Former Detroit Lions linebacker charged with assaulting police Jan. 6 – WEIS

(WASHINGTON) — A former NFL quarterback who played for the Detroit Lions has been charged for his alleged role in a series of attacks on law enforcement officers during Attack on January 6 at the Capitol, court records show.

Leander Antvione Williams, 31, was arrested Thursday in the first recent Capitol trespassing case brought by federal prosecutors since Election Day.

According to a criminal complaint filed last week, his charges include assault on officers, disorderly conduct and disorderly conduct at the Capitol building.

According to public reports, Williams was a fifth-round draft pick of the Detroit Lions in 2016 and also played linebacker for the XFL’s DC Defenders.

In an indictment unsealed Thursday after his arrest in Savannah, Georgia, prosecutors detailed how Williams allegedly joined a pro-Trump mob, engaging in several violent confrontations with officers trying to protect the Capitol.

In one incident, Williams was caught on a police body camera pulling bike racks away from a police line before striking an officer in the head, according to the complaint. Another video shows Williams grabbing and pulling two officers who appeared to be trying to push him away, according to the complaint.

According to the complaint, the FBI finally identified Williams after a series of tips dating back to December 2022. According to the complaint, agents finally confirmed his identity in the photos using a branded key ring he was wearing on a belt loop during the riots, which they compared to other photos from his social media profiles.

Williams has not entered a plea to the criminal charges he is currently facing, and as of Thursday, no attorney was listed to represent him.

His arrest is further evidence that the Justice Department plans to continue to prosecute those found guilty of the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, despite the election of former President Donald Trump, who has announced his intention to pardon or commute the sentences of his followers. who have joined the attack when he takes office in January.

Prosecutors from the DCUS attorney’s office have spent the past week arguing against a wave of filings since Jan. 6 that accused defendants trying to delay their cases in hopes of being pardoned when Trump takes office. In most, but not all, cases, these requests are not granted by the judges hearing their cases.