A former State Department aide in Donald Trump’s administration has been charged with participating in the deadly siege at the Capitol and assaulting officers who were trying to guard the building, court papers show.
Federico Klein, who also worked for Mr Trump’s 2016 campaign, was seen wearing a “Make America Great Again” hat amid a throng of people in a tunnel trying to force their way into the Capitol on January 6, the papers say.
Klein pushed his way towards the doors and “physically and verbally engaged” with officers trying to keep the mob back, authorities said.
He was seen on camera violently shoving a riot shield into an officer and inciting the crowd as they tried to storm past the police line, shouting “We need fresh people”, according to the charging documents.
As the mob struggled with police in the tunnel, Klein pushed the riot shield, which had been stolen from an officer, in between the Capitol doors, preventing police from closing them, authorities said.
Eventually, an officer used chemical spray, forcing Klein to move somewhere else, officials said.
Klein is in custody after being arrested on Thursday in Virginia on charges including obstructing Congress and assaulting officers using a dangerous weapon.
A Trump spokesman said he had no comment.
At least five people, including a Capitol Police officer, died as a result of the January 6 insurrection, and roughly 300 people have been charged.
Klein became a staff assistant in the State Department shortly after Mr Trump’s inauguration in 2017, according to a financial disclosure report.
He held a top secret security clearance that was renewed in 2019, according to the court papers. He resigned from his position on January 19, the day before Joe Biden was sworn in as president, authorities said.
One of Klein’s State Department co-workers helped authorities identify him, officials said.
A Department of State diplomatic security special agent interviewed by an FBI agent said Klein worked in the Office of Brazilian and Southern Cone Affairs, according to the court papers.
The Department of State official identified Klein in photos and video shown by the FBI, officials said.