SAN ANTONIO — A Bexar County resident was arrested last week for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, according to the United States Department of Justice.
Steven Cappuccio, 52, of Universal City, Texas, is charged with federal offenses that include assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers; obstruction of an official proceeding; and civil disorder, among other charges, the DOJ said.
Cappuccio is also charged with robbery and aiding and abetting, and disorderly and disruptive conduct on restricted grounds with a dangerous weapon. He was arrested on Aug. 10 and made his initial court appearance the following day.
Court documents reveal Cappuccio was at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. Body-worn camera footage allegedly captured him on the lower west terrace. DOJ says video appears to show Cappuccio push past officers that were guarding Capitol doors inside the tunnel and "violently ripped off the mask of an officer pinned against the doors by other rioters."
DOJ alleges Cappuccio was seen grabbing the officer’s mask and yanking on it with what appears to be a significant amount of force. Video footage appears to show Cappuccio with a baton as he pulled on the officer’s mask. The officer was then crushed in between a doorway and riot shield, without his gas mask, while screaming and yelling for help with his mouth bloodied.
The arrest warrant lists the victim as "D.H., an officer from the Metropolitan Police Department."
Video from the day of the incident shows an MPD officer by the name of Daniel Hodges as suffering from the same injuries, at the same location, consistent with the description of the assault Cappuccio was allegedly involved in.
In the seven months since Jan. 6, more than 570 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including over 170 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains ongoing.