North Las Vegas man charged in Capitol riot tweeted his involvement, FBI says

A North Las Vegas commercial truck driver who authorities said participated in the attack on the U.S. Capitol and posted about his actions on social media has been arrested, according to federal court documents.

Bradley Nelson drove his employer’s truck to Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, 2021, according to Twitter posts, security footage and photos obtained by the FBI, an arrest warrant filed Monday stated.

“I was one of those that breach that I was in the capital I was in the tundra area when everybody got pushed through and all hell broke loose,” a Twitter post from @nelson_bradley read.

The post, along with several other screenshots, were included in court papers charging Nelson with entering restricted grounds, disorderly conduct on public grounds, disorderly conduct in the Capitol buildings and parading or demonstrating in the Capitol building.

“If all of us that were there had taken our guns easiest decision do you think that that capital building would be in control of the capital police or do you think would be in control of it patriot Americans,” Nelson is accused of writing in another post from Jan. 8.

Investigators wrote in the arrest warrant that security cameras showed Nelson walking through hallways in the Capitol, and that he admitted to his involvement during a phone call with detectives in June 2021.

Detectives wrote that Nelson parked his truck nearby and walked to the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

In a video interview later on the day of the attack, investigators wrote, Nelson discussed the crowds inside the rotunda and said, “I’m going back to regroup and … we’re coming back.”

Nelson appeared in federal court in Las Vegas on Wednesday, when he was released on his own recognizance and ordered to appear in the District of Columbia federal court on Tuesday.

He had not been assigned a defense attorney for next week’s hearing, according to court records.

Three other men were previously arrested in Las Vegas for the riot. Ronald Sandlin, who videotaped himself smoking pot inside the Capitol Rotunda, was sentenced to five years in prison. Nathan DeGrave pleaded guilty to conspiring to obstruct an official proceeding and assaulting, resisting, or impeding officers. He is awaiting sentencing.

Prosecutors said the two men rode with Josiah Colt, 35, of Idaho, to participate in the chaos. Sandlin livestreamed a video on Jan. 6, 2021, urging “other patriots” to “take the Capitol.” Once inside the building, he shouted at officers, “You’re going to die, get out of the way,” and shoved at officers while in the building.

DeGrave and Sandlin were arrested Jan. 28, 2021, near DeGrave’s apartment in Las Vegas. As part of their plea, DeGrave and Colt agreed to cooperate with the Justice Department investigation into the Capitol breach, according to the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia.

Earlier this month, Las Vegas business owner Brandon Dillard was arrested after his sweatshirt with a spiderweb pattern on it helped investigators identify him as a man referred to online as #SpiderNazi. He is scheduled to appear in court next week.

More than 1,000 people have been arrested in nearly all 50 states in connection with the riot, the Department of Justice wrote in a statement earlier this month, and 220 of the 1,000 people arrested had been sentenced to prison.

Contact Sabrina Schnur at sschnur@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0278. Follow @sabrina_schnur on Twitter.