FBI makes 2 arrests in Las Vegas related to riots at Capitol

The ongoing investigation of violence at the U.S. Capitol led the FBI to arrest two ardent supporters of ex-President Donald Trump this week in Las Vegas.

Nathaniel DeGrave, 31, of Las Vegas and Ronald Sandlin, 31, of Memphis, Tennessee, were initially booked at the Henderson Detention Center after their arrests on Thursday, U.S. Marshal Gary Schofield said.

On Friday the FBI tweeted that DeGrave and Sandlin were arrested “as a result of their alleged criminal activity at the U.S. Capitol” on Jan. 6, the day a four-hour riot left five dead, including a Capitol Police officer.

An FBI-led criminal apprehension team made the arrests, and Las Vegas police assisted. Further arrests are possible, Schofield said.

“We will continue to track down and arrest those who attacked our Capitol anywhere in the country,” he told the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Criminal complaints filed by federal authorities in Washington, D.C., charge DeGrave and Sandlin with knowingly entering or remaining in a restricted building without lawful authority and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.

In a complaint filed Jan. 20, Sandlin also faces two counts of obstructing law enforcement engaged in official duties. DeGrave was charged Thursday.

A warrant filed in support of charges against DeGrave indicates that Sandlin was arrested at the Las Vegas apartment complex where DeGrave lives. The circumstances and location of DeGrave’s arrest have not been released.

Warrant details actions

The warrant indicates that the FBI used video surveillance, social media posts, a driver’s license photo and tips from the public to conclude that Sandlin, DeGrave and another man, Josiah Colt of Boise, Idaho, are the trio pictured on video surveillance in the Capitol during the insurrection. Sandlin and DeGrave were convinced the election was being stolen, according to the document.

DeGrave is quoted as saying on social media: “It’s time the American people rise and stand up for this country. We’re tired of the corruption.”

The Capitol siege unfolded as lawmakers inside were working to certify Democrat Joe Biden’s presidential election victory.

According to the FBI, Sandlin posted an invitation to the protests on social media on Dec. 31 and wrote, “I’m organizing a caravan of patriots who are going to Washington D.C. to stand behind our president Donald J. Trump.”

The same post stated that Sandlin, Colt and DeGrave already had booked their flights to Washington, D.C., to attend the protest on Jan. 6 and requested contributions to a GoFundMe page. According to the warrant, the post stated, “Every dollar you contribute to us is a smack in the face of Antifa.”

Antifa is shorthand for “anti-fascists,” an umbrella description for the far-left-leaning militant groups that resist neo-Nazis and white supremacists at demonstrations and other events.

According to the FBI, on one of the videos from the Capitol grounds, a man resembling DeGrave says, “We are out here protecting the country. If (expletive) goes down, if (Vice President Mike) Pence does what we think he is going to do, then we are here to defend this city, defend any city in this country. Let antifa try us. We are here. We are ready. I say bring it. We are not silent anymore.”

An analysis of video surveillance from the Capitol Senate Gallery later showed Sandlin and a person believed to be DeGrave in a shoving match with officers, according to the FBI.

Authorities also received video evidence from an anonymous tipster that shows Sandlin, Colt and DeGrave prior to the Capitol riot, and according to the FBI, Sandlin is heard saying, “We are ready to occupy the state capitol if needed to. … I urge other patriots watching this too to be willing to take the Capitol.”

‘We breached the building’

A warrant filed in support of the charges against Sandlin states that police received a tip about audio and video recordings of Sandlin inside the Capitol and shared it with the FBI.

“In the first video clip, Sandlin appeared emotional, stating ‘we did it,’” according to the warrant. “In the second video clip, Sandlin stated ‘we breached the building, we breached the building, into our Capitol.’”

The FBI said it tracked down a social media post from Sandlin’s Facebook account at 9:56 p.m. on Jan. 6 that read: “We are not terrorists. We occupied and for the most part left that place relatively put together all things considered.”

According to the FBI, an article and video published in the New York Post depicted Sandlin smoking what appeared to be marijuana in the Capitol Rotunda. A subpoena allowed the FBI to trace a Facebook account repeatedly cited in the warrant to Sandlin’s Memphis address.

On Thursday, surveillance was conducted at a Las Vegas apartment complex where DeGrave lives. Authorities saw a truck registered to Sandlin parked outside the complex in the parking lot.

“Sandlin was later observed walking towards the truck from a pathway in the apartment complex and was arrested by the FBI,” the warrant states.

Colt is already facing federal charges of knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds. He’s been identified in multiple media reports as the man photographed clinging to a balcony in the Senate during the insurrection. He also was pictured sitting in Pence’s chair in the chamber. Colt later apologized for his involvement.

Metro officer investigated

Thursday’s arrests were unrelated to a Las Vegas police officer under investigation after posting photos of himself at the Capitol on the day of the riot, according to Metropolitan Police Department spokesman Larry Hadfield.

“None of our employees are involved in it as suspects,” he said in an email Thursday.

Patrol officer Christopher Cooney changed his profile photo on Facebook to a shot of himself outside the Capitol building on Jan. 6. About a week later, Hadfield said Metro was investigating whether Cooney entered the Capitol building.

According to Steve Grammas, president of the Las Vegas Police Protective Association, Cooney has told the police union that he “had no involvement or engagement in any illegal activity.”

As of Friday night, 160 people — including DeGrave and Sandlin — had been charged in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., with crimes related to the Capitol violence on Jan. 6. Their arrests have occurred throughout the country.

Contact Glenn Puit at gpuit@reviewjournal.com. Follow @GlennatRJ on Twitter. Contact Sabrina Schnur at sschnur@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0278. Follow @sabrina_schnur on Twitter. Contact Alexis Ford at aford@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0335. Follow @alexisdford on Twitter.