Florida Man Arrested for Alleged Involvement in Capitol Riot
WASHINGTON — A man from Florida has been taken into custody on charges related to his alleged participation in the January 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol. His actions, alongside others, reportedly disrupted a joint session of Congress aimed at certifying the 2020 presidential election results.
Zachary Pearlman, 26, hailing from Naples, Florida, faces several charges in a criminal complaint filed in the District of Columbia. These include felony charges of assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers, and obstructing law enforcement during a civil disorder. Additionally, he is charged with misdemeanor offenses, such as entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds, disorderly or disruptive conduct in such areas, and participating in parading, demonstrating, or picketing within the Capitol.
The FBI conducted the arrest of Pearlman today in Tampa, Florida, and he is scheduled to make his initial court appearance in the Middle District of Florida.
Court documents allege that Pearlman was captured on Capitol building CCTV entering through the Rotunda Doors around 2:45 p.m. on the day of the incident. Once inside, he reportedly joined the Rotunda where a significant police presence arrived to manage the rioters.
Instead of complying with the officers’ efforts to clear the area, Pearlman is said to have approached the police line, pushing through the crowd to reach the front. There, he allegedly jeered at the officers, pointing repeatedly, and remained at the front line as the officers attempted to move rioters out of the Rotunda.
During a confrontation at approximately 3:08 p.m., Pearlman is accused of pushing against a police officer’s riot shield with his left arm. He eventually exited the Rotunda, appearing to be affected by chemical irritants like teargas, and left the Capitol through the Rotunda Doors around 3:12 p.m., after spending roughly 27 minutes inside.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, along with the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section, is prosecuting the case. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida provided significant support.
The investigation is being handled by the FBI’s New York and Washington Field Offices, with assistance from the Tampa FBI, U.S. Capitol Police, and the Metropolitan Police Department.
Since the events of January 6, 2021, over 1,532 individuals across nearly all 50 states have faced charges connected to the Capitol breach. This includes more than 571 individuals charged with felonies related to assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation continues.
A complaint is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
