State College man accused of assaulting U.S. Capitol Police officer who died after riot
A State College man was accused Sunday of assaulting the U.S. Capitol Police officer who died after the riot, but federal prosecutors do not yet know whether it caused the officer’s death.
Julian Khater, 32, was one of two men accused of conspiring to injure U.S. Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick during the Jan. 6 riot. George Tanios, 39, of West Virginia, was also charged.
Khater, the second State College resident known to face charges related to the Capitol riot, was arrested Sunday in New Jersey. He was accused of spraying Sicknick and other officers in the face with a chemical substance.
“Give me that bear (expletive),” prosecutors quoted Khater telling Tanios as they approached officers standing guard behind metal bike racks.
Khater pulled a canister from Tanios’ backpack, aimed it in the officers’ direction from less than eight feet away and spraying while moving his arm side to side, prosecutors wrote a charging document.
Three officers — including Sicknick — immediately retreated, brought their hands to their face and rushed to wash their eyes with water, prosecutors wrote.
Sicknick, 42, died Jan. 7 after defending the Capitol against the mob that stormed the building as Congress attempted to certify Joe Biden’s victory over former President Donald Trump.
Sicknick’s cause of death has not been determined. He was injured while “physically engaging with protesters,” Capitol Police wrote in a statement.
Khater and Tanios were each charged with three counts of assault on a federal officer with a dangerous weapon and one count each of conspiracy to injure an officer, civil disorder, obstructing or impeding an official proceeding, physical violence on restricted grounds and violent entry and disorderly conduct.
Defense lawyer Steven Altman, who represents Khater, declined to comment Tuesday.
The FBI identified Khater after receiving a tip from someone who said they worked with him at “a fast food restaurant in State College,” prosecutors wrote. He owned Frutta Bowls in downtown State College, which has since closed.
It was not immediately clear how Khater ended up at the Capitol.
The Centre County Republican Party organized a bus trip to the building, which was joined by about 100 people. Nobody who was part of the journey participated in violence, Chairwoman Kris Eng has said.
This story was originally published March 15, 2021 at 1:47 PM.