South Carolina Man Arrested for Assault on Law Enforcement During Jan. 6 Capitol Breach

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Thursday April 15^th, the District of Columbia unsealed a complaint against Nicholas Languerand, 26, of Little River, South Carolina, for assaulting law enforcement and destroying government property during the Jan. 6 Capitol breach, among other charges.

Languerand was arrested on April 15^th and made his initial appearance in the District of South Carolina. Languerand is charged with assaulting, resisting, or impeding an officer using a dangerous weapon; civil disorder and aiding and abetting; theft of government property and aiding and abetting; knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority using a dangerous weapon; and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.

According to court documents, Languerand was involved in attempts to interfere with uniformed police who were on duty protecting the U.S. Capitol building from rioters. As depicted in publicly available video and photos reviewed by the FBI, Languerand can be seen in the Lower West Terrace tunnel throwing a variety of objects at law enforcement, including what appears to be a traffic barrier, can of pepper spray and stick-like object. At approximately 5:02 p.m., Languerand was captured on video holding a police shield and hitting it against the ground.

This case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Counterterrorism Section of the U.S. Department of Justice’s National Security Division, with assistance from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of South Carolina.

The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office, along with the Metropolitan Police Department and the U.S. Capitol Police. Valuable assistance in this matter was provided by the FBI’s Columbia, South Carolina, Field Office.

Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.

A complaint is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.