Mississippi father and son charged in connection with Jan. 6 riots

A Mississippi father and son were arrested on felony charges Thursday for their actions during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, the Department of Justice said.

Toney Sheldon Bray, 46, and his son Ethan Bray, 25, of Blue Springs, face multiple charges after they breached police barricades and joined a mob that stormed the Capitol after former President Donald Trump’s defeat in the 2020 election.

Both are charged with obstruction of law enforcement during a civil disorder, a felony, knowingly entering or 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. Toney Bray is also charged with theft of government property.

Court documents say the Brays joined the first breach of police barricades, pushed and climbed over police barriers and were among the first to confront law enforcement on the staircase that leads from the Capitol’s West Plaza to the Lower West Terrace.

The DOJ said Capitol CCTV footage captured the Brays wearing gas masks and entering the Rotunda. They remained in the Capitol for 32 minutes and footage also shows Toney Bray carrying a Capitol Police riot shield as he exited the Rotunda and again after he left the Capitol building.

The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Mississippi also provided assistance.

The two have made an initial appearance in the Northern District of Mississippi.

The Brays’ cases come after 1,000 people have been charged with crimes relating to the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

An investigation is ongoing.