FBI: Gubernatorial candidate Ryan Kelley arrested, home searched relating to Jan. 6

ALLENDALE, Mich. (WILX) - A Michigan candidate for governor of was arrested and charged in connection with the Jan. 6 Capitol Riot.

A Federal Bureau of Investigation representative confirmed with News 10 that Kelley was arrested and a search was executed at his home Thursday morning.

Kelley, 40, was among the Republican candidates looking to run in the 2022 August gubernatorial primary. He was seen at the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol, though he has said he didn’t go inside the building.

In a document to the magistrate, the FBI described the events they suspect Kelley of involvement in. In their filing, the FBI noted when they crowd pushed passed police on Jan. 6, forcing their way into the Capitol and interrupting the peaceful transfer of power in the United States.

“Around 2:00 p.m., individuals in the crowd forced entry into the U.S. Capitol, including by breaking windows and by assaulting members of the U.S. Capitol Police, as others in the crowd encouraged and assisted those acts,” Bureau representatives wrote. “Shortly thereafter, at approximately 2:20 p.m. members of the United States House of Representatives and United States Senate, including the President of the Senate, Vice President Mike Pence, were instructed to—and did—evacuate the chambers.”

Bureau representatives said an anonymous tipster pointed them toward pictures of Kelley in the crowd.

Ryan Kelley arrested in relation to Jan 6 riot. (WILX)

The FBI filing said that on January 16, 2021, a person from Michigan submitted an anonymous tip to the FBI National Threat Operations Center (NTOC) via their website, which identified that Ryan Kelley was at the Capitol attack on January 6, 2021.

“The tipster provided photos of who they believed was Ryan D. Kelley (KELLEY) at the Capitol on January 6, 2021,” they wrote. “The information provided by the tipster showed KELLEY at the U.S. Capitol wearing a black coat, a backwards black baseball cap with a rectangular U.S. flag emblem above the bill, and aviator sunglasses.”

The FBI said that Kelley was arrested on misdemeanor charges relating to that day, including Knowingly Entering or Remaining in any Restricted Building or Grounds Without Lawful Authority, Disorderly and Disruptive Conduct in a Restricted Building or Grounds Knowingly Engage in any Act of Physical Violence Against Person or Property in any Restricted Building or Grounds and Willfully injure or commit any Depredation Against any Property of the United States.

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