A Los Angeles man accused of joining the Capitol rupture in Washington, DC on January 6, was arrested on charges of conspiracy and other crimes, the Justice Department said in a statement released Monday.
Edward Badalian, 27, from Los Angeles is charged on charges of conspiracy, obstruction of due process and aiding and abetting, manipulation of documents or proceedings, and other criminal offenses. The indictment was unsealed in the District of Columbia on Monday.
Badalian was arrested in Los Angeles on November 17th and had its first court appearance in the Central District of California. He was charged on November 23rd in the District of Columbia.
Badalian was also charged in a separate indictment originally filed in March against Daniel Rodriguez, 39, of Fontana. Rodriguez was charged in March with assaulting Metropolitan Police officer Michael Fanone and a conspiracy charge, among other charges. Rodriguez has been in custody since his arrest on March 31 and was charged in the District of Columbia on November 16, the US Department of Justice said in a statement.
According to the indictment, Badalian, Rodriguez and others created a Telegram group chat in the fall of 2020, the Patriots named 45 MAGA Gang and used it as a platform to advocate violence against certain groups and individuals who either endorsed, endorsed, the results of the 2020 presidential election, what the group perceived as liberal or communist ideologies, or held positions of authority in government, the Justice Department said.
The indictment alleges that the defendants conspired to stop, delay and prevent Congress from confirming the electoral college vote and to prevent the use of evidence to investigate their activities.
In the 10 months since January 6, the US Department of Justice said more than 675 people have been arrested for crimes related to violating the US Capitol, including 210 people charged with assault or obstruction of prosecution.
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