WASHINGTON, D.C., USA — A Georgia man who recently moved from Minot, Maine, was arrested Wednesday and charged by the FBI with participating in the Jan. 6, 2021, riots at the U.S. Capitol.
Glen Mitchell Simon, owner of Omega Tree Removal in Maine, is charged with misdemeanor counts of entering the temporary residence of the president and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.
Witnesses reported to the FBI the day after the riots that Mitchell had posted photos on his now-deleted Facebook page showing him inside and in front of the U.S. Capitol building, as well as video of him in the building saying, "We weren't invited, we broke in here," according to an affidavit by an FBI special agent investigating the riots.
Both witnesses, who were not identified, reported to the FBI that Simon had recently moved. The FBI determined he lived in Jefferson, Georgia, but were unable to locate him there, according to the affidavit.
When they contacted him by phone, Simon allegedly admitted he was the person in the photos outside the Capitol building, but denied he entered the building.
The U.S. Capitol Police/Threat Assessment Section determined, however, that Simon is the person in the videos and found video surveillance footage showing someone they believe to be Simon entering the Capitol building at the West Front, Senate side of the building and walking toward the Crypt, as well as video of him inside the Statuary Hall 20 minutes later, and inside the Rotunda 40 minutes after entering the building.
Mitchell is not the first person with connections to Maine to be charged in the riots. Kyle Fitzsimons of Lebanon is charged with 10 counts including assaulting an officer and disorderly conduct in connection with the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.
Fitzsimons has pleaded not guilty to the charges.