2 Proud Boys, 2 Pennsylvania women face charges in Capitol attack

Jan. 30 (UPI) -- Two members of the Proud Boys and two Pennsylvania women have been indicted on charges tied to a deadly attack at the U.S. Capitol.

The U.S. Department of Justice announced the charges Friday against two identified as Dominic Pezzola, 43, of Rochester, N.Y.; and William Pepe, 31, of Beacon, N.Y.

They were indicted in federal court in the District of Columbia on charges of conspiracy; civil disorder; unlawfully entering restricted buildings or grounds; and disorderly and disruptive conduct in restricted buildings or grounds, according to the Department of Justice.

Pezzola and Pepe allegedly took actions to remove temporary barricades erected by Capitol Police to control access to Capitol grounds. Specifically, Pezzola has been seen in a widely distributed video smashing a window at the U.S. Capitol, according to the indictment.

Pezzola was also charged with obstruction of an official proceeding; additional counts of civil disorder and aiding and abetting civil disorder; robbery of personal property of the United States; assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers; destruction of government property; and engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds.

Pepe was arrested Jan. 12 and Pezzola was arrested Jan. 15.

In Pennsylvania, the Buck County Courier Times reported that two women, Dawn Bancroft, a Doylestown-area business owner, and Diana Santos-Smith, also of Pennsylvania, have also been indicted on federal charges for storming the Capitol insurrection.

"We broke into the Capitol ... We got inside, we did our part ... we were looking for Nancy to shoot her in the friggin' brain but we didn't find her," Bancroft allegedly said in a video, according to court documents.

The insurrection on Jan. 6 left five people dead, including Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick and four rioters. Two other officers who responded to the insurrection, Jeffrey Smith, a D.C. Police officer and Capitol Police officer Howard Liebengood, later died by suicide.