Gallatin man charged in last month's US Capitol riot

Friday, January 29, 2021, Vol. 45, No. 5

NASHVILLE (AP) — A Gallatin resident was arrested Monday in connection with the Capitol riot in Washington, D.C., last month, a federal official said.

Eric Chase Torrens, 28, was arrested in Gallatin on charges of knowingly entering or remaining in a restricted building or grounds and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, David Boling, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office for the Middle District of Tennessee, said in a news release.

Torrens was to appear before a U.S. magistrate judge in Nashville on Monday. No information about a lawyer who could speak on Torrens' behalf was given.

Several others from Tennessee were charged earlier.

The charges stem from the Jan. 6 riot when supporters of outgoing President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol as Congress gathered to certify the November election won by Democratic President-elect Joe Biden. The siege came after a rally led by Trump in which he repeated false claims of a stolen election and urged his supporters to "fight like hell." Five people, including a Capitol Police officer, died during the unrest.