Wisconsin man arrested, Jan. 6 Capitol Riot officer assault
WASHINGTON, D.C. - A Colgate, Wisconsin man, during the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol Riot, pulled a Capitol Police officer's face shield, prosecutors say, resulting in his arrest Thursday, Sept. 7 on felony and misdemeanor charges.
Prosecutors say Joseph Cattani, 40, admitted he was at the Capitol on Jan. 6 but didn't do anything wrong. He claimed he was pushed into the building by a crowd and quickly left through a window, but prosecutors say surveillance tells a different story.
Authorities say Cattani is seen in surveillance on Jan. 6, 2021, among the crowd of rioters at the Capitol. At the Rotunda doors to the Capitol building, court documents say Cattani is seen in the footage pulling the officer's face shield up and down as the officer's head twists and turns. Cattani then pushed his way into the building, prosecutors allege.
Joseph Cattani
According to the footage, he was inside for nearly 20 minutes. After getting in through the Rotunda doors, he made his way up the gallery stairs and to the outside of the Senate Gallery. Prosecutors say he went to other areas of the building, as well, including outside the office of the Majority Whip and outside the Senate chamber.
Cattani was identified after surveillance images were released from the Jan. 6 insurrection.
SIGN UP TODAY: Get daily headlines, breaking news emails from FOX6 News
He is charged in a criminal complaint filed in the District of Columbia with civil disorder and assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers, both felony offenses. In addition to the felonies, Cattani is charged with several misdemeanor offenses, including entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly conduct in a Capitol building, and parading, picketing and demonstrating in a Capitol building.
Joseph Cattani
A news release from prosecutors said Thursday in the 32 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,146 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 398 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement.
Joseph Cattani
Prosecutors noted that the actions of Cattani and others "disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the 2020 presidential election."