- The FBI says it infiltrated a militia-style group after tracking a suspect in the
Capitol riot . - New court documents say an undercover FBI agent befriended Fi Duong, 27, soon after the
riot . - Duong is accused of storming the Capitol, and a complaint describes his group's activities.
A man charged with storming the Capitol on January 6 is also said to have participated in a self-styled militia that referred to its meetings as "Bible study" and discussed surveilling the Capitol complex after the attack.
Fi Duong, 27, was released to home confinement on Friday after facing multiple charges, including disorderly conduct and obstruction of an official proceeding tied to the riot.
In a complaint made public Tuesday, the FBI says an undercover police officer encountered Duong at the Capitol on the day when supporters of President Donald Trump breached the building and clashed with law enforcement.
He described himself to the officer as an "operator," the complaint said, adding that evidence showed he was later spotted inside the building wearing a "Japanese-style mask."
The complaint said roughly a week later the undercover police officer connected Duong to an undercover FBI employee, who embedded himself with Duong's group.
Speaking with the FBI contact, Duong said that he was part of a militia-like "cloak and dagger" group that "can't be out in the open" and that his job was to find like-minded men to prepare for a "worst-case scenario" for Virginia, the complaint said.
-Jordan Fischer (@JordanOnRecord) July 6, 2021
The complaint said that Duong sent a message to the undercover FBI contact indicating one of "our guys" was "patrolling" outside the Capitol and that another group member later sent a message saying he took footage of the west and east sides of the Capitol and would upload it to an encrypted site.
On February 12, the FBI employee attended a meeting at Duoung's house, described as a "Bible study." The group, however, discussed only two Bible verses, the complaint said, with the rest of the meeting spent planning other meetings and talking about firearms and future training.
The complaint did not show any charges stemming from violence on January 6 but said Duong "repeatedly expressed his willingness to engage in conflict, including violence, against groups that shared different views than his own."
The documents also said he mused about freeing Capitol rioters from prison.
"I see that as an opportunity," the complaint quoted him as saying. ".With every great revolution, you go to the prisons and you break them out."
So far, 545 people have been charged in the Capitol insurrection.