WASHINGTON, D.C. (WTAQ-WLUK) – A Pulaski man charged for allegedly taking part in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack at the U.S. Capitol pleaded not guilty to a series of charges.
No trial date has been set for Riley Kasper. An arraignment originally scheduled for Tuesday was moved up to May 19. Kasper returns to court July 19 for a status conference, court records show.
The complaint lists a series of charges against Kasper. They include:
- Assaulting, Resisting, or Impeding Certain Officers Using a Deadly or Dangerous Weapon to Inflict Bodily Injury
- Civil Disorder
- Entering and Remaining in a Restricted Building or Grounds with a Deadly or Dangerous Weapon
- Disorderly and Disruptive Conduct in a Restricted Building or Grounds with a Deadly or Dangerous Weapon
- Engaging in Physical Violence in a Restricted Building or Grounds with a Deadly or Dangerous Weapon
- Act of Physical Violence in the Capitol Grounds or Buildings
Kasper’s social media posts are also cited in the complaint.
“One of the videos shows that person spraying an aerosol canister of what is believed to be pepper spray toward federal law enforcement officers (U.S. Capitol Police and Metropolitan Police Department (‘MPD’) officers) that were standing between the Capitol building and the rioters,” the complaint states.
Other images from law enforcement show a person believed to be Kasper holding what appears to be pepper spray. Kasper’s financial records show fuel purchases on a route between Wisconsin and Washington, D.C. area between Jan. 5-7. His Facebook page shows a variety of photos from the trip, as well.
Also cited are private messages he allegedly sent, discussing his actions:
- “I pepper sprayed 3 cops so bad they got undressed and went home, gently brazed many others several times. I basically organized my own little militia and we (expletive) took over Congress”
- “I mean the rest of the crowd gave support, but as you see in that video it was my group that busted the first gate and kept chasing the cops down and pushing them back into the capital”
- “We got inside the capital then they started shooting rubber bullets at peoples heads, even when me and another guy were carrying a barely conciliatory dude with blood dripping off his knees from his head to the ambulance they kept shooting at the back of the 3 of us.
