Jan. 6 Rioter Came To D.C. With Arsenal, Brought Pistol Onto Capitol Grounds

Newly unsealed court records underscore what Donald Trump has denied about the riot at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021: that some participants were armed.

A court filing unsealed by federal prosecutors details how a Texas man and his friends brought an arsenal of guns with them to Washington, D.C., and how he snuck one onto the Capitol grounds during the deadly Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection attempt.

Roger Preacher was first charged in May of last year with unlawful possession of a firearm on the Capitol grounds on the day of the insurrection. He carried a .22 caliber Walther P22 pistol in his waistband on the Capitol’s lower west terrace, where some of the worst violence of the day erupted.

Preacher was arraigned in May and pleaded guilty, but his case was put under seal. U.S. attorneys told a judge there was “sensitive information” specific to Preacher’s plea agreement that couldn’t be released publicly at the time. With those concerns apparently resolved, prosecutors unsealed the case last week.

The newly released records offer disturbing details about Preacher’s foray to Washington, where he attended the “Stop the Steal” rally that would end in the storming of Congress and an attempt to overturn the election.

According to prosecutors, Preacher drove from Texas to Virginia with two other men, Jason Parsons and Mario Mares. They started texting about their plans around Jan. 2, and on the journey discussed “firearms laws in the District of Columbia and … knew it would be unlawful to bring firearms into the city,” the records allege.

Prosecutors said the three men drove from Texas to a Virginia suburb of D.C. in Mares’ car, which they’d loaded with a bag of guns, and they checked into a hotel to prepare for the rally on Jan. 6. The next day, Preacher drove himself and his friends from Virginia into D.C., and though the men left their rifles behind in the car, Preacher tucked the .22 caliber into a holster on his waist. Prosecutors say the men made it to the lower west terrace of the Capitol grounds, and Preacher was in that location for an hour before getting separated from his group.

Back at their hotel room in Virginia, the three men discussed hearing about arrests and decided to flee back to Texas. But before they headed home, they took a picture of their guns and tactical gear and posted it to Facebook.

“Fuck Washington DC,” the caption read.

The gun Preacher carried with him at the Capitol is in the center of the photo, along with a red MAGA hat and other items.

Prosecutors are asking that Preacher be sentenced to zero to six months in prison and that he pay a fine ranging anywhere from $500 to $9,500. That would be a bargain, considering the charges he faces: Without a plea deal, he was looking at up to five years in prison and a fine of $250,000.

In exchange for his guilty plea, prosecutors agreed not to bring any other charges against him.

Preacher waived his right to a jury trial. It is unclear when he will be sentenced, but records show that a joint status report for his sentencing is due before Oct. 28.

An attorney for Preacher did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Parsons was charged with unlawful possession of a firearm on Capitol grounds in April 2023 and pleaded guilty after striking a deal with prosecutors. His case was sealed until September 30, 2024.

Mares was indicted in March 2023 and charged with multiple offenses including entering and remaining in a restricted building with a deadly weapon, disorderly conduct and unlawful possession of a firearm. Mares pleaded not guilty and opted to have a bench trial. The bench trial concluded on Oct. 4 and a verdict is imminent from U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes.

The revelations about Preacher come just a day after Donald Trump said during a Univision town hall event that there were no guns at the U.S. Capitol on Jan 6.

Lumping himself in with the rioters, Trump remarked that “we didn’t have guns” but “the others” — the police who defended the Capitol building that day — did.

Preacher is far from the only Jan. 6 defendant who was armed at the Capitol that day. Participants in the riot brought guns, knives, baseball bats, stun guns, and chemical irritants like bear spray. Several defendants have pleaded guilty to carrying weapons on Jan. 6, including Guy Reffitt, Mark Mazza and Chris Alberts.

The far-right militia known as the Oath Keepers also brought a massive cache of weapons to a hotel room in northern Virginia, as the 2022 seditious conspiracy trial of some of the group’s leaders revealed. The group called members who transported and guarded the guns a “quick reaction force” who would be ready at a moment’s notice to occupy the Capitol if Trump invoked the Insurrection Act.