Man Photographed Carrying Confederate Flag Inside U.S. Capitol During Siege Is Arrested
SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images Kevin Seefried inside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021
The man carrying a Confederate battle flag in widely shared images from the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol has been identified and arrested.
The FBI located Kevin Seefried, of Delaware, after receiving a tip from a coworker of his son, Hunter, who allegedly "bragged" about being in the Capitol with his father during the event, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia. Authorities who have been asking for the public's help to identify those who "unlawfully entered" the building then matched the elder man's driver's license photo with that of the man holding the flag.
Video footage posted to Twitter of the event allegedly shows the younger Seefried "punching out glass in a window in the Capitol complex after people adjacent to him in the crowd broke it with a wooden 2 x 4," an action allegedly confirmed by his father, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
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After Hunter Seefried allegedly broke the window, "people from the crowd outside, to include the Seefrieds, were able to access the interior of the Capitol building," states a court document that accompanied a news release announcing the two men's arrests.
The #FBI and our partners are seeking information to help us pursue individuals who instigated violence on January 6 in Washington, D.C. Look at the photos we've added at https://t.co/MMTOKcDiy7, and if you see someone you recognize, submit a tip at https://t.co/buMd8vYXzH.
— FBI (@FBI) January 11, 2021
Each was charged with one count of knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority, one count of violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds and one count of depredation of government property.
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Jacob Fracker and Thomas Robertson were both charged with unlawful entry into a restricted area and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds
In a interview with FBI agents on Tuesday, Kevin Seefried said he brought the flag from his home in Delaware, where is it "usually displayed," and traveled to the District of Columbia to hear Trump speak before he and his son "participated in a march from the White House to the Capitol led by an individual with a bullhorn," according to the statement of fact.
Attorneys who might speak on the men's behalf about the charges were not immediately identified.
