A California man charged with assaulting police during the Capitol riot has fled the US to Belarus, officials say

• A man who was charged with assaulting police during the January 6 riot has fled to Belarus, officials say.
• Evan Neumann, a 49-year-old from California, was indicted on 14 counts related to the Capitol riot.

A California man who has been charged with assaulting police and other crimes related to the January 6 Capitol riot has fled to Belarus, officials say.

Evan Neumann, 49, of Mill Valley was charged with 14 counts relating to the January 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, including assaulting police officers. Charges against him include engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds, civil disorder, and assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers.

While Neumann was initially charged on March 23, he hasn't appeared in court. Authorities said he fled from the U.S. on February 16 and is currently believed to be in Belarus, according to the press release. A warrant has been issued for his arrest.

According to court documents, Neumann was "verbally abusing law enforcement attempting to protect the building" for about 30 minutes on January 6. At one point, he said law enforcement would be "overrun" by the pro-Trump mob, adding "I'm willing to die, are you?"

He then "grabbed a metal barricade with his hand and shoved it into the line of officers," according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office of the District of Columbia.

"After striking the officers with the barricade and also with his fist, Neumann, now joined by others, broke down the barricades. He then used the barricade as a battering ram, rushing toward the officers," the press release reads.

Over the course of the day, Neumann assaulted one Capitol police officer and three Metropolitan Police Department officers, according to the press release.

In an interview with Belarus state television in November, Neumann claimed he fled the country because he was afraid of being tortured in the American justice system. He later told Russian state media that he was interviewed by the FBI at the airport and let go.

At least 719 people have been charged in the Capitol insurrection, and only a fraction of them have pleaded guilty thus far.