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Rhode Island man assaulted police with broken table leg during Capitol riot, DOJ says

Timothy Desjardins is also accused of bringing a backpack full of hatchets with him to the U.S. Capitol on January 6.

WASHINGTON — The Justice Department unsealed new criminal charges this week against a Rhode Island man accused of assaulting police and bringing a backpack full of hatchets to the U.S. Capitol on January 6.

Timothy Desjardins, of Providence, was charged via criminal complaint earlier this month with nine counts in connection to the Capitol riot, including civil disorder and assaulting police.

According to a statement of facts filed in D.C. District Court, video posted to YouTube by another rioter shows Desjardins repeatedly attacking police defending the Capitol tunnel with what appears to be a broken table leg.

Desjardins also allegedly attempted to enter a restricted area behind the FBI headquarters in D.C. on January 7. According to a tip submitted by an FBI officer, Desjardins said he was at the Capitol the day earlier, but would not go into detail. At the time, the officer said, Desjardins had “one or two hatchets with paracord wrapped handles on the side of his dark colored backpack and Desjardins mentioned that he was good with them.”

Credit: Department of Justice
The FBI says a backpack containing three hatchets belonging to Timothy Desjardins was discovered on January 7 in Washington, D.C.

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Desjardins’ backpack was recovered the same day by a D.C. Police Officer in the 1200 block of G Street. Inside, police found his ID card, two black walkie talkies and three hatchets.

According to the Providence Journal, Desjardins has a history of confrontations with police. Earlier this month, the paper reports, Desjardins was involved in a standoff with officers in Providence at the barbershop he owns. At the time, he was free on bond in connection with a shooting in a Walgreen’s parking lot.

The DOJ said in a statement Tuesday that Desjardins was being held in custody in Rhode Island on charges unrelated to the Capitol riot and was expected to make his initial court appearance at a later date.

We're tracking all of the arrests, charges and investigations into the January 6 assault on the Capitol. Sign up for our Capitol Breach Newsletter here so that you never miss an update.

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