MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A Memphis man was arrested in connection to the U.S. Capitol riot last week.
Matthew Bledsoe was arrested by the FBI Friday morning and charged with knowingly entering a restricted building without lawful authority, along with violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.
A federal warrant reveals FBI agents received a tip that Bledsoe, a Memphis resident, was part of the group that entered the Capitol illegally.
Authorities shared pictures they say is Bledsoe on the Capitol lawn and then on top of the Capitol’s exterior wall. They say video evidence shows Bledsoe storming the capitol building with others, yelling “We paid for this!”, and demanding to know where lawmakers were.
Bledsoe passes through the outer door of the Capitol and into the hallway in one video, as a crowd marches through chanting, “Stop the steal! Stop the steal,” the warrant states.
The FBI said they also observed a since-deleted post from Bledsoe’s wife on Facebook, where she wrote, “Matt was inside the Capitol, he was one of the first… my husband is a Patriot soldier.”
WREG tried to question Bledsoe about his role in the violent protest last week before his arrest, but he drove away without speaking to our crew.
Bledsoe made his first appearance in federal court this morning. According to legal documents, Bledsoe faces fines and prison time if convicted.
Bledsoe is the second Tennessee resident to be arrested and charged in connection with the riots at the U.S. Capitol. Eric Munchel, a Nashville man who became known as “Zip Tie Guy,” was arrested last weekend in Davidson County on charges of knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.
