The United States Capitol Police head, Chief J. Thomas Manger shot down claims peddled by the House panel investigating the Jan. 6th Capitol riot that Republicans led reconnaissance tours the day before the protest-turned-riot in letter obtained by Just the News.
The panel had claimed Georgia Representative Barry Loudermilk had ushered a group of protesters through the Capitol the day before protestors stormed the building.
According to The Daily Wire:
“There is no evidence that Representative Loudermilk entered the U.S. Capitol with this group on January 5, 2021,” Manger wrote in a letter to Representative Rodney Davis (R-IL), the ranking Republican on the House Administration Committee. “We train our officers on being alert for people conducting surveillance or reconnaissance, and we do not consider any of the activities we observed as suspicious.”
“Based on our review of evidence in the Select Committee’s possession, we believe you have information regarding a tour you led through parts of the Capitol complex on January 5, 2021,” Cheney and Thompson wrote. “The foregoing information raises questions to which the Select Committee must seek answers. Public reporting and witness accounts indicate some individuals and groups engaged in efforts to gather information about the layout of the U.S. Capitol, as well as the House and Senate office buildings, in advance of January 6, 2021.”
New Jersey Democrat Representative Mikie Sherrill earlier claimed that GOP lawmakers gave tours the day before the riots and engaged in “suspicious behavior” which gave soon-to-be rioters exclusive information about the Capitol building.
But Loudermilk’s group of 12 to 15 constituents never entered the Capitol and only visited an exhibit in the Rayburn House Office building, Manger wrote.
“At no time did the group appear in any tunnels that would have led them to the U.S. Capitol,” Manger said. “In addition, the tunnels leading to the U.S. Capitol were posted with USCP officers and admittance to the U.S. Capitol without a Member of Congress was not permitted on January 5, 2021.”
Davis also called for an ethics investigation over the allegations.
