A Florida pastor who participated in the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 was arrested after one his own congregants turned him in to the FBI, WMNF reports.
James Cusick, Jr., the founder and pastor of the Global Outreach Church in Melbourne, Florida, was arrested this Thursday, along with his son, church vice-president Casey Cusick. As WMNF points out, the arrests come one week after Florida Democratic Rep. Charlie Crist called for an investigation into the state’s connection to the Capitol attack.
The pair were arrested after a tip from David Lesperance, who is a member of Global Outreach Church and was also arrested for partaking in the attack.
During an interview with agents, Lesperance refused to identify Cusick Jr. by name, saying that he traveled to D.C. with his pastor. However, investigators were able to use geolocation technology to link Lesperance to the Cusicks and track them down. Investigators also obtained a search warrant to retrieve videos and photos from phones belonging to the three men. They also obtained evidence from body cam footage that was taken by officers on Jan. 6.
The Cusicks have both been charged with “knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority, disorderly or disruptive conduct in a restricted building and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds,” according to MyNews13.
