A man running for former Republican Rep. George Santos seat in Congress was convicted on charges relating to the Jan. 6 Capitol riot on Tuesday.
Philip Sean Grillo, 49, of Queens, New York, was found guilty of five charges by a federal jury in Washington, D.C, according to a press release from the Justice Department.
He was convicted of misdemeanor offenses of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly conduct in a Capitol building, and parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building. He was also found guilty of obstruction of an official proceeding which is a felony.
Grillo was “at the front of a group of rioters facing the police line” on the West Plaza of the Capitol. He entered the building through a broken window and carried a megaphone, according to the Justice Department.
While inside the Capitol he stopped for an interview on camera and was asked why he was there.
“I’m here to stop the steal. It’s our f***ing House!” he responded.
Grillo also made several recordings of himself inside the Capitol building. In one video he was smoking marijuana and in another he said, “We f***ing did it! We got to the Capitol building. We f***ing did it! We f***ing did it, baby! We f***ing did it, you understand? We stormed the Capitol. We shut it down! We did it!”.
Grillo was arrested by the FBI in New York on Feb. 23. 2021.
He is one of several candidates running to replace Santos who was expelled from Congress last week over federal criminal charges and accusations of misusing campaign cash. At his trial, Grillo testified that he had “no idea” Congress met inside the Capitol building.
More than 1,230 individuals have been charged with crimes relating to the Jan. 6 insurrection so far, according to the Justice Department.
