Retired Lieutenant Colonel is identified as the MAGA rioter carrying zip ties who appeared to exit Nancy Pelosi's vandalized office - as his family say he became obsessed with Trump and believes in taking over the country
A Texas Air Force veteran has been identified as the MAGA mob rioter dressed in combat gear and carrying zip ties who appeared to exit Nancy Pelosi's vandalized office, as his family reveal he had become obsessed with Donald Trump and had developed extreme beliefs since leaving the force.
Retired Lieutenant Colonel Larry Rendall Brock Jr., 53, was among the violent mob of Trump supporters who stormed the US Capitol Wednesday in a riot that left five including one police officer dead.
The father-of-three, who now lives in Dallas, was pictured on the Senate floor Wednesday after the group had broken through barricades, pushed back law enforcement and sent lawmakers fleeing for safety.
Images show him wearing a combat helmet, body armor and a vinyl tag with the Punisher skull on - a symbol adopted by white supremacists and believers of conspiracy theory QAnon.
He carried zip-tie handcuffs and appeared to be speaking with fellow rioters, several of which were dressed in MAGA caps.
Brock, who was in the Air Force for more than two decades and now works for an aviation company, was also seen in footage, shot by ITV News, appearing to exit Nancy Pelosi's office - which was vandalized and looted in the chaos.
The MAGA mob rioter dressed in combat gear and carrying zip ties has been identified as a Texas Air Force veteran whose family say has developed extreme beliefs and started speaking 'weird rage talk' since leaving the force
Retired Lieutenant Colonel Larry Rendall Brock Jr., 53, was among the violent mob of Donald Trump supporters who stormed the US Capitol Wednesday in a riot that left five including one police officer dead
Brock's family members and a former Air Force comrade have painted a concerning picture of the veteran - one of a man who has become increasingly radical and been influenced by white supremacy in recent years.
Bill Leake, who worked alongside Brock in the Air Force for 10 years, told The New Yorker he had fallen out of touch with Brock because he had 'gotten extreme'.
He said Brock, who was nicknamed Torch in the force, became obsessed with Trump and with following 'the alternative-news-source world'.
'Torch got all in on Trump. He went all in on the alternative-news-source world,' said Leake.
'He actually believes liberals and Democrats are a threat to the country. You can see how the logical conclusion to that is, "We've gotta take over".'
Two family members, who have not been named, told the New Yorker Brock called himself a patriot, had started making racist comments and that they believe he was influenced by white supremacy.
'He started weird rage talk, basically, saying he's willing to get in trouble to defend what he thinks is right, which is Trump being the President, I guess,' one of the family members said.
They added that he developed a 'weird sense of power' from his military career and that he 'doesn't understand the fallout and the people he's hurting.'
That said, they were surprised to see him with the zip ties: 'I can't imagine what he was doing there with zip ties, or what he thought he was going to accomplish.'
While Brock has admitted to being the man in the videos and photos inside the Capitol, he has sought to distance himself from any violence and claims he didn't enter Pelosi's office - as the FBI is rounding up the perpetrators of Wednesday's attack on the seat of the US government.
Brock, who was in the Air Force for more than two decades and now works for an aviation company, was also seen in footage, shot by ITV News, appearing to exit Nancy Pelosi's office
Brock claimed he 'stopped five to ten feet ahead of the sign' at the entrance to Pelosi's office door and did not enter
The father-of-three, who now lives in Dallas, pictured in the green combat helmet on the Senate floor Wednesday
Brock told The New Yorker he thought he was welcome to enter the US Capitol - despite mob members smashing windows to break in, shots being fired and police trying to hold the crowds back.
He then claims he 'found' the zip ties he was spotted carrying on the floor and merely picked them up so he could hand them in to a police officer - but then forgot.
'I wish I had not picked those up. My thought process there was I would pick them up and give them to an officer when I see one,' he said.
'I didn't do that because I had put them in my coat, and I honestly forgot about them.'
He also claimed he 'stopped five to ten feet ahead of the sign' at the entrance to Pelosi's office door and did not enter.
Footage appears to show him emerging from the office with a group of other rioters.
Brock is seen left with his wife, Katya Wallery Brock, and their children in this undated file photo
While Brock has admitted to being the man in the videos and photos inside the Capitol, he has sought to distance himself from any violence and claims he didn't enter Pelosi's office
Brock told The New Yorker he thought he was welcome to enter the US Capitol - despite mob members smashing windows to break in, shots being fired and police trying to hold the crowds back
He claims he 'found' the zip ties he was spotted carrying on the floor and merely picked them up so he could hand them in to a police officer - but then forgot
Further, Brock claimed he saw no violence and was opposed to damaging the Capitol. 'I know it looks menacing. That was not my intent,' he said
The 53-year-old graduated from the Air Force Academy in 1989, with a major in international relations and affairs, and went on to serve as a chief operations inspector and flight commander with the 706th Fighter Squadron
The veteran served in Afghanistan and Iraq and is highly decorated with three Meritorious Service Medals, six Air Medals, and three Aerial Achievement Medals, the New Yorker reported
Further, Brock claimed he saw no violence and was opposed to damaging the Capitol.
'I know it looks menacing. That was not my intent,' he said.
Instead, he claimed he wore the body armor for his own protection because he feared he would get 'stabbed or hurt' by 'BLM or Antifa'.
The FBI said Friday there is no evidence that anti-fascist activists such as Antifa were involved in the riots.
Brock told the New Yorker he traveled to Washington DC because he was responding to Trump's call to action.
'The President asked for his supporters to be there to attend, and I felt like it was important, because of how much I love this country, to actually be there,' he said.
He said he believed Trump's unfounded claims of widespread voter fraud - claims that have not been backed up with evidence and have failed to gain any ground in dozens of lawsuits - after reading posts on social media.
Biden won the presidential election with 306 electoral votes to Trump's 232.
Brock also denied that he held racist views and said he was not part of any right-wing group that had descended on the capitol.
The 53-year-old graduated from the Air Force Academy in 1989, with a major in international relations and affairs, and went on to serve as a chief operations inspector and flight commander with the 706th Fighter Squadron.
The veteran served in Afghanistan and Iraq and is highly decorated with three Meritorious Service Medals, six Air Medals, and three Aerial Achievement Medals, the New Yorker reported.
He retired in 2014 and now works for Hillwood Airways, private aviation firm in Texas.
Brock was decked out in several symbols of his military career during Wednesday's siege.
On his combat helmet and body armor was the yellow fleur de lis, the insignia of the 706th Fighter Squadron.
The veteran was first identified Thursday through the use of facial recognition and image enhancement technology by John Scott-Railton, a senior researcher at Citizen Lab, at the University of Toronto's Munk School, who has been tracing several of the mob members.
As the nation reels from Wednesday's attack on the Capitol, which senior Democrats are calling an act of domestic terrorism, the FBI is seeking the public's help in identifying the attackers.
The FBI has released new photos of at least 10 additional MAGA mob rioters they are hunting down after they stormed the US Capitol in the violent siege that left five dead
Richard Barnett - the man who put his feet on Nancy Pelosi's desk and left her a threatening note before boasting about it - has been arrested
Supporters of Donald Trump are seen inside the US Capitol after rioters breached security and entered the Capitol
On Friday, the FBI released new photos of 10 additional MAGA mob rioters inside the Capitol who are wanted in relation to the violent siege.
Federal authorities are seeking the public's help in tracking down those pictured for making 'unlawful entry' into the Capitol building.
These are in addition to the dozens the FBI have already said they are trying to track down.
More than 80 rioters have already been arrested and 55 are being pursued on federal charges.
The DoJ announced on a call with reporters Friday that 15 people have now been charged.
This includes 60-year-old Richard Barnett - the man who put his feet on Nancy Pelosi's desk and left her a threatening note before boasting about it after he returned to the crowds outside.
Barnett, who proudly referred to himself as a white nationalist on social media, was charged with unlawful entry.
Lonnie Coffman, 70, was also arrested after police found his red GMC pick-up truck near the RNC - where a pipe bomb was left.
Dozens more, who were labeled as 'great patriots by Trump, are still yet to be identified.
Protesters were riled up by Trump, Giuliani and Donald Trump Jr. during a rally near the White House and told to head to Capitol Hill where lawmakers were scheduled to confirm Biden's presidential victory.
Pro-Trump insurgents stormed Capitol Hill on Wednesday in an attack that left nation stunned
An explosion caused by a police munition is seen while Trump supporters gather in front of the Capitol on Wednesday
A violent mob stormed the Capitol, breaking through police barricades and smashing windows to enter the building.
Lawmakers were forced to go into hiding for several hours as Capitol police grappled to take back control while the mob defecated in the Senate and House, invaded Nancy Pelosi's office and looted items potentially including state secrets.
One female Trump supporter, US Air Force veteran Ashli Babbitt, was shot dead by Capitol Police as she tried to climb through a window.
Three other Trump supporters died after 'medical emergencies' related to the breach and Capitol Police Officer Brian D. Sicknick died Thursday from injuries sustained in the attack after he thug allegedly hit him over the head with a fire extinguisher.
Three top Capitol security officials have stood down as questions are being raised over the failure to stop the breach as well as the difference in treatment of the largely white mob compared to the treatment of Black Lives Matter supporters in the streets of DC last year.
Dozens have been rounded up and arrested since the attack but the FBI is asking for the public's help in bringing all responsible to justice.
Meanwhile, House Democrats are planning to impeach Trump with a single impeachment article charging him with 'incitement of insurrection' after he egged on his supporters and then failed to condemn the violence or tell them to leave the Capitol for hours after the violence erupted.