North Adams man pleads guilty to a misdemeanor in connection with role in Jan. 6 Capitol riot
Brian P. McCreary, center-right and wearing a mask, has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor offense in connection with his role in Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol. He is due to be sentenced early next year, and faces up to 6 months incarceration.
A North Adams man photographed at the front of mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor offense, and is due to be sentenced next year.
As part of a plea deal struck with federal prosecutors, Brian P. McCreary, 34, this week admitted to the misdemeanor offense of entering or remaining in a restricted building. According to court documents, federal sentencing guidelines suggest a penalty for McCreary, who does not have a prior criminal record, of zero to six months incarceration.
"While inside the building, the defendant was with the mob of rioters that ascended the stairs to the second floor of the Senate side of the U.S. Capitol building, where the group was confronted by law enforcement who instructed them to peacefully exit the building," said Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon K. Regan in an agreed statement of offense.
According to the court document, a member of law enforcement then stopped McCreary and asked if he was a member of the press. When he denied being press, he was ordered to leave the building, but later reentered the Capitol through another door that had been "kicked open."
McCreary finally left the premises after hearing a gunshot ring out, according to the court document. In a Jan. 26 interview with the FBI, he sought to depict himself as a peacekeeper during the riot.
But he told the FBI that he went to what he called the "rally" at the Capitol "because he was frustrated with the results of the 2020 Presidential election, specifically the fact that an audit was not performed to address allegations of mass voter fraud," according to a complaint filed by FBI Special Agent Emily Eckert. Officials across many levels of government have said that there was no widespread election fraud in the 2020 presidential election.
McCreary went on to tell The Eagle that he nonetheless wanted to document what rioters were doing — and, in the process, he was photographed alongside Jacob Chansley, the high-profile Capitol defendant who became known as the "QAnon Shaman."
At his plea agreement hearing Thursday before U.S. Chief Judge Beryl Howell, the judge confirmed that McCreary had given the government eight video clips he took during the failed insurrection. Courthouse News Service reported that one of the videos depicted the rioters chasing Capitol Police Officer Eugene Goodman.
In court, McCreary said he should have known that his presence inside the Capitol was illicit, according to the News Service.
“I realized upon reflection that that should have been obvious to me,” he said.
McCreary was fired from his job delivering pizza for a Domino's franchise in North Adams after Jan. 6. He is due to be sentenced Jan. 14, 2022, just over one year after the violent and deadly riot at the Capitol, and will remain free on the terms of his pre-sentencing release before that.
Former Domino’s employee who stormed the Capitol provides FBI with 8 video clips of Jan. 6 violence
Nine months after one of the most violent days in the history of our country, investigations are still ongoing as more than 670 people have been charged with involvement in the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection. Despite the overwhelming amount of evidence depicting the violence of the day, some officials are continuing to play dumb and ignore the brutality that occurred. To date, officials have reviewed more than 15,000 hours of footage, making it the largest digital crime scene in history.
The best part is that most of these videos have come from the rioters themselves. Participants in the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection not only sent photos and footage to friends and family but posted to their social media accounts. In a recent incident, the government obtained at least eight videos of the Capitol insurrection after a Massachusetts man pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor Thursday. The man, identified as Brian McCreary, was famously photographed at the Capitol riot alongside the infamous ‘QAnon shaman,’ Jacob Chansley.
McCreary’s plea comes nine months after he first told FBI investigators that it was not Trump supporters but "antifa" who stormed the halls of government. He was arrested Feb. 3, during which his cell phone was confiscated.
On Thursday McCreary accepted a misdemeanor plea of entering or remaining in a restricted building, a charge that carries a maximum of one year in prison but sentencing guidelines of zero to six months, according to the Court House News Service.
During McCreary’s hearing, U.S. Chief Judge Beryl Howell noted that McCreary provided eight video clips to the FBI that documented the violent mob.
“When you were filming, did you hear — as captured on video — ‘where are they counting the fucking votes?’” Howell asked to confirm that McCreary partook in different activities inside the Capitol.
“A lot of people were yelling, your honor,” McCreary said. “I was trying to capture what was happening.”
McCreary also admitted to following the mob inside the Capitol and realizing he should have known that he wasn’t supposed to be there.
“I realized upon reflection that that should have been obvious to me,” McCreary said.
Among the videos of the violent mob, one showed rioters attacking Capitol Police Officer Eugene Goodman. Goodman a Black Capitol Police officer, heroically diverted a mob of angry Donald Trump supporters away from the Senate chamber during the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection. Video footage shared to social media depicted him acting quickly and selflessly as angry mob members stormed the building.
Two others pleaded guilty Thursday, bringing the total number of guilty pleas up to 103. Last week, U.S. District Judge Thomas Hogan shared that he was afraid some rioters were taking early plea deals with no remorse for their actions, and were only saying whatever they thought prosecutors wanted to hear.
“It’s become evident to me in the riot cases … that many of the defendants who are pleading guilty are not truly accepting responsibility. They seem to me to be trying to get this out of the way as quickly and as inexpensively as possible and stating whatever they have to say in guilty pleas and hoping to get probation and leave,” Hogan said.
Most of the 100 rioters who have pleaded guilty have admitted to a lesser crime than what they were originally charged with, including parading, demonstrating, or picketing in the Capitol—Class B misdemeanors that carry a maximum sentence of six months in jail. As a result, many of these individuals avoid being tried on multiple charges, some of which carried more potential prison time.
Other newly released Jan.6 insurrection videos include the infamous Eric Munchel, coined the "zip-tie guy," and his mother, Lisa Marie Eisenhart, who worked their way through protesters to end up in the U.S. Senate gallery during the insurrection.
According to the Nashville Tennessean, a federal judge overseeing the case against Munchel and Eisenhart ordered the release of the 50-minute video that was recorded on a cell phone that the son wore on his vest during the riot. "I'm going to get me some of them motherf***ers," Munchel said in the video as he and his mother grabbed handfuls of plastic handcuffs or zip ties.
Both Munchel and Eisenhart are awaiting trial on federal charges.
Officials are strategically using footage posted online by those who attended the riots to prosecute them. As time continues to pass, more individuals are being charged daily.
“The country is watching to see what the consequences are for something that has not ever happened in the history of this country before,” U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan said, “for actions and crimes that threaten to undermine the rule of law and our democracy.”
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