Riley Williams' attorney said some of the accusations against her client are "overstated," and said the ex-boyfriend who reported Williams to the FBI has been abusive.
A laptop was stolen from the office of Nancy Pelosi during the storming of the US Capitol.
Harrisburg, Pa.:
A Pennsylvania woman accused of helping to steal a laptop from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi s office during the attack on the U.S. Capitol was ordered released from detention on Thursday and placed in her mother s custody.
Riley June Williams, 22, must stay in the home she shares with her mother and abide by other conditions of release, including avoiding contact with any witnesses or victims of the Jan. 6 Capitol storming. Federal Magistrate Judge Martin Carlson said he was releasing Williams in part because she had no prior criminal record, but he warned her that her mother, Wendy Williams, could be criminally charged if she fails to report to the court any violations of the conditions of release.
Next, Williams is scheduled to appear virtually in a Virginia federal court on Monday.
A court order signed Tuesday by U.S. Magistrate Judge Martin Carlson detailed the conditions of Williams release from Dauphin County Prison: She must remain in the custody of her mother and submit to location monitoring. She also must forfeit her passport and is under home detention, meaning she cannot leave the residence for any reason other than school, work, medical appointments, religious services or trial-related travel. The gravity of these offenses is great, Carlson told Williams. It cannot be overstated.
Williams reportedly could be sentenced to 20 years in prison if convicted.
A woman from Pennsylvania will appear before a federal court on Monday to face charges in connection with the theft of a laptop belonging to Speaker of the United States House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi.
The computer was stolen from Pelosi s office earlier this month when a crowd of people who had been attending a political protest forced their way into the US Capitol building and disrupted the certification of then President-elect Joe Biden s electoral victory.
Harrisburg resident Riley June Williams was arrested by federal authorities on January 18 following a tip to the FBI from the 22-year-old s former romantic partner. The ex said that Williams appeared in a video of the Capitol invasion and had said that she intended to sell Pelosi s stolen computer to Russian intelligence.
The Associated Press
HARRISBURG, Pa. A Pennsylvania woman facing charges that she helped steal a laptop from the office of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi during the attack on the U.S. Capitol will be released from jail, a federal judge decided Thursday.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Martin Carlson directed that Riley June Williams be released into the custody of her mother, with travel restrictions, and instructed her to appear Monday in federal court in Washington to continue her case.
“The gravity of these offenses is great,” Carlson told Williams. “It cannot be overstated.”
Williams, 22, of Harrisburg, is accused of theft, obstruction and trespassing, as well as violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds. Carlson noted Williams has no prior criminal record.