A Birmingham man was arrested Oct. 15 and charged with numerous crimes connected to his involvement in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, which included spraying Capitol police officers with pepper spray and throwing a metal rod at them, the federal government alleges.
Christian Matthew Manley, 26, is charged with engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds, civil disorder, and assaulting, resisting or impeding certain officers and other charges, the U.S. Department of Justice announced in a statement.
Manley can be seen in the lower west terrace archway of the Capitol in a video, where he sprayed officers with pepper spray before throwing the empty canister at police, according to the DOJ’s complaint, which states Manley returned to the archway and again sprayed officers with pepper spray and threw the empty can at them.
Manley then accepted a metal rod from another rioter and threw the rod at officers, according to the records, before he used his body to push a door against officers trying to defend the entrance.
“In the nine months since Jan. 6, more than 650 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including over 190 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains ongoing,” The DOJ wrote in the statement.
Manley, who has lived in Alaska since August, was denied release Thursday in an Alaska courtroom, according to the Associated Press.
“He was leading the charge, so to speak,” said U.S. Magistrate Judge Matthew McCrary Scoble during Thursday’s hearing, referring to Manley’s actions in the archway on Jan. 6, according to the AP.
Manley received a less-than-honorable discharge after serving four years with the U.S. Marine Corp, the judge said.
