A Long Island attorney was arrested early Thursday morning at his home on federal charges for his alleged role during the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.
John O’Kelly, 66, was brought into custody at his East Williston home, and charged with assaulting, resisting or impeding law enforcement officers and interfering with officers during the civil disorder.
Authorities said they have videos and pictures of O’Kelly on Capitol grounds where rioters were fighting with officers attempting to maintain a police barrier. Prosecutors said O'Kelly grabbed at the officer's baton and tried to take the weapon.
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After the officer fought back and kept the baton in his possession, O’Kelly then pushed a metal bike rack being used to secure the perimeter into the line of officers.
O’Kelly had been identified in videos and pictures by the FBI and was known to online sleuths investigating the Jan. 6 attack as "MidWhiteCrisis." According to court papers, the FBI conducted a third party interview with a longtime friend of of O'Kelly's family who knows the attorney personally. The interviewee looked at photos from the Capitol breach and identified the individual as O’Kelly.
O’Kelly was previously an attorney for the Lawyer’s Committee for 9/11 Inquiry, which believes that the Twin Towers were brought down by pre-planted explosives. He has also served on the board of education at the East Williston School District.
O’Kelly was arraigned by the U.S. Magistrate Judge Steven Tiscione and released on a $100,000 bond. He was represented today by the Long Island Federal Defenders Office.
