The FBI on Thursday arrested the leading Republican candidate for governor in Michigan for allegedly participating in the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol by supporters of then-President Donald Trump.
The Justice Department said Ryan Kelly took part in a violent attack on the Capitol aimed at preventing authentication of Democrat Joe Biden’s victory over Trump in the presidential election two months ago.
Kelly, a planning commission member in Allendale, Michigan, and founder of the far-right American Patriot Council, was charged with illegally entering the Capitol and engaging in physical violence against the property.
An affidavit filed in Washington federal court details his involvement in the January 6 unrest, identifying him using videos, photographs and other information posted on social media, as well as phone records.
Some showed him urging the crowd to enter the Capitol.
A video from the day posted online by the Michigan Tea News site reportedly depicts Kelly shouting, “Come on, let’s go! That’s it! That’s it, it’s a child of war!”
According to the FBI, Kelly was arrested early Thursday at his Allendale home.
A poll in May showed him leading a crowded field of candidates hoping to win the Republican nomination for governor of Michigan.
Raising his profile in the state, he and the American Patriot Council have led protests against COVID-19 prevention policies, including masking and vaccinations, over the past two years.
It was not immediately known how the arrest would affect his gubernatorial campaign.
His Facebook page posted a two-word statement that read: “Political Prisoner.”
Kelly is one of more than 840 people arrested that day for taking part in an attack on a US Congressional seat.
Most, including Kelly, have been charged with misdemeanors of illegally entering the Capitol and obstructing an official meeting of Congress.
But about 255 have criminal charges of assault, theft and conspiracy.
On Monday, five members of the far-right Proud Boys group, who had an organizing role in the January 6 events, were charged with seditious conspiracy, which carries a prison sentence of up to 20 years.
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