- A law enforcement official told CBS News that a man was seen running toward Mr Obama’s house.
- This man, Taylor Tarrant, has an outstanding warrant on charges stemming from the Jan. 6, 2021 riots.
- Tarrant was also sued by the widow of a police officer who died by suicide.
A man suspected of participating in the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot was arrested Thursday after being found running toward Barack Obama’s home near Washington, DC. A law enforcement official told CBS News..
Officials say Taylor Tarrant, 37, also possessed multiple weapons and materials to create explosive devices similar to Molotov cocktails, according to a CBS News report. Reports say he was seen by Secret Service agents a few blocks from his home.
It’s unclear if the Obamas were at home at the time.
A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) told an insider that officers and federal law enforcement partners arrested Tarrant. The police department asked the explosive ordnance disposal team to “move up” a van near the scene of the arrest.
according to ABC News, Tarrant has obtained a public warrant relating to his activities on January 6, 2021.
An MPD spokesperson said in an email that Tarrant was charged as a fugitive pursuant to an arrest warrant, but did not specify the purpose of the warrant.
Several months after January 6, 2021, online detectives identified Tarrant as one of the participants in the riot. The Huff Post reported. One piece of evidence included Tarrant’s admission on social media that he was in the Capitol, according to a Facebook post seen by The HuffPost.
Taranto also faces Lawsuit filed by Erin Smiththe widow of Metropolitan Police Officer Jeff Smith, who was inside the Capitol during the riot.
According to the lawsuit, Smith was hit in the head with a “cane or crowbar” that Tarrant allegedly gave to another mob.
Smith died by suicide nine days after the incident.