Ray Epps, Jan. 6 rioter who was subject of conspiracy theories, pleads guilty
WASHINGTON — A man who became the target of far-right conspiracy theories after his image was added and then removed from the FBI’s Capitol Violence website has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge in connection with the Jan. 6 attack.
Ray Epps pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor count, disorderly or disruptive conduct on restricted grounds, during a hearing before U.S. District Chief Judge James Boasberg in Washington. Epps appeared virtually, via Zoom.
Epps became the target of dozens of segments by former Fox News host Tucker Carlson.
The conspiracy theory posited that a man pictured on the FBI’s website was a government agent and that Jan. 6 was a “false flag” event encouraged by the FBI. Even now, more than two-and-a-half years after the Capitol attack, more than 100 people whose photos are featured on the FBI’s website have been identified but not yet arrested.
Epps, according to the FBI, was not and never has been an asset of the bureau. In an interview with the Jan. 6 committee last year, Epps said the “crazy” conspiracy theories had torn apart his life.
Like thousands of others, Epps was on the restricted grounds of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. Video of Epps from the night of Jan. 5 shows him saying that Trump supporters should go inside the Capitol, and video on Jan. 6 shows him urging Trump supporters to go to the Capitol. Later, once a riot breaks out, video shows Epps trying to calm tensions between police and protesters. Most of the charged Jan. 6 defendants either entered the Capitol itself or committed violence or destruction outside, placing Epps in a small category of Jan. 6 participants charged despite never entering the building or engaging in destructive or assaultive conduct.
Last month, the FBI arrested a St. Louis man named Rally Runner who — Tucker Carlson viewers were told in late 2021 — was “clearly a law enforcement officer” and an “agent provocateur” who only dressed up as a Trump supporter to make other Trump supporters look bad. In reality, Runner was a huge fan of both Trump and Carlson.
