Plea hearing scheduled in federal court for Maryland man accused of entering U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6

Jun. 9—A Maryland man charged in connection with the Jan. 6 siege at the U.S. Capitol has a plea agreement hearing scheduled for June 23 in federal court, according to electronic court records.

Robert Maurice Reeder was charged in February with entering the Capitol building in Washington, D.C, when a mob supporting former President Donald Trump stormed the building in an attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election won by Joe Biden.

The plea agreement hearing was scheduled after a Tuesday status conference for the case. The provisions of the plea were not made clear in court filings, and Reeder's attorney Robert Bonsib declined to comment on the case when reached Wednesday.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua Rothstein also would not go into specifics of the case.

Former federal prosecutor David B. Irwin said scheduling the hearing signals that prosecutors and Reeder's lawyer "have probably come to an agreement."

The judge will have the opportunity to review and accept that agreement at the June 23 hearing, along with a potential plea from Reeder, said Irwin, now an attorney with the Baltimore-based law firm Kramon & Graham.

Reeder is accused of entering the Capitol building without having authority to do so, according to a statement of facts filed in the District of Columbia's federal court. He has been charged with violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds and knowingly entering a restricted building, according to a criminal complaint filed in the case.

Around Jan. 7, the Harford County State's Attorney's office submitted a tip to the FBI that facial recognition software had identified two Maryland residents as possible matches to photos released by the federal agency following the storming of the Capitol, according to the complaint. One of those individuals was identified as Reeder.

Reeder contacted the government through an attorney around Jan. 19, according to the documents, and provided a nearly 22-minute compilation of photos and videos he took on his cellphone during the riot, the documents state.

Reeder claimed he was "one of the last people out," and had been tear gassed, according to the complaint. He also claims to have walked past a dead woman. He also filmed an assault on a police officer, according to the document.

Reeder claimed he was "one of the last people out," and had been tear gassed, according to the complaint. He also claims to have walked past a dead woman.

Five died people died during the chaos, including a U.S. Capitol Police officer and Ashli E. Babbitt, a 35-year-old Air Force veteran from San Diego who'd lived in Annapolis and Southern Maryland.

Reeder was arrested Feb. 24 and charged in the District of Columbia's federal court. He was released, subject to supervision, according to court filings.

Seven people have been arrested in Maryland for their alleged participation in the storming of the U.S. Capitol, according to the FBI.

Among those from Maryland charged with participating were a 26-year-old Frederick man photographed with his work badge inside the Capitol and a 33-year-old man who wore a bulletproof vest and carried a handgun with a high-capacity magazine.

Another man from Clarksburg allegedly hit a police officer with a "lacrosse type stick" during the chaos. A 26-year-old from Silver Spring wore white nationalist apparel and posed with a Confederate battle flag perched atop scaffolding on Capitol grounds, and a 42-year-old from Baltimore County also was charged with participating in the Jan. 6 riot.