Two men from New York were charged by federal officials on Monday for their alleged involvement in the deadly siege of the U.S. Capitol earlier this month.
Officials confirmed charges were brought against Nicolas Moncada, of Staten Island, and Thomas Fee, of Freeport, after obtaining evidence of their alleged participation on Jan. 6. The charges against Moncada and Fee follow the arrests of two New York men over the weekend as well as a New Jersey Army reservist who lived on a nearby Naval base with "secret" security clearance.
Moncada, 20, was picked up by FBI officials Monday morning in Washington, D.C. after the bureau linked the Staten Island man to the events at the Capitol. On an Instagram account officials linked to Moncada, the former Fashion Institute of Technology student documented his trespassing of the building.
Two days after the riot, Moncada's school, which he has not been enrolled in since May 2020, shared information with FBI New York of the Staten Island man's post to social media and alleged involvement. Several videos appear to document Moncada participation, including a photo with captioned "Outside Pelosi's office."
"Mr. Moncada denies any participation in the effort to overthrow the Government, and he looks forward to defending his good name," his lawyer, Mario Gallucci, said.
Federal investigators showed up to a Staten Island residence believed to be the home of Moncada around 5 a.m. Monday, neighbors told NBC New York.
"Nicolas Moncada is now in custody for his role in assaulting the U.S. Capitol while our representatives were inside performing their constitutional duties," William Sweeney Jr., assistant director in charge of the FBI's New York field office, said.
Federal authorities also charged Fee, an active Freeport Fire Department volunteer firefighter, on Monday, but he had not been arrested as of the afternoon, a senior official said.
The FDNY confirms the Long Island man is a 22-year veteran of the department who retired in October 2020. A spokesperson previously told NBC New York that the FDNY had received allegations of active and retired members who were at the Capitol on Jan. 6 and provided that intel to the FBI.
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Court documents claim Fee sent photo evidence of himself inside the Capitol to a close contact who works within a branch of the State Department. Officials allege Fee drove down to Washington, D.C. on Jan. 5 and return the day after the riot, on Jan. 7. The vehicle registered to the Long Island man was observed crossing the Verrazano Bridge on each of those days, the docs say.
Fee's girlfriend allegedly posted about his involvement in the riot on Facebook. The post was observed by a special agent with the U.S. Diplomatic Security Service who contacted Fee directly over text.
According to court docs, Fee not only admitted via text message his participation on Jan. 6, he sent the agent a selfie allegedly taken inside the U.S. Capitol Rotunda. The special agent took the photo and shared it with the Joint Terrorism Task Force. The selfie was cross-checked with Fee driver's license photo in state DMV records to further prove his participation.
It wasn't immediately clear if Fee had legal representation.
