Couy Griffin, leader of Cowboys for Trump, said he did not enter the building on Jan. 6, but a video shows him in restricted areas.
(Rick Egan | Photo from the Tribune file) Couy Griffin from New Mexico rides his horse down State Street in Salt Lake City, Thursday, April 16, 2020. Griffin was arrested on January 17, 2021 on charges of unlawful entry of the American Capitol on Jan. 6.
Santa Fe, NM • A New Mexico provincial official and founder of the Cowboys for Trump group who promised to return to Washington after the riot at the US Capitol last week to place a flag on the desk of House Nancy Pelosi , was arrested by the FBI on Sunday.
Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin has been arrested on charges of unlawfully entering the U.S. Capitol.
According to court documents, Griffin told investigators he was “trapped” in the crowd, which pushed through the barricades and entered the restricted area of the U.S. Capitol, but he said he did not enter the building and rather on the American Capitol staircase.
A video posted on Griffin’s personal Facebook page shows Griffin in the restricted areas, according to the statement.
Griffin did not immediately respond to phone calls or text messages to comment.
Last April, Griffin rode his horse through downtown Salt Lake City with Cowboys for Trump, who rode through major U.S. cities that began with San Francisco on April 12, 2020, and ended with New York City on May 1st.
Griffin said Thursday he plans to travel to Washington, DC with firearms for Biden’s inauguration.
“I will be there on January 20 … and I will take a stand for our country and for our freedoms,” Griffin said during a meeting of the Otero County Board of Commissioners.
‘I’m leaving tonight or tomorrow. I have a .357 Henry Big Boy rifle lever action that I have in the trunk of my car and I have a .357 single action revolver, the Colt Ruger Vaquero, that I will have under the front seat. to my right and I will embrace my second amendment, ”he said.