BREAKING NEWS: Arlington Fire Department employee arrested in connection with January 6 Capitol riots

An Arlington County Fire Department employee has been charged in connection with the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6.

According to an FBI affidavit, Brian Holmes was part of a mob of rioters who attacked police officers as they made their way to the Capitol.

Holmes was reportedly arrested early this morning. More from Associated Press:

Also on Friday, a West Virginia man employed by the Arlington County, Virginia, fire department was arrested on charges of assaulting police officers during the riots. According to an FBI agent's affidavit, Brian Holmes was caught on video pushing two police officers up the steps outside the Capitol on Jan. 6.

Fire department employees told the FBI in July that they had worked with Holmes for about a year. Fire department officials did not immediately respond to requests for more information about Holmes' employment.

Holmes was seen in several images posted online after Jan. 6, wearing a gray Virginia Tech hoodie and pulling a U.S. Capitol Police officer toward the crowd. He earned the nickname “#greypuller” among amateur detectives who help federal authorities identify rioters.

The affidavit states that the FBI “received several tips identifying #greypuller as Brian Holmes… a West Virginia resident who was working for the Arlington County, Virginia Fire Department at the time.”

“On or about July 3, 2024, I interviewed two employees of the Arlington County Fire Department, ACFD Employee 1 and ACFD Employee 2,” an FBI agent wrote. “Both employees identified the individual shown in Image 1 above as HOLMES and both individuals stated overall that they had worked with HOLMES for approximately one year or more.”

The affidavit also includes quotes from Holmes from videos of the attack on the Capitol seized by the FBI.

“Are you willing to speak Chinese?” he reportedly said to the officers guarding the Capitol. “Because that's exactly what's going to happen, that's exactly what's going to happen if you let these motherfuckers steal this election.”

Holmes was not on duty with the ACFD on Jan. 6, 2021, the FBI said. Several on-duty Arlington firefighters were honored for their bravery in connection with their actions at the Capitol that day.