Justice Dept. says more than 500 have been charged for Jan. 6 Capitol attack

July 7 (UPI) -- The Justice Department said it has charged more than 535 people in connection to the Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol.

The department made the announcement Tuesday, exactly six months after supporters of then-President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol in an effort to prevent Congress from certifying the presidential election win of Joe Biden, resulting in five deaths, more than 140 police injured and $1.5 million in damages to the building.

Since the siege, authorities have been on the hunt for those responsible, and the Justice Department said in a statement the more than 500 defendants charged come from nearly all 50 states.

"This works out to be an average of about three defendants arrested every single day, including weekends, since Jan. 6," it said.

Of those arrested, 495 were charged with entering or remaining in a restricted federal building or grounds and 235 were charged with corruptly obstructing, influencing or impeding an official proceeding.

At least 165 were charged with assaulting, resisting or impeding officers including 50 who face charges of using a deadly or dangerous weapon or causing serious bodily injury to an officer, it said.

Six people were charged with assaulting members of the media and some 40 face conspiracy charges.

Only 10 have so far entered plea deals, it said.

The Department said they are still asking for the public's help in identifying 300 others suspected of participating in the siege including 200 who are accused of assaulting members of law enforcement.

The FBI on Tuesday released 11 new videos of the Capitol siege in hopes the public will help them identify more suspects.

"As we mark six months since the violence at our nation's Capitol we continue to encourage the public to send tips to the FBI," Steven D'Antuono, assistant director in charge of the FBI's Washington Field Office, said in a statement. "As we have seen with dozens of cases so far, tips matter."

President Joe Biden called those who attacked the Capitol "insurrectionists" in a statement Tuesday, saying the attack "posed an existential crisis and a test of whether our democracy could survive."

"While it shocked and saddened the nation and the world, six months later, we can say unequivocally that democracy did prevail -- and that we must all continue to work to protect and preserve it," he said.