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A Fallston man and his stepson have been arrested and charged with assaulting U.S. Capitol police officers during the Jan. 6 insurrection.
Federal prosecutors say Douglas Wyatt, 49, and stepson Jacob Michael Therres, 25, are charged in the District of Columbia with assaulting, resisting or impeding officers; interfering with law enforcement officers during a civil disorder; and five related misdemeanors.
Wyatt is accused of spraying officers with chemical spray on the Lower West Terrace of the Capitol, and prosecutors say he helped pull away another rioter’s flag from an officer who attempted to grab it. They say he handed a “long, heavy plank” to Therres, who then hurled it at an officer’s head.
Prosecutors say the officer has experienced lingering medical effects from the blow to the head, and that Therres also sprayed a “chemical irritant” toward a line of officers.
In a criminal complaint, authorities included a screenshot of a post on Wyatt’s Facebook page showing him amid the crowd at the Capitol that read, “What a day. Lots of pepper spray & a few rubber bullets. Stop the steal !”
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They received a number of tips from the public regarding Wyatt and Therres’ alleged involvement shortly after the Jan. 6 breach of the Capitol. The first tip came in the very next day, and five tips had been received within the first few days. It’s unclear why there was a 22-month gap between the events and the arrests.
FBI agents interviewed Wyatt at his home on Jan. 29, 2021, and said Wyatt admitted he was present but said he felt he had the right to protest. He retained an attorney who told the FBI in April 2021 that Wyatt was present at the Capitol but “did not assault a law enforcement officer, nor anyone else that day, and was not engaged in the destruction of any property.”
The FBI received an anonymous tip about Therres in August 2021 in response to a “be on the lookout” post that included his picture. In April 2022, agents say they spoke with an individual “in close contact to Therres” who said he “has been very vocal in his social circle of being at the Capitol on January 6, 2021 and inflicting violence on police officer, with potentially a taser.”
The complaint includes screenshots of video from the insurrection that they say shows Wyatt yelling at officers about “the fraudulent fucking election.” Prosecutors say video shows Therres spraying an unknown chemical spray at a line of officers.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office said both men made initial appearances in court Tuesday afternoon in Washington, but the cases have not been unsealed and details were not available, including the names of their attorneys.
justin.fenton@thebaltimorebanner.com
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Justin Fenton is an investigative reporter for the Baltimore Banner. He previously spent 17 years at the Baltimore Sun, covering the criminal justice system. His book, "We Own This City: A True Story of Crime, Cops and Corruption," was released by Random House in 2021 and became an HBO miniseries.
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