Capitol rioter who ‘chugged’ wine from Senate office is arrested

Jason Riddle told FBI officials he 'walked into an office and found an open bottle of wine' and 'poured himself a glass.'

Biba Adams

Feb 9, 2021

Jason Riddle was arrested Monday in Boston in connection with the deadly insurrection on Jan. 6 in the Capitol Building.

Riddle, of Keene, New Hampshire, was charged with illegally entering a restricted building, violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds and theft of government property. The 32-year-old man told the FBI that he “walked into an office and found an open bottle of wine” and “poured himself a glass.”

Capitol rioter Jason Riddle — Jason Riddle, of Keene, New Hampshire, was charged with illegally entering a restricted building, violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds and theft of government property. (FBI)

Riddle, a military veteran, told an NBC affiliate station in Boston in an interview that he believed the results of the 2020 presidential election were wrong.

“He’s winning the election when I go to sleep, and then I wake up and, somehow, he’s magically losing now?” he said. Riddle told the station he was surprised that the events at the Capitol turned violent.

“They were smashing computers and printers and breaking things and throwing papers and lamps around,” he said. When asked why he went inside during the melee, he replied, “I had to see it.”

He also said he had no regrets about his participation.

Riddle bragged that when he found the bottle of wine in a lawmaker’s office, “I chugged it and got out of there.” He did not say whose office he entered. According to the FBI complaint, Riddle also confessed to stealing a copy of “Senate Procedure” from the office. He told the FBI he sold the book to someone outside the Capitol Building for $40.

Before the siege attempt, Riddle was a mail carrier for the U.S. Postal Service. He resigned from his position last month. He was previously a corrections officer at a state prison. He also announced that he would be running for Cheshire County Commissioner, an office he’s unsuccessfully sought before.

As of Monday, 237 people have been arrested in connection with the siege at the Capitol, which left five people dead.

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