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Capitol riot: Off-duty DEA agent who posed for photos arrested
By Jim Mustian and Michael Kunzelman
Published
Timeline of the riot at the US Capitol on Jan. 6
What started as a congressional and democratic exercise in the peaceful transfer of power, devolved into death, destruction and chaos.
WASHINGTON (AP) - An off-duty Drug Enforcement Administration agent posed for photographs in which he flashed his DEA badge and firearm outside the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 riot, according to a court filing Tuesday following the agent s arrest.
A video posted on the internet also showed Mark Sami Ibrahim carrying a flag bearing the words Liberty or Death outside the Capitol, about 12 minutes before a mob of people pulled apart a nearby set of barricades, authorities said.
By City News Service
Photo: Getty Images
SANTA ANA (CNS) - An ex-Drug Enforcement Administration agent from Orange County was arrested today on charges related to the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, in which a mob of insurgents temporarily interrupted the certification of the election of President Joe Biden.
Mark Sami Ibrahim, 33, was on leave from the federal agency at the time of the Jan. 6 conflict, but was carrying his agency-issued weapon, according to court papers, which indicate the probationary employee had given notice that he was resigning several weeks before the siege.
Ibrahim, who was arrested in Washington, D.C., is charged with entering the Capitol grounds with a firearm and lying to federal law enforcement officials, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
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“Ibrahim played no role in any riot. He never committed any violence, attempted to enter any buildings nor induced or promoted others to do so,” Darren Richie, Ibrahim’s attorney, told POLITICO.
Richie also added that the “indictment results from conjecture, political pressure and a flawed attempt to paint a specific narrative through pictures taken wholly out of context.
Investigators found several photos of Ibrahim among the pro-Trump crowd at the Capitol on Jan. 6, including ones where he displayed both his DEA badge and firearm, which were taken at his request, according to the affidavit. In one of the photos, Ibrahim is posing in front of the Capitol holding a flag saying “Liberty or death” with his badge and firearm displayed on his hip.
Feds Arrest Ex-DEA Agent Shown Posing With Badge, Gun at Capitol Riot While Off-Duty
On 7/20/21 at 7:31 PM EDT
A man arrested on Tuesday for his participation in the January 6 Capitol riots was an off-duty Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agent. According to a court filing, the man, Mark Sami Ibrahim, 32, allegedly posed for photographs at the Capitol with his DEA-issued badge and handgun.
Ibrahim was a probationary employee of the DEA at the time he attended the riot but had previously announced his plans to resign, according to PBS NewsHour. He had taken personal leave and traveled from his home in Orange County, California, to be in Washington, D.C. for the certification of the 2020 election on January 6. In March, the DEA suspended him after learning of his presence at the Capitol during the riots.