US official arrested in 6 January Capitol riot probe

A US official in charge of diplomatic security was arrested on Tuesday for his alleged involvement in the 6 January attacks on the US Capitol.

Kevin Alstrup, who worked for the State Department during the 2021 incident, now faces four misdemeanour charges.

The charges range from entering and remaining in a restricted building to disorderly and disruptive conduct.

The FBI made its arrest using evidence from a search warrant for devices found inside the Capitol during the riot.

The State Department did not respond to a request for comment but told US media it was aware of Mr Alstrup's arrest and noted that he is no longer employed by the federal agency.

He previously served as "a third-party contractor providing uniformed officer services for the State Department", a spokesperson said in a statement shared with media outlets.

Mr Alstrup "was employed by the United States Department of State as a Diplomatic Security Officer" during the attacks, according to an FBI affidavit.

Because of his position, Mr Alstrup would have been "familiar with providing security and protection for high-ranking government officials or sensitive locations", the FBI said.

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A LinkedIn account that appears to belong to him says that he worked as a security officer for Inter-Con Security Systems beginning in 2010. The page says he held a top secret security clearance and guarded the residences of the secretary of state and secretary of defense.

Mr Alstrup and Inter-Con Security Systems did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The charges Mr Alstrup faces, which also include disorderly conduct and unlawful picketing or parading, are similar to those given to other nonviolent participants who breached the Capitol on 6 January.

Beyond linking Mr Alstrup's device to the Capitol on 6 January, the FBI also found social media posts that included images of the riot outside and within the Capitol.

The photos showed the "obvious presence of barriers outside the US Capitol building, which marked the restricted area," the FBI said.

Inside the Capitol, the FBI said Mr Alstrup was taking photos of other rioters coming in through a broken window while alarms were going off and Capitol Police were telling them to leave.

He was inside the Capitol for 28 minutes, the FBI said, including in a room known as the crypt located in the centre of the building on the first floor.

After Mr Alstrup left the Capitol, his image was captured by a Washington police officer's body camera, the FBI affidavit said.

At least 1,265 defendants have been charged with crimes related to the Capitol riot, according to the latest figures from the US Justice Department. More than 900 have pleaded guilty or have been convicted.