Ray Epps, the man at the center of a right-wing conspiracy theory that the federal government instigated the events of Jan. 6, 2021, was charged on Tuesday with a single count of disorderly conduct for his role in the attack on the Capitol.
In a bare-bones charging document filed in Federal District Court in Washington, prosecutors accused Mr. Epps of disrupting the orderly conduct of government business by entering a restricted area on the Capitol grounds on Jan. 6.
Mr. Epps’s lawyer, Edward J. Ungvarsky, said the case had been brought in “anticipation of entry of a guilty plea.”The saga of Mr. Epps, a former Marine and wedding venue owner who voted twice for Donald J. Trump, is one of the stranger stories to have emerged from the Capitol attack.
The conspiracy theory was widely promoted by the former Fox News host Tucker Carlson and was later echoed by several prominent Republican politicians.
Mr. Epps, who sold his home and business in Arizona and has since gone into hiding with his wife in a trailer park in Utah, sued Fox News in July, accusing the network of defamation.
Persons:
Ray Epps, Mr, Epps, Epps’s, Edward J, Ungvarsky, Donald J, Trump, Tucker Carlson
Organizations:
Court, Capitol, Fox News, Republican
Locations:
Washington, Arizona, Utah