LEWISTOWN, Pa. — Note: The video above is from Jan. 14.
Three Mifflin County residents have been charged in connection to the riot inside the United States Capitol building on Jan. 6, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Christy Clark, Matthew Clark, and Paul Spigelmyer, all of Lewistown, are charged with illegally entering a restricted building or grounds and violent entry or disorderly conduct, according to a criminal complaint filed by a FBI investigator.
The Clarks, who are married, allegedly attended the 2020 election protests in Washington D.C. on Jan. 6 with Spigelmyer, and later were among those who stormed inside the U.S. Capitol building while the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives were certifying the election results, the FBI said.
The FBI received three separate tips regarding the Clarks and their alleged actions that day, according to the complaint. Further investigation determined that Spigelmyer accompanied the Clarks to Washington and joined them inside the Capitol building, the FBI said.
According to the complaint, the tipsters told investigators that Christy Clark posted pictures and made comments on her Facebook page that indicated she and her husband were in or around the Capitol building at the time of the riot. The tipsters provided screenshots of these photos and comments to investigators, the complaint states.
"The screenshots of the Facebook account attributed to Christy Clark include photographs that display areas around and in the U.S. Capitol, and show individuals who appear to be taking part in the riot at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021," the FBI says in the complaint. "Specifically, one image appears to be taken from the stairs on or near the East Front of the U.S. Capitol, which on January 6, 2021, was a restricted area. Another image appears to be taken from inside the U.S. Capitol Rotunda, which on January 6, 2021 was a restricted area."
Investigators obtained search warrants for the Clarks' individual Facebook accounts, the complaint states.
On Christy Clark's Facebook account, investigators found a private message between her and a family member, in which she states "we're inside" on the date and time of the riot.
When the family member asks "inside what," Christy Clark replied "Capitol," investigators say.
Christy Clark also claims to have taken a photo inside the Capitol building in another post, writing "I stopped and took a second to pray before I took this pic. It was overwhelming to say the least.”
The photo was the same photo of the ceiling of the Capitol's rotunda that one tipster had provided to investigators, the complaint states.
A search of Matthew Clark's Facebook page determined he had posted a photo taken from a restricted area of the Capitol grounds and written “The National Mall around the Washington Monument is packed full of PATRIOTS” and “Capital Building has been breached!” in separate posts on or around Jan. 7, according to investigators.
The FBI also looked at closed-circuit TV footage from inside the Capitol on the day of the riot, and found at least one image that appears to show the Clarks standing among a crowd inside the Capitol building.
The FBI investigation determined that the Clarks have an association with Spigelmyer, and that he accompanied them to Washington D.C. and went inside the Captiol building on the day of the riot.
The FBI referenced a police report written on Nov. 18, 2020 by a Pennsylvania State Police trooper about an alleged altercation involving Christy Clark that occurred at Spigelmyer's house on that date. The report stated Christy Clark came to Spigelmyer's home looking for her husband, and got into an altercation with another person there, investigators say.
"Moreover, a user of (Matthew Clark's) Facebook account has “tagged” a Facebook account in Spigelmyer’s name on multiple occasions, including in a series of photographs related to activities in Washington, D.C. on January 6, 2021," investigators say in the complaint. "A private message from Christy Clark’s Facebook account related to traveling to Washington, D.C. in January 2021 stated, 'We are bringing Paul Spigelmyer along as well. Now he is a wired old man.'"
Spigelmyer appears to have two Facebook accounts, one in his proper name, and another under the name "Bob White," investigators say in the complaint.
In Spigelmyer's personal account, he makes several posts alluding to the events of Jan. 6 at the Capitol building and states:
- “What happened at the capital yesterday should and must continue till this election fraud is stopped”
- “My view of the capital is, burn it to the ground”
- “I am all for more protest and storming the capital building and I would love to see them burn it to the ground”
- “The capital building needs to be burnt down it doesn’t belong to the people that work there.”
Spigelmyer also tells a friend in a private message that he was part of a "second group" of people who breached the Capitol building on Jan. 6, according to the FBI.
The "Bob White" Facebook account includes photos that match Spigelmyer's physical description, investigators say. It also says on the profile page that his name is pronounced "PA-ul SPEE-gel-MY-er."
The profile includes a photo of what appears to be Spigelmyer in Washington DC, wearing a black "TRUMP" baseball cap and carrying a blue flag.
A man wearing those items of clothing can be seen standing next to two people matching the Clarks' descriptions in closed-circuit TV footage taken from inside the Capitol during the riot, investigators say.
