A United States Air Force combat veteran has been booted out from work after he was reportedly identified as one of the rioters who stormed into the Capitol wearing a combat helmet, body armor and carrying zip-tie handcuffs, USA Today and other news sources reported Sunday.
The Texas-based Hillwood Airways on Saturday confirmed that retired Lt. Col. Larry Rendall Brock, Jr. had been fired after a report in the New Yorker that identified him as among protesters who tried to block the certification of President-elect Joe Biden's electoral votes.
John Scott-Railton, a senior researcher at Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto's Munk School, he notified the Federal Bureau of Investigation of Brock's identity, The New Yorker reported.
Scott-Railton said he used differenty types of techniques to hone in on Brock's identity, including the use of facial recognition software and image enhancement tools, "as well as seeking contextual clues from his military paraphernalia," TNY reported.
"The president asked for his supporters to be there to attend, and I felt like it was important, because of how much I love this country, to actually be there," TNY quoted him as saying, adding that the former serviceman said he had intended to do so peacefully.
Relatives and friends told TNY that Brock had become increasingly "radical," and that he shared on social media his plans to go to Washington D.C. to participate in Trump's rally.
Brock, a father of three, now resides in Dallas. He was pictured on the Senate floor during the Capitol assault after the rioters had breached past barricades, pushed back police and law enforcers and sent legislators scampering for safety.
Brock said he was the man in the video seen standing in the Senate chamber holding zip ties. He said he found them on the floor. "I wish I had not picked those up," he said in remarks quoted by multiple news organizations.
The FBI said it is seeking more information on the dozen other rioters who were spotted barging into the Capitol building. They mayhem left five including one police officer dead and several others injured.
The Air Force confirmed that Brock joined the military in 1989 and became part of the Air Force Reserve in 1998. He was an A-10 pilot until 2007 and retired in 2014. In a statement, the Air Force said that as a private citizen, they no longer have any jurisdiction over him.
