EXCLUSIVE: Dozens of Capitol Police Riot Helmets Were Confiscated Just Before Jan. 6, Former Lieutenant Says

EXCLUSIVE: Dozens of Capitol Police Riot Helmets Were Confiscated Just Before Jan. 6, Former Lieutenant Says
Two helmet-less U.S. Capitol Police officers at the police barricade on the west front of the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Metropolitan Police Department/Screenshot via The Epoch Times
Joseph M. Hanneman
Updated:
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Days before violence broke out at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, a U.S. Capitol Police captain ordered the confiscation of dozens of riot helmets from officers without the knowledge of Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund, a former USCP lieutenant told The Epoch Times.

Former Capitol Police Lt. Tarik K. Johnson said he was ordered to collect “20 to 30” helmets by his immediate supervisor, Capt. Ben Smith. Johnson said there was no explanation for the order, but he assumed the equipment was past its expiration date.

Joseph M. Hanneman
Joseph M. Hanneman
Reporter
Joseph M. Hanneman is a former reporter for The Epoch Times who focussed on the January 6 Capitol incursion and its aftermath, as well as general Wisconsin news. In 2022, he helped to produce "The Real Story of Jan. 6," an Epoch Times documentary about the events that day. Joe has been a journalist for nearly 40 years.
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