WASHINGTON — A New York man has now been charged with participating in the Jan. 6 insurrection in D.C. after allegedly texting a picture and video of himself in the Capitol to his girlfriend’s brother – a special agent with the U.S. Diplomatic Security Service.
According to a probable cause affidavit filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, the agent – who is a federal officer employed by the U.S. Department of State – reported the photo and video to the Diplomatic Security Service, which then passed it along to the Joint Terrorism Task Force.
The agent reportedly saw a post from his sister on Facebook that her boyfriend, Thomas Fee, of Freeport, New York, was in D.C. “at the rally” on Jan. 6. The agent subsequently texted Fee, who allegedly confirmed his presence and sent him a “selfie” of him in the Capitol Rotunda, along with a video and a text saying he was “at the tip of the spear.”
According to the affidavit, federal investigators were able to confirm a white Chevy Tahoe registered to Fee left Long Island, where Freeport is located, on Jan. 5 and returned Jan. 7 at around 11 a.m.
CNN reports Fee retired from the New York Fire Department in October after 22 years. He is at least the second retired firefighter to be charged in connection with the Capitol riot – the other being Robert Sanford, of Boothwyn, Pennsylvania, who is accused of striking three Capitol Police officers in the head with a fire extinguisher.
Fee faces charges of entering a restricted building or grounds and impeding the orderly conduct of government business or official functions.
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