CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (WNCT) — Three Marines, one from Camp Lejeune, have been arrested for their participation in the Jan. 6 riot that happened at the U.S. Capitol in 2021.
Military.com and The Associated Press report Dodge Dale Hellonen was arrested Wednesday at Camp Lejeune on four charges related to the mob incident that took place on the same day of the certification of Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential election. He is a sergeant assigned to the 3rd Marine Raider Support Battalion.
The Hill: Three active duty US Marines charged in Jan. 6 riot
The other Marines arrested on Wednesday were Micah Coomer and Joshua Abate. Coomer is a corporal assigned to 1st Radio Battalion I Marine Expeditionary Force Information Group at Camp Pendleton in California. Abate is a sergeant assigned to the Marine Corps’ Cryptologic Support Battalion at Fort Meade, Md., Military.com reports.
No defense lawyers for the men were listed in the court docket, so it was not immediately clear whether they have attorneys to comment on their behalf, the Associated Press reports.
The news of the three arrests comes from court documents that were unsealed on Thursday, according to multiple media outlets. Their charges include knowingly entering a restricted building, two counts of disorderly conduct and parading or picketing inside the U.S. Capitol.
The AP reports the three men spent about 52 minutes inside the Capitol, authorities say. At one point while in the rotunda, they put a red “Make American Great Again” hat on a statue to take pictures with it, according to court papers. Hellonen was carrying a “Don’t Tread on Me” flag, authorities said.
Coomer posted photos on Instagram that appeared to be taken inside the Capitol with the caption “Glad to be apart of history,” according to court documents. Days after the 2020 election, he and another person discussed over Instagram message how he believed the election was rigged.
And in late January 2021, he told another person in a message that “everything in this country is corrupt.”
“We honestly need a fresh restart. I’m waiting for the boogaloo,” Coomer wrote in a message detailed in court documents. When asked by the person what’s “a boogaloo,” Coomer responded “Civil war 2,” authorities said.
The boogaloo is an anti-government, pro-gun extremist movement. Its name is a reference to a slang term for a sequel — in this case, a second U.S. civil war. The movement is named after “Breakin’ 2: Electric Boogaloo,” a 1984 sequel to a movie about breakdancing.
Supporters have shown up at protests over COVID-19 lockdown orders and protests over racial injustice, carrying rifles and wearing tactical gear over Hawaiian shirts. The shirts are a reference to “big luau,” a riff on the term “boogaloo” sometimes favored by group members.
During an interview related to his security clearance in June, Abate acknowledged walking through the Capitol with two “buddies,” investigators said. Abate said they “walked around and tried not to get hit with tear gas.”
