On Thursday, the FBI raided the home of Michigan Republican gubernatorial candidate Ryan Kelley and have taken him into custody.
Kelley was arrested on misdemeanor charges coming from the investigation from the January 6, 2021, Capitol committee, said Detroit FBI spokeswoman Mara Schneider.
Kelley was charged 17 months after the events of January 6, and his arrest came on the same day of the televised committee hearings investigating the Capitol breach.
As reported by Bridge Michigan, Chris Kelley, a relative of Ryan and the campaign’s treasurer, said he knew about the law enforcement raid but did not have any further comments on the matter.
According to a criminal complaint obtained by Fox News, Kelly is being charged with five misdemeanor offenses. One of the charges is entering into restricted building or grounds without lawful authority for allegedly climbing onto the Capitol steps. According to Jonathan Oosting for the Bridge, Kelley says he did not go into the Capitol building that day.
Ryan Kelley is the owner of a real estate firm and founded the American Patriot Council. He’s become infamous for holding large rallies outside the Michigan state capitol protesting mandated lock downs enforced by Democrat Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
On his campaign website, Kelley said that he “guarded a Civil War Statue in his hometown of Allendale as it was threatened to be taken down by BLM and Antifa.”
During January 6, 2021, Kelley is allegedly seen on video yelling at protesters to go inside the Capitol while climbing the scaffolding outside.
According to court records, Kelley is being charged with the following misdemeanor charges with a punishment of up to a year:
- Knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority
- Disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds
- Knowingly engaging in any act of physical violence against person or property in any restricted building or grounds
- Willfully injuring or committing any depredation against any property of the United States
According to a May poll, Kelley is leading in the GOP primary at 19 percent. However, 49 percent of republicans are still undecided in the primary to take place later this year.
A Kelley supporter named Jason Briscoe interviewed by Bridge Michigan called the FBI raid on the candidate “suspicious.”
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“If we don’t stand up, we’re going to lose our elections and then we’re gonna lose our country,” he said.
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