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Over 535 charged over the Capitol riot. The FBI is hunting for more suspects 6 months later.
A Virginia man charged over the deadly U.S. Capitol riot told an undercover FBI agent he belonged to a militia-style group that had explosives and surveilled the building a month after the insurrection, per a court filing unsealed Tuesday.
The big picture: Fi Duong, 27, who allegedly told the agent the group referred to their meetings as "Bible study," is one of more than 535 defendants arrested in nearly 50 states, the Department of Justice said in a statement marking six months since the Capitol was stormed.
- The destruction caused about $1.5 million in damage to the U.S. Capitol, according to the DOJ.
Zoom in: Duong was charged with illegally entering the Capitol, obstructing an official proceeding and disorderly conduct following his arrest Friday.
- According to an undercover agent cited in the court filing, Duong attended meetings in which there were multiple firearms and boxes of ammunition and other materials — including 50 glass bottles for molotov cocktails.
- He also discussed materials that the agent believed was "referring to making bombs using a chemical compound known as CS gas," according to the court filing.
Of note: Per the filing, an unnamed associate asked Duong during an exchange on an encrypted messaging platform on Feb. 13: "How do we feel about an intel run around the Capitol tonight?"
- Duong allegedly responded, "Fewer of them out. Posture may be lowered. Good opportunity to expose weaknesses. Poke and prod. But have a legitimate reason to go. Visit a restaurant or something."
- On March 20, Duong introduced a man he described as a member of the far-right anti-government militia the Three Percenters, which has been designated a terrorist entity in Canada.
- Several people who've identified themselves as members of the Three Percenters have been charged with conspiracy in the Jan. 6 Capitol attack.
What to watch: The FBI is still searching for riot suspects and released 11 videos on Tuesday of people seen forcefully attacking law enforcement officers that they are seeking to identify.
What they're saying: "As we mark six months since the violence at our nation’s Capitol, we continue to encourage the public to send tips to the FBI," said Steven M. D’Antuono, assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, in a statement.
- "As we have seen with dozens of cases so far, the tips matter."
Vice President Harris will chair the National Space Council
The Biden administration will keep the National Space Council — reestablished initially by the Trump administration — and Vice President Kamala Harris plans to chair it.
Why it matters: Many see the National Space Council as integral to policy development and inter-agency collaboration as the nation increasingly relies on space for national security and other uses.
Details: The council is designed to bring NASA and a variety of other government agencies together to help establish policies related to civil, commercial and military space.
- "The council's basic objectives — national security, basic science, technological development, contributions to U.S. economic growth and the commercial sector — will all be maintained," a senior administration official said during a call with reporters Saturday. "To that, I would just want to add that the vice president also intends to put her own personal stamp on the council."
- That includes an emphasis on STEM, climate change and "sustainable development of commercial space activity," the official noted.
The big picture: The Biden administration has largely kept Trump-era space policies intact so far, supporting the Space Force and NASA's Artemis mission to send people back to the Moon as a proving ground for Mars.
- But senior administration officials did draw a distinction between how the National Space Council was run under Vice President Mike Pence and how it might be operate under Harris.
- "I think her approach to this is just going to be to get the job done, and use this to lead our space policy, and not really focus, perhaps as much on big displays," the official said.
What's next: It's unclear when the first meeting of the council will be convened, but senior administration officials said that a top priority now is finding an executive secretary to help run the council day to day.



