Woman accused of stealing Nancy Pelosi’s laptop met with man who planned to shoot up synagogue: prosecutor
Prosecutors filed a motion Friday asking a judge not to loosen restrictions on suspected Capitol rioter Riley Williams because they say she recently met with a man who wanted to shoot up a synagogue and lied about it.
Williams, 23, who is accused of directing rioters inside the Capitol and stealing Nancy Pelosi’s laptop, told probation officers she was getting a visit from her cousin in August. But the visit actually was from a man who had been convicted of stealing his roommate’s truck, and attempting to buy a gun with plans for a mass shooting at a synagogue, according to the motion.
Maria Y. Fedor, from the U.S. Attorney’s office in Washington D.C., filed the 13-page document Friday in response to Williams’ request last week for the court to loosen restrictions placed on her as she awaits trial because she said they are too burdensome.
Prosecutors say Williams also got her mother to lie to her probation officer about the visit by the man in August 2021 to her mother’s home, where she is residing, according to the motion. Williams’ mother was assigned by the court to be her third-party monitor to ensure she complies with the conditions of her pre-trial release.
The man was convicted, kicked out of the Marine Corps, and sentenced to 19 months in prison. He told Williams about his prior arrest, according to court documents. The records contained a foot note that the government believes the man at some point became her fiancé.
Williams previously made a video giving a Heil Hitler salute and making neo-Nazi statements, according to digital sleuths at the investigative website Bellingcat.
Fedor argued against any modification of Williams’ house arrest and ankle monitoring saying that Williams hasn’t been complying with her current requirements.
Williams has been in video contact with the man since the fall of 2020 even though she is prohibited from video calls with anyone but her attorney or mental health services. Her mother allowed her to use the mother’s iPad to conduct the calls, even though it is not allowed by the court, according to the document.
When watching TV on a Smart TV, Williams’s third-party custodian is supposed to monitor Williams’s use. Additionally, she was supposed to use a flip phone (or non-smart phone) for all other communication.
In addition, Williams isn’t complying with other pretrial requirements, Fedor wrote, including being late in turning in required weekly schedules and late returning home from approved appointments, according to the motion.
On May 26, for example, she was 38 minutes late in returning home but did not alert pretrial services that she was going to be late. Instead, her probation officer had to seek her out after she was 30 minutes late, Fedor wrote.
Williams’s motion said she “abided by the conditions of her pretrial supervision without incident or infraction for sixteen months” which even if true would not be a basis for moderation, according to Fedor.
“However, as noted above” she wrote, “Williams has blatantly violated her internet and electronic device restrictions, lied to pretrial services, and failed to comply with even the most basic terms of her conditions of release: adhering to her schedule and reporting in a timely fashion.”
Fedor said Williams was a strong candidate for pretrial detention but the government agreed to her release with the assigned conditions.
“Williams is charged with two felonies, including one that has a 20-year statutory maximum. The nature and circumstances of the charged conduct support stringent release conditions,” the motion said. “On January 6, 2021, Williams was surrounded by violence and destruction at the U.S. Capitol Building and willingly joined the fray. The evidence against her is strong, including her own statements on social media and in text messages, video recordings from publicly available sources, body worn camera videos, and CCTV footage.”
Editor’s Note: This article was updated to add information about neo-Nazi links.
New motion filed in Riley Williams case by Christine Vendel on Scribd
READ MORE:
Online sleuths link Harrisburg-area woman accused of stealing Nancy Pelosi’s laptop to neo-Nazi activism
Harrisburg woman formally charged with stealing Pelosi’s laptop in US capitol riot
‘Not that Riley Williams’: Mechanicsburg teen mistaken for woman arrested in U.S. Capitol riot
https://www.pennlive.com/news/2022/06/woman-accused-of-stealing-nancy-pelosis-laptop-met-with-man-who-planned-to-shoot-up-synagogue-prosecutor.html
Williams, 23, who is accused of directing rioters inside the Capitol and stealing Nancy Pelosi’s laptop, told probation officers she was getting a visit from her cousin in August. But the visit actually was from a man who had been convicted of stealing his roommate’s truck, and attempting to buy a gun with plans for a mass shooting at a synagogue, according to the motion.
Maria Y. Fedor, from the U.S. Attorney’s office in Washington D.C., filed the 13-page document Friday in response to Williams’ request last week for the court to loosen restrictions placed on her as she awaits trial because she said they are too burdensome.
Prosecutors say Williams also got her mother to lie to her probation officer about the visit by the man in August 2021 to her mother’s home, where she is residing, according to the motion. Williams’ mother was assigned by the court to be her third-party monitor to ensure she complies with the conditions of her pre-trial release.
The man was convicted, kicked out of the Marine Corps, and sentenced to 19 months in prison. He told Williams about his prior arrest, according to court documents. The records contained a foot note that the government believes the man at some point became her fiancé.
Williams previously made a video giving a Heil Hitler salute and making neo-Nazi statements, according to digital sleuths at the investigative website Bellingcat.
Fedor argued against any modification of Williams’ house arrest and ankle monitoring saying that Williams hasn’t been complying with her current requirements.
Williams has been in video contact with the man since the fall of 2020 even though she is prohibited from video calls with anyone but her attorney or mental health services. Her mother allowed her to use the mother’s iPad to conduct the calls, even though it is not allowed by the court, according to the document.
When watching TV on a Smart TV, Williams’s third-party custodian is supposed to monitor Williams’s use. Additionally, she was supposed to use a flip phone (or non-smart phone) for all other communication.
In addition, Williams isn’t complying with other pretrial requirements, Fedor wrote, including being late in turning in required weekly schedules and late returning home from approved appointments, according to the motion.
On May 26, for example, she was 38 minutes late in returning home but did not alert pretrial services that she was going to be late. Instead, her probation officer had to seek her out after she was 30 minutes late, Fedor wrote.
Williams’s motion said she “abided by the conditions of her pretrial supervision without incident or infraction for sixteen months” which even if true would not be a basis for moderation, according to Fedor.
“However, as noted above” she wrote, “Williams has blatantly violated her internet and electronic device restrictions, lied to pretrial services, and failed to comply with even the most basic terms of her conditions of release: adhering to her schedule and reporting in a timely fashion.”
Fedor said Williams was a strong candidate for pretrial detention but the government agreed to her release with the assigned conditions.
“Williams is charged with two felonies, including one that has a 20-year statutory maximum. The nature and circumstances of the charged conduct support stringent release conditions,” the motion said. “On January 6, 2021, Williams was surrounded by violence and destruction at the U.S. Capitol Building and willingly joined the fray. The evidence against her is strong, including her own statements on social media and in text messages, video recordings from publicly available sources, body worn camera videos, and CCTV footage.”
Editor’s Note: This article was updated to add information about neo-Nazi links.
New motion filed in Riley Williams case by Christine Vendel on Scribd
READ MORE:
Online sleuths link Harrisburg-area woman accused of stealing Nancy Pelosi’s laptop to neo-Nazi activism
Harrisburg woman formally charged with stealing Pelosi’s laptop in US capitol riot
‘Not that Riley Williams’: Mechanicsburg teen mistaken for woman arrested in U.S. Capitol riot
https://www.pennlive.com/news/2022/06/woman-accused-of-stealing-nancy-pelosis-laptop-met-with-man-who-planned-to-shoot-up-synagogue-prosecutor.html
