sprint up the Capitol steps, chasing the officers who are now repositioning themselves at the top of the stairs. ADAMS then engages in a direct struggle with law enforcement officers who are attempting to prevent ADAMS and others from breaking the line again. ADAMS continuously shouts, 'come on, let’s go, let’s go, come on, let’s go,' in an apparent effort to encourage others to keep launching forward toward the officers and the Capitol building. The video then shows ADAMS physically engaging with another set of officers at the top of the steps. The video ends with a loud thud and ADAMS holding his head and uttering an expletive. Figure Ten, below, depicts ADAMS’s view as shown in the video, just before he led the crowd of rioters to surge forward against the depicted officers and their protective shields. Figure Eleven depicts ADAMS holding his head and looking into the camera at the end of the apparent altercation."
"According to social media records, CONNELL appears to have described the January 6 events detailed above in a conversation with another individual on January 7, 2021," the DOJ statement read. "CONNELL stated'“4 of us breached the cops blockade and us same 4 breached the Capitol.' After apparently sending a video to the same individual, CONNELL explained, 'That’s my cousin. When we stormed the cops there was 8 of them and 4 of us so he got clubbed and shot with rubber bullet. But we pushed the cops against the wall, they dropped all their gear and left. That’s when we went to doors of Capitol building and breached it.' The other individual responded, 'Yall boys something serious lol it lookin like a civil war yet?' CONNELL answered: 'It’s gonna come to it.'"
"Your affiant believes CONNELL may intend to return to Washington, D.C. sometime during the week of January 18, 2021. According to a witness, CONNELL has communicated with at least two other individuals in Texas about purchasing long-rifle firearms, ammunition, and body armor to bring with them. According to the witness, CONNELL explained that he was not returning to Louisiana unless he was in a body bag. Your affiant understood that to mean CONNELL intended to travel to Washington D.C. to cause violence that may result in the end of his life. Based on the foregoing, your affiant submits there is probable cause to believe that both CODY PAGE CARTER CONNELL and DANIEL PAGE ADAMS violated federal laws."
To read the statement in full, click here.