Two Colorado men were arrested this week on felony and misdemeanor charges relating to their alleged involvement in the U.S. Capitol breach on Jan. 6, 2021, according to an announcement from the U.S. Department of Justice.
The charges filed against Eric Zeis, 37, of Monument, and Justin Schulze, 31, of Colorado Springs, include a felony offense of obstruction of law enforcement during civil disorder as well as misdemeanor offenses including disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds and disorderly conduct in a Capitol building.
According to a news release, Zeis and Schulze drove from their homes in El Paso County to Washington, D.C., to attend former President Donald Trump’s “Stop the Steal” rally as Congress was certifying the 2020 election results.
After the rally, Zeis and Schulze joined a group of rioters that forced their way into the Capitol building while ignoring calls from Capitol Police to stop, officials said. The pair then made their way through different parts of the building, and Zeis was involved in a group that collectively pushed officers out of the way, according to the Justice Department.
The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section, and is being investigated by the FBI’s Denver and Washington field offices.
More than a dozen Coloradans have faced federal charges in connection with Jan. 6.
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