A 60-year-old New York man has pleaded guilty to assaulting police officers using a wasp-killer spray and assaulting journalists during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced Thursday.
Peter Moloney was part of the first group to break through the restricted perimeter at the Capitol on Jan. 6 and was among the first to come face-to-face with U.S. Capitol Police officers, who then spent the next couple of hours fending off attacks from thousands of rioters.
As part of a plea deal to avoid jail time, Moloney pleaded guilty to one felony count of assaulting, resisting and impeding certain officers, and to one misdemeanor charge of assault by striking.
He agreed to pay restitution to a journalist whose camera Moloney broke and to the Architect of the Capitol for damage done that day, according to the DOJ. U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols presided over the plea hearing and will sentence Moloney on Feb. 11.
Moloney traveled to Washington from his home in Bayport, N.Y., before attending then-President Trump’s “Stop the Steal” rally ahead of the Capitol attack. He brought protective gear, including a bicycle helmet, protective eyewear, hard-knuckled gloves, a face mask and a can of “Black Flag Wasp, Hornet, & Yellow Jacket Killer” aerosol spray, according to court documents.
Moloney put on his protective gear as he marched toward the Capitol and was part of the first group of people to enter the restricted area blocked by the perimeter. He was among the first to line up in front of the Capitol Police officers on the West Plaza.
“As tensions rose,” according to the DOJ, “Moloney pulled the can of wasp spray from his backpack and kept it in close proximity.”
He then, on “multiple occasions,” held the wasp spray, aimed it at police and sprayed them, the DOJ release said. The spray made “contact” with the officers’ “hands, arms, bodies and hands,” according to the release.
Moloney admitted to assaulting two individuals on two separate occasions who he “believed were members of the news media,” according to the court documents. At one point, he approached a journalist from behind as he was carrying a camera.
Moloney reached forward to grab the journalist’s hand and “yanked it back in an attempt to pull the camera out of the victim’s hands. This act caused the victim to stumble on a flight of stairs,” the DOJ said.
Since the Jan. 6 insurrection, the DOJ has charged more than 1,532 individuals for related crimes. That total includes the more than 571 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, which is a felony.