Investigators have used 500 summonses for grand juries and warrants to gather information in the comprehensive, unparalleled investigation, Michael Sherwin, the top US prosecutor in Washington, told a news conference on Tuesday.
Sedition, among other charges, is “what we’re trying to build on,” Sherwin said.
The sock stretched across the country with arrests in Florida, California, New Hampshire and Hawaii.
Many of the at least 150 defendants identified by CNN are accused of entering a restricted building without legal authority and violent trespassing and disorderly conduct in the Capitol. The more serious charges ranged from theft of government property, conspiracy, threats between the country to assault on law enforcement.
The Justice Department now has more than 400 subjects in its investigation, Sherwin said Tuesday.
According to the FBI’s Steven D’Antuono, the agency received 200,000 digital media tips from the public about the uprising.
Law enforcement officials told CNN they will arrest hundreds more rioters in the future. But they also say investigators have begun to focus on the more complex cases, such as extremist groups that took part in the attack, and less on the arrests and charges of fruit hanging low.
Sherwin said prosecutors are building to prosecute Capitol rioters, as well as investigating groups from different states who coordinated the arrival at the Capitol and other long-term planning.
“We are going to reach a plateau soon, I think, soon … and the plateau will investigate the more complex conspiracy cases related to possible coordination between militia groups,” Sherwin said.
So far, the Department of Justice has filed cases against people largely identified on the Internet for violent trespassing and trespassing, and some violence against police and weapons charges.
The cases that have led to arrests are progressing slowly, and many of the accused go before federal judges in their home countries before moving to Washington, DC. There is also a bottleneck in the DC federal court, and many have yet to see a judge or formally charge their charges. The Justice Department has agreed to release many of the accused while awaiting trial, with various restrictions, including DC stay orders.
A few defendants, such as men who allegedly threatened to kill lawmakers or brought bombs to the Capitol, will remain in custody, judges ruled and a handful sit in jail while federal judges review their detention decisions.
More charges will come
The agency is still offering a $ 75,000 reward for helping with the pipe bomb investigation, D’Antuono said.
“It’s challenging, it’s complicated and it’s big … at the FBI we’re doing great, we’re doing challenging, we’re doing complicated,” D’Antuono told a news conference. “This case is unique in scope and number of topics.”
The spate of arrests and charges is taking place against the backdrop of the new Biden government starting to take the reins of the Justice Department, which may speak of their continued absence.
This story has been updated with information from the FBI and Justice.