Man Who Made ‘Video Manifesto’ Charged for Role in Jan. 6 Riot

A Massachusetts man has been arrested and charged with participating in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol, after investigators said he had recorded a video on his way there, predicting “mayhem, chaos and pandemonium” in order to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

The man, Thomas J. Method, 57, of Framingham, Mass., has been charged with obstruction of an official proceeding, which is a felony, according to federal prosecutors. He also faces misdemeanor charges, including entering or remaining in a restricted area without authority and disorderly conduct, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.

Mr. Method was arrested on Wednesday in Framingham, the statement said. It was not immediately clear whether he had a lawyer.

Investigators said Mr. Method’s words, texts, photographs and a video posted online led to the charges against him.

According to the criminal complaint and warrant, while traveling from Massachusetts to Washington, D.C., on Jan. 5, he made a “video manifesto,” in which he said he hoped “the strength in numbers and this movement will get more senators on board, and we can overthrow this.”

“I don’t care what happens as long as Trump maintains his presidency,” Mr. Method said in the video, according to the document. “I have a feeling it’s going to be mayhem, chaos and pandemonium.”

During the investigation, the complaint said, Mr. Method’s cellphone and email usage was traced to locations around the Capitol, including inside the building. “I was there,” he later said, when asked by an investigator, according to the charging document.

Investigators found video footage showing a man identified as Mr. Method entering the Capitol building among